The indigenous peoples of New England left an indelible mark on the landscape through their creation of a variety of stone structures reflecting their deeply held spiritual beliefs. This hike in Hopkington, Rhode Island will feature two separate ceremonial sites just a few minutes drive apart. The main site is one of the most amazing ceremonial sites in the state, consisting of over a thousand cairns in perhaps 10 acres, while the second site features other types of constructions found throughout New England. Documentary photographer Markham Starr will lead the walk. Hike is easy but wear sturdy footwear. Walking sticks are recommended. Bring your own bottle of water or beverage. 

This walk is full. Send an email to be put on the wait list. Space limited to 15. Email education@lymelandtrust.org

Native Americans built several distinct types of structures in our area, ranging from cairns to stone serpent effigies, and these spiritual offerings remain standing in now long abandoned woods. While Native American stonework is widely recognized out west and to the south, New England’s stonework remains obscure, having blended back into the woods. We will walk about two miles.

Markham Starr is a documentary photographer concerned with the disappearing working cultures of New England. He is the author of a dozen books, providing glimpses into the lives of people such as commercial fishermen, farmers, and cannery workers, and has written about other subjects such as historic barns in Connecticut. His work has appeared in national magazines and is part of the permanent collection at the Library of Congress and other museums throughout New England.

Join us for a work party as part of habitat management to encourage healthy native plants in a small meadow. Learn about meadow management and how to identify invasive and native plants.We will focus on removing woody invasive species from the field edges.  We will be working on winged euonymous (aka burning bush), autumn olive and barberry, and creating brush piles from the material that will be cut. The effort will benefit native woody shrubs and trees, including highbush blueberry, spicebush, ironwood and more.

Tools needed for the morning will be lopping shears, hand pruners,  hand saws, and chainsaws.  Please bring water and work gloves and be sure to wear long sleeves and long pants. Snacks will be provided. 

Please Register:
openspace@townlyme.org Wendy Hill, Town of Lyme Open Space Coordinator

Sponsored by the Town of Lyme, The Nature Conservancy, and the Lyme Land Trust.

Directions:
From the north, travel Route 82 to Route 156; take Route 156 south for 2 miles to right on MacIntosh Road; travel 0.25 mile on MacIntosh Road, and parking for the preserve will be on the right.
From the south, in Old Lyme, take exit 70 off of I-95. From the intersection of Route 1 and Route 156, travel north on Route 156 approximately 6 miles, and take a left onto MacIntosh Road; travel 0.25 mile on MacIntosh Road, and parking for the preserve will be on the right.   

Join Jim Natale, naturalist and amateur botanist, on a ramble through Johnston Preserve to identify all types of plants, focusing on spring ephemerals and mosses. Jim, who is an expert identifier, has been submitting observations to the iNaturalist app for six years. He has logged an amazing 39,291 observations. On the walk, he will demonstrate how you can upload your observations to support the Wild Lyme Project and its mission to catalog and compare the biodiversity of preserves protected by the Town of Lyme, The Nature Conservancy, and the Lyme Land Trust. Participants wishing to record observations to iNat should bring a smartphone, camera, or both. All skill levels are welcome, from experienced to those who have never used the iNaturalist app.

Space is limited. Register: education@lymelandtrust.org

Jim Natale is owner of Wilder Gardens, LLC, whose mission is to establish a regional native plant garden community, exposing the people to the beauty of our natural world and promoting the stewardship of our natural areas for the benefit of wildlife and mankind.

This event is part of the Lyme Land Trust Wild Lyme Project. You are welcome to join the Mini-Bioblitz team to be part of more events like this.

Bird migration is in full swing, so we will listen for birdsong and look for birds along the gentle-to-moderate 2.5-mile walk through mixed and deciduous forest. Binoculars will be good to bring, but are not essential.

