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Please join us by making your commitment to Squam’s future by completing the Forever Squam pledge form or clicking on the “Donate Now” button. You are a vital link in Squam’s ever-evolving story. Gifts of stock, multi-year pledges, donor-advised funds, and other means of donating are welcome. Please contact us to discuss the many options for contributing to this important effort. (603) 968-7900
Conserve what you love!
FOREVER UPDATE
#186 Red Hill Northwoods
Closed in December 2024
When you are orienting yourself on the waters of Squam Lake, Red Hill is a recognizable, prominent landscape feature that indicates “east”. These mountains, although not as mountainous as the White Mountains to the north or even the Squam Range to the west, are largely conserved and contribute to an over 3,000-acre tract of connected conservation land.
In December 2024, this tract of conservation land was increased by just over 200 acres. Jenny Pyle and Ben Nye generously donated a conservation easement on a portion of their land that abuts the greenway. The forest they protected has multiple different forest ages and types, providing habitat for a variety of species, including those that require large home ranges.
#185 Stoney Brae
Closed in December 2024
For decades, Eastman Cove has brought a feeling of solitude, inspiration, and deeper meaning. This cove in Sandwich, NH is one of the most undeveloped on Squam and has views of East Rattlesnake, the Squam Range, and even Red Hill. Many streams drain a large portion of the Squam Range which funnel into two brooks and then flow through a large wetland complex before entering the cove.
In the mid-1900’s there was a rustic camp on the property which had no electricity and was only accessible by boat from a dock on Metcalf Road. It was occupied by the minister of a church in Sandwich who used the camp and its little writing shed, which still stands today, to work on his sermons in solitude.
The property eventually changed hands and the camp was removed, but the feeling of solitude, inspiration, and deeper meaning never left. The current landowners describe the property as “serene, isolated, and unspoiled”. In an effort to forever protect this feeling, the landowners donated a conservation easement, StoneyBrae, on 6.02 acres, including over 300 feet of shoreline.
StoneyBrae includes shoreline, forest, wetlands, and a vernal pool and looks across the cove to the wetland complex, East Rattlesnake, and the Squam Range.
The completion of this project means that SLCS has now protected over 10,000 acres in and around the Squam watershed, preserving the unique quality and character for present and future generations.
#184 Maple Orchard
Closed in November 2024
This largely forested area situated between Rte 113 and True Farm Rd in Holderness is surrounded by other conservation lands creating the potential of a contiguous conservatioin corridor that would connect Squam Lake to the Squam Range.
We are forever grateful to the Butler family for their commitment to conservation and sharing the community’s belief that Squam continue to be a source of clean water, healthy forests, and a place where we connect with family and friends.
#183 Mile End ( Long Island)
Closed in November 2024
There are a variety of habitats on the island, including mature forests, wetlands, and vernal pools. One of the most notable habitat features of the conserved area is a blue heron rookery consisting of over 50 nests. The rookery has been active for over a decade and will remain forever undisturbed thanks to the forward thinking of the Coolidges.
We are forever grateful to the Coolidge family’s commitment to conservation and sharing the community’s belief that Squam continue to be a source of clean water, healthy forests, and a place where we connect with family and friends.
#182 Pemi Oxbow Preserve
Closed in September 2024
The community owes a debt of gratitude to the many people who dedicated their time and resources to find a way to protect this sensitive area, including Larry Spencer of the Holderness Conservation Commission and Plymouth State University (PSU), Lisa Doner of the Plymouth Conservation Commission and PSU, and Phil Friel of Lakes Region Golf Courses, Inc. The late Chris Buckley, a local involved with the Holderness and Plymouth Conservation Commissions and PSU, was also instrumental in beginning the push to conserve this land.
#180 & 181 RS West Veerie I & II
Closed in July 2024
#179 Dody Waring Woods
Closed in May 2024
One of the goals of this project is the protection of the last large undeveloped tract surrounding the 44-acre Barville Pond which has excellent water quality and abundant warm-water fish populations and as you can see from the map above, more than half of the shoreline (4,400 feet) is now permanently protected.
