Congrats to MASONBORO ISLAND - VOTE for LAND 2009 Winner!
 At Great Outdoor Provision Co. we celebrate the protection of the lands, waters and wildlife of North Carolina. “Vote For Land” gives you the opportunity to join us in these conservation efforts. Please take time to review the nine exciting preservation projects listed below. Select one of the projects as your choice to win the generous $3000 grant provided by our sponsors Marmot, Mountain Khakis, ExOfficio and TS Designs.Thanks for your support of wild, open spaces! Voting ends 11:59pm EST June 4, 2009. Winner announced by Land Trust Day - Sat, June 6. |
Click for description + picture: Irving Farm - Little Peak Back Country - Masonboro Island - Pond Mountain - Ramp Cove Branch - Roan Mountain - Knight Brown Nature Preserve - Tar River Paddle Trail - Wilson Creek
Irvin Farm
On the Orange-Chatham county line, TLC’s Irvin Farm is a 200-acre haven for wildlife where a box turtle rescue team releases healed turtles into a woodland sanctuary. Irvin Farm is also a 70-acre hub of leading-edge educational and agricultural activities like Irvin Learning Farm summer camp, where kids explore the wonders of the outdoors, and the Interfaith Food Shuttle Garden, where TLC and the faith community will grow fresh, healthy food for needy families. With your help we’ll launch another innovative new program, Small-Farm Leases, where young farmers can connect with affordable land to get started farming.
Little Peak Back Country
National Committee for the New River
A map speaks a thousand words when it comes to Little Peak Back Country. Located in Ashe County, NC, the property is completely surrounded by already protected lands and borders the New River State Park on three sides. The National Committee for the New River (NCNR) acquired and transferred the adjacent Park property and hopes to do the same with Little Peak Back Country. Completely forested, this addition will expand the Park’s plan to provide a rugged back country/wilderness hiking experience to the public. Little Peak Back Country is 83 acres and is identified by North Carolina’s Natural Heritage Program as a Significant Natural Heritage Area; it contains a unique Chestnut Oak and Montane Oak-Hickory Forest
Masonboro Island
North Carolina Coastal Land Trust
Together with the State and the Society for Masonboro Island, the Coastal Land Trust has permanently protected over 95% of Masonboro Island. A favorite of residents and guests to the Wrightsville Beach area, Masonboro Island is the largest undisturbed barrier island along the southern part of the North Carolina coast. The island provides habitat and nesting grounds for seabirds, shore birds, and sea turtles, and Masonboro Sound is an important nursery area for numerous fish, including summer flounder, spot, mullet, and bluefish. Although so much of this island is in permanent protection, the Coastal Land Trust is still actively involved in the protection of all remaining privately owned tracts at Masonboro. Your vote will help ensure that the continued work of permanently protecting Masonboro Island will continue.
Pond Mountain
Blue Ridge Rural Land Trust, National Committee for the New River,
High Country Conservancy
Pond Mountain is a spectacular 1,795-acre tract in Ashe County encompassing the entire top of the 5,000-foot-tall mountain. It is being purchased for the NC Wildlife Resources Commission Game Lands Program, managed under conservation guidelines to protect its significant natural resources and to enhance wildlife and fisheries habitat. Pond Mountain will provide public access for recreation, forestry, scientific and educational purposes. It boasts rare bog habitat, magnificent viewing opportunities and protection of the New River’s water quality. The portion of the property used as a Christmas Tree farm will be returned to natural habitat offering tremendous mitigation benefits. With your help we can protect this magnificent property and create extensive conservation and recreational opportunities. Blue Ridge Rural Land Trust has secured an option to purchase the entire $14 million tract. Although, we have started the acquisition process, BRRLT needs your help in finishing this tremendous opportunity.
Ramp Cove Branch
Land Trust for the Little Tennessee
The trout waters of Ramp Cove Branch run through a complete inholding in the Nantahala National Forest in Cherokee County, North Carolina. The 28-acre forested parcel is 100% surrounded by Forest Service land and is in the Tusquitee Ranger District in the far southwestern toe of North Carolina. Recreation on the Tusquitee includes fishing, hiking, camping and a myriad of other fun opportunities. The Land Trust for the Little Tennessee holds an option to purchase the land and is hoping to buy the property and eventually transfer it to the Forest Service. If the property isn’t bought for conservation, it will be sold for other purposes and the trout waters and rich cove ecosystem, as well as the quality recreation opportunities they provide, will be disrupted by road building and house sites. Your help will make a difference!
Roan Mountain
Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy
The 113-acre Roan Mountain Tract, which is located in the Roaring Creek Valley of Avery County, is contiguous to over 15,000 acres of protected lands that are rich in wildlife habitat and recreational opportunities. This breathtaking property is located within the nationally significant Roan Mountain Massif Natural Heritage Area, which includes the Appalachian Trail, the Pisgah National Forest, and the Big Yellow Mountain Preserve. The tract includes a portion of Elk Hollow Creek, a tributary of Roaring Creek that originates in Pisgah National forest. These creeks and their unnamed tributaries run through more than 6,000 feet on the tract, which are designated by N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission as Wild Trout Water and contain a rich diversity of salamanders. This acquisition will add to a decades-long legacy of land conservation in the Highlands of Roan — the landmark landscape and priority of SAHC since the organization was started in 1974.
Knight Brown Nature Preserve
Knight Brown Nature Preserve contains 150 acres of undisturbed forestland near Stokesdale in Rockingham County. Piedmont Land Conservancy was given the property in September of 2008 by Cecilia Brown, a California resident who had recently inherited the property. Cecilia found PLC when looking for a loving home for the property. PLC now owns the property and utilizes it as an environmental education center for hikes, outings and wildlife viewing. Funds from the grant would be used to develop materials to improve educational opportunities for local residents, school children and outdoor groups who visit the site.
Tar River Paddle Trail
The Tar River has been designated as a Nationally Significant stream by the North Carolina Natural Heritage Program because of its high quality waters and an extraordinary diversity of aquatic wildlife. It is also one of the piedmont’s best kept paddling secrets. An hour or less from the Triangle, the river is largely undeveloped, traversing some of North Carolina’s most pristine natural areas and scenic rural countryside. The river provides spectacular views: from laurel covered bluffs and granite outcrops to canopies of bald cypress trees. Tar River Land Conservancy needs your help acquiring public access sites so more people can enjoy and appreciate this precious and beautiful natural resource!
Wilson Creek
Located in northwestern Caldwell County, NC below Grandfather Mountain, the National Wild and Scenic River Wilson Creek has long been a haven for outdoor enthusiasts seeking a wilderness experience. Foothills Conservancy has lead in the protection of over 800 acres spanning 5 miles of the river. Foothills staff completed a stream buffer conservation plan to guide their protection work in order to protect and enhance the river’s outstanding water quality for all users. Foothills Conservancy strives to conserve over 300 additional acres of land along another 1.5 miles of Wilson Creek for public benefit and natural resource protection of this treasured North Carolina place, in perpetuity