Register: Jim.arrigoni@lymelandtrust.org

View the Tuesday Trek Schedule

April showers bring May flowers. What do May flowers bring… Pilgrims! I doubt we will see any pilgrims on this 1.75 mile hike in the center of Lyme, but I am looking forward to a hilly hike with some lookouts and early habitation sites. With luck we might also see some May flowers!

Contact: ryan.p.quinn@gmail.com

View the Tuesday Trek Schedule

Sponsored with the Lyme’s Senior Center.

View the Take-a-Walk Wednesday Schedule

The unique natural, historic and archeological features in Hartman Park make it a delight to explore. We will look for spring wildflowers. About 2 miles. 

Directions: The parking lot is about 1.5 miles north of  the intersection of Gungy Rd, Beaver Brook Rd, and Grassy Hill Rd. In Lyme. From the Hall’s Rd Old Lyme traffic light, travel north on 156 for 6.6 miles. Turn right onto Beaver Brook Rd and travel 2.7 to left at intersection.  

The Tree Collective is a program designed to engage young conservationists ages 14-18 in outdoor fun and education while working to maintain trails in our beautiful town of Lyme, CT. It is sponsored by the Lyme Land Trust under the leadership of environmentalist/artist Regan Stacey. Each time we meet, we offer a different topic, often with a hike and trail work in a selected preserve.

Tools and gloves provided.

For more information. 

Registration required: reganstacey@gmail.com.

Click on flyer to enlarge.

Meet at Selden Creek Preserve parking on Joshuatown Road. We will walk up the ravine, to the overlooks and then circle back through Brockway Hawthorne. 2.5 miles.  Arduous in some areas.

Register: kristina.white@lymelandtrust.org

View the Tuesday Trek Schedule

Stone wall interpretation provides new opportunities to thread together historical, archaeological, aesthetic, geological, and ecological interests. Historically, the walls are important adjuncts to the thousands of historic houses and buildings, cemeteries, battlegrounds, and monuments throughout the region. Archaeologically, they are above-ground ruins. Aesthetically, they convey essential themes in literature and art. Psychologically, they provide boundaries in space and time. Geologically, they are signature land forms for the Anthropocene epoch, the counterpart to the babbling brooks, inland wetlands, coastal dunes, kettle ponds, and bedrock ledges of the postglacial Holocene Epoch. Ecologically, they create dry lands as porous, elevated, and elongate volumes of surface stone that drain quickly.

These words by Robert Thorson convey the importance of New England’s unique stone walls, and he is the authoritative expert, having written the book (Stone by Stone: The Magnificent History in New England’s Stone Walls) back in 2002. His urgent mission is the preservation of these ubiquitous structures: a step wise approach to the conservation and interpretation of New England’s stone walls that considers these diverse values while also remaining respectful of the presence of Indigenous stonework in the landscapes. We invite you to come and explore these ideas with Dr. Thorson in this fascinating talk – it’s one you won’t want to miss!

Robert Thorson has advised countless federal, state, and town governments, non-profit historical societies, conservation groups, law practices, and private landowners. In a 2023 Smithsonian essay he linked the history of stone walls to literature, ecology, climate change and geoscience, an article selected by the History News Network for the “Best History Writing of 2023.” At the University of Connecticut, he coordinates the Stone Wall Initiative as scholarly engagement within the Connecticut State Museum of Natural History. For three decades he’s been a stump evangelist for the preservation of New England’s historic landscapes.

Co-sponsored with the Lyme Public Hall

Young or old, experienced, or totally unfamiliar, we look forward to exposing you to our uniquely dark skies here in Lyme. We have several different telescopes that are on display including a 14″ Schmidt-Cassegrain housed in a permanent observatory.

Registration required. Upon registration you will receive a link to directions and observing session guidelines.