#178 Schwartz Preserve
Closed in December 2023
#177 Tupelo Cove
Closed in July 2023
The von Merten & Wasson families purchased this 6.79 acre lot in Bean Cove in the late 1980’s with the specific goals of providing a lakeside retreat for their family and eventually permanently protecting the land.
By putting the 1.3 acre section under conservation easement, the family hopes to protect the 461 foot buffer along the stream, filtering any sediment and providing an undisturbed forest canopy. With this Conservation Easement and an added Deed Restriction, the landowners will no longer be able to subdivide the 6.79 acre property, which brings this property into conformity with many of the neighbor’s agreement not to further subdivide their properties.
We are grateful to the families for their commitment and forward thinking. Tupelo Cove is a great example of how working together, we can find creative ways to protect what is important now and for future generations.
#176 Howe Commons
Closed in July 2023
You’ve all driven by the fields on Pinehurst Road in Holderness on your way to Rockywold-Deephaven Camps or perhaps hike the Rattlesnakes or Five Finger Point. It is this property, Howe Commons, owned by six members of the Howe Family, that is the subject of our latest donated conservation easement!
How Commons is a 33.5-acre parcel with some of the most diverse habitats in the watershed with 9 acres of open field, well-managed woods, talus slopes, drainage seeps, the Undercut Trail, and even a section of old growth forest. The property abuts the Armstrong Natural Area and drains into Bennett Brook, one of Big Squam Lake’s major tributaries. From the top of Mt. Morgan, you can now see nearly 500 acres of permanently protected contiguous land!
The legacy of conservation and history of Howe Commons can be traced back to before the turn of the 20th century when Mary Alice Armstrong bought land to build Rockywold Camp, eventually becoming the Rockywold-Deephaven Camps, who donated the Armstrong Natural Area on West Rattlesnake in 1966.
We owe a huge debt of gratitude to Margie Emmons, Arthur Howe III, Sam Howe, Sarah Thorne, Peter Howe, Phoebe Howe, and the spirit of Tom Howe for fulfilling Mrs. Armstrong’s vision of conserving the area and for their ongoing commitment to stewardship and making the outdoors available for all.
For more history on Rockywold-Deephaven see “Roots and Recollections: A Century of Rockywold-Deephaven Camps” by Megan Thorn.
#174 & 175 Avery's Woods
Closed in 2023
Avery’s Woods is a 64-acre donated conservation easement between Coxboro Road and Perkins Lane in Holderness, otherwise known to us as part of the White Oak Pond Highlands. This gift is from Anne Lovett and Steve Woodsum. The name of the property, Avery’s Woods, is a memorial to Avery Bray-Ong, the young child of Jordan Lovett Bray and Julia Ong. Jordan is Anne’s Lovett’s nephew.
The property is comprised of two separate tracts under common ownership. The East parcel, 37 acres, is former agricultural land that has matured back into a beautiful forest. Old foundation walls and extensive stonewalls are relics of the property’s prior use as farmland and pasture during the nineteenth century. The West parcel is a 26.7-acre forested property defined by steep, northerly facing slopes spanning an elevation of 760’ to 1044’. Its contiguous, even-aged canopy is comprised of varying forest compositions, including stands of beech, hemlock, pine, and oak. Stands of mature hemlock exist on the steepest terrain where a rocky ledge and boulders protrude. We found at least four dens showing porcupine activity and abundant evidence of deer. Avery’s Woods is a great example of the dedication of our community leaders to conserve what they love.
#173 Stonehenge
Closed in 2023
#172 Wood's Woods
Closed in February 2023
#171 Nelson Marsh
Closed in January 2023
Kenric Nelson and his extended family are pleased to announce the permanent conservation of 35 acres of marshlands and forest in the Squam Lakes Watershed. The property on the west side of Rt 3 and north of Rt 25 B (across from Savoie’s Lodging) contains a significant portion of Hale’s Swamp, which feeds Squam Lake via Swainey Brook and Lake Winnipesaukee via Hawkins Brook. Given the significant conservation value and long family history of ownership, preserving this wilderness has been very important to Kenric and his family.
Kenric fondly remembers walking the land with his grandparents and extended family. He developed a passion for wilderness as a counselor at Deerfoot Lodge in the Adirondacks. During the isolation of the COVID pandemic, he memorialized those high school experiences in a series of poems, An Adirondack Guide.