For more information and to register: Astronomy Events

Mt Archer Woods, a town-owned preserve in Lyme, has been recognized by Audubon’s Bird-Friendly Maple program for forest management that supports songbirds in the sugarbush, the forest area where maple sap is collected by Fat Stone Farm. In celebration of this honor, Audubon forester Rosa Goldman will lead a tour to explain the Bird-Friendly Maple program and how Mt Archer came to be recognized. We will visit various examples of habitat, and learn about the birds they support.

Space is limited on the walk. Please Register: openspace@townlyme.org

Through the Bird-Friendly Maple project (a collaborative effort between Audubon, Cornell, the New York State Maple Producers Association, and the Maple Syrup Producers Association of Connecticut), the Mount Archer Woods sugarbush is managed in ways that provide more resilient bird habitat. An Audubon bird habitat assessment and recommendations for future management are provided for each property in the program. 

Fat Stone Farm has been collecting organic sap from the maple trees on an approximately 32-acre area in Mt Archer Woods for ten years through a lease agreement with the Town of Lyme. Fat Stone Farm is located in Lyme, a short distance (as the crow flies) from the Preserve. Their syrup is available in local stores, at farmers markets, and online. Mt Archer Woods is a 275-acre preserve that is part of a larger block of about 2000 acres of preserved property including the River-to Ridges-Preserves and conservation easements on adjacent private properties. 

Co-sponsored by the Lyme Land Trust and Town of Lyme. 

Walk the Family Faery Quest Loop, search for fairies and visit the Fairy Circle. Click here to see the Faery Quest map. Meet at the Main entrance to Hartman Park on Gungy Rd.

Join Tori and family on the 4th Sunday of every month for a “mile-ish” hike geared towards families with children under 5, but no age limit!

Kindly email vharris1391@gmail.com to register.

Tori is a Mom of two littles – Kade, 4 yrs, and Quinn, 1 yr. Hiking and wandering in the local preserves, has really given her family the safe space to let Kade run loose and has a calming effect on Quinn. Working full time, volunteering in many organizations and finding time to enjoy the outdoors with the whole family, can be tough, but it is worth it!

For more information about the preserves and directions. 

Chestnut Hill Preserve/Nehantic State Forest to Uncas Lake and back. We’ll look for spring ephemeral plants, and check out the recent forest management in Nehantic along the way. About 2.5 miles. Roadside parking at Chestnut Hill entrance, Sterling Hill Rd, Lyme

Register: openspace@townlyme.org

View the Tuesday Trek Schedule

Please join us for the annual Tour de Lyme cycling event with beautifully scenic routes for all ages and levels. We’re looking forward to seeing you!

Registration begins January 8!

For more information, visit the Tour de Lyme webpage:

The Lyme Land Trust inaugurated Tour de Lyme in 2013 as an annual bike ride to raise funds to support its mission of preserving and protecting environmentally important land in Lyme.

Mostly gentle 2-mile walk through floodplain and upland forests and check out the native plant restoration project between Roaring Creek and the Red Trail.

Register: Jim.arrigoni@lymelandtrust.org

View the Tuesday Trek Schedule

Join Quinn, Lyme Land Trust board member, for a family friendly (ages 5 and up) hike at the magical time of dusk, just before the darkness creeps in. We focus on how our perceptions change and appreciate what the coming night brings to the forests and ponds of Lyme. There will be an almost full moon. As it gets darker, we will not be using artificial light, but you are invited to bring an emergency flashlight. Dress warmly and bring a walking stick. 

Registration appreciated: ryan.p.quinn@gmail.com

Let’s go hike around the top of Mt. Archer. This hike will be a little over 2 miles and we will have a lot of fun exploring the woods just before the start of summer.

Contact: ryan.p.quinn@gmail.com

View the Tuesday Trek Schedule

TBD

Register: kristina.white@lymelandtrust.org

View the Tuesday Trek Schedule

Sponsored with the Lyme’s Senior Center.

View the Take-a-Walk Wednesday Schedule

A short steep incline opens to a beautiful expanse of meadow. We will walk along the mowed path to reach our destination, Whale Rock, a spectacular outcropping with views of Lord Cove and the CT River. Bring your binoculars. 1.5 miles 

Directions: Parking is along the road near 33 Coult Lane, Old Lyme. Coult Lane is a small road on the west side of Rte 156 just south of the Lyme’Old Lyme border. From Halls Rd, Old Lyme, travel 2 miles north on Rte 156. take a left onto Coult Lane. The preserve is about 1/2 mile in on the right. Look for a mailbox with 33 Coult Lane on it.

Join us for an exploratory walk with the Connecticut Botanical Society at Brockway Hawthorne Preserve. This 82-acre preserve helps protect the Whalebone Cove watershed, with wetlands, vernal pools, mature forest and a healthy hemlock stand. The trail passes former pasture and an abandoned quarry. 

Directions and Parking: We will meet at the main parking lot for the Brockway-Hawthorne Preserve on Brush Hill Road, Lyme, about 1/2 mile south of Hadlyme Four Corners. For a trail map.

Please Pre-register with Lisa or Wendy below. Raindate: June 26

Leaders: Lisa Wahle, lcwahle@gmail.com, 860-304-6184, Wendy Hill, openspace@townlyme.org.  

Please join us for our annual meeting which will include the nomination and voting for new board members, annual financial report, and presentation of volunteer of the year. Everyone is welcome.

Following the meeting, we will have a presentation: Ethnobotany of Southern New England: Plant Knowledge of Indigenous Peoples by Manuel Lizarralde, Professor in Ethnobotany at Connecticut College. Professor Lizarralde will talk about the history and culture of the indigenous people who lived inSouthern New England, and the native plants that have provided food, medicine and everyday use for thousands of years.

Registration required: kristina.white@lymelandtrust.org

Directions: The Lyme Land Trust Conservation Center is at 12-1 Town Street. Park across the street in Banningwood Preserve first field. Handicapped parking on site.

Young or old, experienced, or totally unfamiliar, we look forward to exposing you to our uniquely dark skies here in Lyme. We have several different telescopes that are on display including a 14″ Schmidt-Cassegrain housed in a permanent observatory.

Registration required. Upon registration you will receive a link to directions and observing session guidelines.

For more information and to register: Astronomy Events

In June, visit the Gnome trail to search for gnomes at Pleasant Valley Preserve. Click here to see the Family Gnome Hunt  map. Meet at the parking lot on MacIntosh Rd.

Join Tori and family on the 4th Sunday of every month for a “mile-ish” hike geared towards families with children under 5, but no age limit!

Kindly email vharris1391@gmail.com to register.

Tori is a Mom of two littles – Kade, 4 yrs, and Quinn, 1 yr. Hiking and wandering in the local preserves, has really given her family the safe space to let Kade run loose and has a calming effect on Quinn. Working full time, volunteering in many organizations and finding time to enjoy the outdoors with the whole family, can be tough, but it is worth it!

For more information about the preserves and directions. 

The Tree Collective is a program designed to engage young conservationists ages 14-18 in outdoor fun and education while working to maintain trails in our beautiful town of Lyme, CT. It is sponsored by the Lyme Land Trust under the leadership of environmentalist/artist Regan Stacey. Each time we meet, we offer a different topic, often with a hike and trail work in a selected preserve.

Tools and gloves provided.

For more information. 

Registration required: reganstacey@gmail.com.

Click on flyer to enlarge.

Take a walk of discovery with insect expert, Katherine Dugas from the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station.

Space is limited. Registration is required. Register: education@lymelandtrust.org

This is part ofthe Wild Lyme project. Channel your inner Charles Darwin to discover species both new and familiar to you. Along with the joy and wonder of exploration and identification, you’ll contribute to modern-day biology through citizen science.For more information on the Wild Lyme Project and how to install and use iNaturalist. For more information on the Bioblitz Team.