#170 Sturtevant Woods lV
Closed in November of 2022
DONATED conservation easement
This small but mighty .65 acre forested lot shares a meaningful history in the establishment of the NH Wetlands Protection Act in 1978. This conservation easement is the result of a settlement to quiet title on the remaining “Asquam Lake Beach and Ski Club” 1966 subdivision which would have resulted in a 600 lot development in Sturtevant Bay but was deemed unfeasible due to lack of suitability for the proposed sewage systems and establishment of minimum lot size.
Acquired by Richard Starbuck in 1992 for the purpose of placing the land in conservation, Sturtevant lV is the last of the consolidated plots from the failed ALBSC subdivision. Sturtevants I, II, and III were put into conservation in 2015 by like-minded individuals.
Click to read some of the history of the Asquam Lake Beach and Ski Club project.
#166 Lamb Brook Farm
Closed in May of 2022
BARGAIN SALE conservation easement
On May 20th, Brice Bennett contributed a bargain-sale conservation easement protecting 18.6 acres abutting the Eastman Brown and Beij Preserve conservation lands on East Holderness Road in Holderness. Lamb Brook Farm became the third completed Forever Squam project, and the first to tap funds specifically earmarked for bargain-sale purchases.
The land surrounding the farm buildings includes the Lamb Swamp Brook and related wetlands designated as Prime Wetland by the town of Holderness. This wetland drains into White Oak Pond and eventually into Big Squam Lake. Ensuring the protection of wetlands is one of the many focus areas of the Forever Squam initiative. We are grateful of Brice’s commitment to conservation and our community, much in the spirit of local conservation giants Pierce and Kay Beij, who also permanently protected part of the Lamb Brook Swamp wetland system.
#168 Haskell Preserve
Closed in September of 2022
#165 Thompson Preserve
Closed in April of 2022
DONATED fee title
John and Carol Thompson graciously donated the fee title to 13.75 acres of forested land located on College Road in Center Harbor, now known as the Thompson Preserve. The Thompsons acquired the land in 1993, and in 2013, donated a conservation easement to us ensuring the forest would continue to flourish. In late May, the Thompsons decided to donate the full fee title to us. Historically, this land was cleared for agricultural purposes as indicated by more than 2,400’ of stone walls. College Road is one of the first highways laid out in NH connecting Provincial Governor John Wentworth’s home in Wolfeboro to Dartmouth College in Hanover.
This generous gift complements the nearby Chamberlain Reynolds and Damon I & II conserved areas across the road, providing a more enhanced corridor for wildlife and water quality protection. In addition to maintaining the mature forest, the property can also be used for outdoor educational purposes as the natural habitat of plants and wildlife have been undisturbed for decades.
#167 Merrill Island
Closed in August of 2022
#164 Sanford Doyle Forest II
Closed in February 2022
DONATED conservation easement
Sanford-Doyle Forest II is a 10-acre forested tract on Perkins Lane in Holderness. It is defined by its steep northerly-facing slope. The forest canopy is dominated by red oak, American beech, sugar maple, and red maple. Yellow birch, hemlock, white ash, white birch, white pine, and basswood are scattered throughout the property in varying densities. There is an abundance of wildlife sign, such as scrapes in the leaf litter made by deer and turkey in their hunt for beech nuts and acorns. In addition, evidence of bear activity was observed, and an abundance of small mammals, such as gray squirrels, chipmunks, and mice species. The rocky drainages could act as suitable denning sites for long and short-tailed weasels, chipmunks, mice, and garter snakes. The presence of prey species could draw larger predators, such as gray fox, coyotes, bobcats, and barred owls.
About the donors:
Jim Sanford and Jean Doyle acquired this 11-acre property in 2013. The attraction was two-fold: additional protection and the property has a small cabin that could provide extra housing to their abutting camp property on Little Squam. Jim and Jean donated a conservation easement on the abutting 10.4 acres in 2014. They have been SLCS members for a long time and are very supportive of land conservation. Jim is an alumnus of Camp Pasquaney on Newfound Lake, which was his intro to the Lakes Region. Jean was on the faculty of Brown for many years prior to her passing in 2020.