Co-sponsored with Lyme Pollinator Pathway and Town of Lyme

About a 2.5-mile walk, with a moderate incline to the overlooks and back. We’ll check out the vegetation that has emerged after the bluff meadow restoration work that was carried out in March.

Register: openspace@townlyme.org

View the Tuesday Trek Schedule

Submit up to three of your favorite spring photos to share. The Lyme Land Trust program Imagining Lyme: A Visual Exploration of Lyme’s Preserves encourages everyone to expand their visual awareness and highlight the beauty of the Lyme preserves owned by the Lyme Land Trust, the Town of Lyme, The Nature Conservancy, or the State of CT  by taking photographs prompted by inspiration from professional photographers and artists. Amateur photographers may submit photos. Photographers do not have to be residents of Lyme but all photos must be taken in Lyme in any of these places:

1. Lyme Preserves owned and/or managed by the Lyme Land Trust, Town of Lyme, The Nature Conservancy, and the State of CT.  View a map of the preserves
2. Pollinator/wildlife habitat with native plants in Lyme – May be in a backyard, local farm, preserve or in a Lyme Pollinator Pathway garden in Lyme, CT.
3. Trail 53 – The clear sky above Lyme.

For more information and to submit photos

Young or old, experienced, or totally unfamiliar, we look forward to exposing you to our uniquely dark skies here in Lyme. We have several different telescopes that are on display including a 14″ Schmidt-Cassegrain housed in a permanent observatory.

Registration required. Upon registration you will receive a link to directions and observing session guidelines.

For more information and to register: Astronomy Events

Meet at the Hadlyme Ferry Parking lot on Ferry Rd, Lyme (not Old Lyme) We will begin the walk along the CT River. There is a gentle inclined pathway to get up to the Castle to see the beautiful view. We may get our feet wet.

Join Tori and family on the 4th Sunday of every month for a “mile-ish” hike geared towards families with children under 5, but no age limit!

Kindly email vharris1391@gmail.com to register.

Tori is a Mom of two littles – Kade, 4 yrs, and Quinn, 1 yr. Hiking and wandering in the local preserves, has really given her family the safe space to let Kade run loose and has a calming effect on Quinn. Working full time, volunteering in many organizations and finding time to enjoy the outdoors with the whole family, can be tough, but it is worth it!

For more information about the preserves and directions. 

Young or old, experienced, or totally unfamiliar, we look forward to exposing you to our uniquely dark skies here in Lyme. We have several different telescopes that are on display including a 14″ Schmidt-Cassegrain housed in a permanent observatory.

Registration required. Upon registration you will receive a link to directions and observing session guidelines.

For more information and to register: Astronomy Events

Take a walk to the refreshing waters of Roaring Brook where you may get your feet wet.  Map of Roaring Brook Preserve.

Join Tori and family on the 4th Sunday of every month for a “mile-ish” hike geared towards families with children under 5, but no age limit!

Kindly email vharris1391@gmail.com to register.

Tori is a Mom of two littles – Kade, 4 yrs, and Quinn, 1 yr. Hiking and wandering in the local preserves, has really given her family the safe space to let Kade run loose and has a calming effect on Quinn. Working full time, volunteering in many organizations and finding time to enjoy the outdoors with the whole family, can be tough, but it is worth it!

For more information about the preserves and directions. 

Young or old, experienced, or totally unfamiliar, we look forward to exposing you to our uniquely dark skies here in Lyme. We have several different telescopes that are on display including a 14″ Schmidt-Cassegrain housed in a permanent observatory.

Registration required. Upon registration you will receive a link to directions and observing session guidelines.

For more information and to register: Astronomy Events

Young or old, experienced, or totally unfamiliar, we look forward to exposing you to our uniquely dark skies here in Lyme. We have several different telescopes that are on display including a 14″ Schmidt-Cassegrain housed in a permanent observatory.

Registration required. Upon registration you will receive a link to directions and observing session guidelines.

For more information and to register: Astronomy Events