Raven Ridge Natural Area
The Nature Conservancy’s Raven Ridge Natural Area, Moncton, Vermont has 15 diverse natural communities in its 365 acres. It is described as a “…craggy green oasis perched above a sea of civilization in the Champlain Valley. It remains a place where bobcats, ravens, and federally endangered Indiana bats find seclusion.” “The calcareous cliffs, outcrops and caves, vernal pools, shrub swamps, cattail marshes, seeps, plus streams like Lewis Creek, all offer extraordinary habitat. ” Thank you Lynn McNamara for alerting me to this accessible natural area.
Here is their website. Phone 802-229-4425
From Green Mountain Club: “Traveling a 935-foot accessible boardwalk to a 0.3-mile-long accessible trail gives you a chance to spot bats, bobcats, and rare plants.”
Category: Vermont Private
Hazen’s Notch High Ponds Farm
Hazen’s Notch – High Ponds Farm
The High Ponds Farm in the Hazen’s Notch area of Montgomery, Vermont is a privately owned nature preserve that is open to the public on a limited basis.
The non-profit Hazen’s Notch Association “maintains a network of 15 miles of trails and woods roads for hiking in Summer and Fall. These are part of a larger network of 40 miles of trails that are maintained in Winter for cross-country skiing and snowshoeing in the Hazen’s Notch/Jay Peak area of northern Vermont. The trails pass through a variety of interesting habitats that include meadows, forests, orchards, and beaver ponds.”
Here is the Farm website. Here is a website for the Hazens’s Notch Association
Phone 802-326-4799 Trail Map (winter)
Beaver Ponds Trail – Distance not given. “The first section of the trail is almost completely flat from the parking area to the first beaver pond on the right. This pond is visible from the parking area. It is also a flat walk beyond this pond to the junction with the Window Rock Trail and for the next 100 meters to the wheel chair accessible bridge over Flood Brook.”
Green Mountain Audubon Nature Center
Green Mountain Audubon Nature Center
“Nestled in the foothills of the Green Mountains, the 250-acre Green Mountain Audubon Center offers outstanding opportunities for exploration and discovery of the natural world of Vermont. Five miles of trails wind their way through a variety of natural communities including, northern hardwood forest, hemlock swamp, and the Huntington River.”
Trail Map Phone 802-434-3068 Here is the Center website.
Sensory Trail 0.5? mile loop. Information on the internet about length and elevation vary widely and this trail does not appear on the trail map. Their office was closed when I called. Be sure to call in advance, Monday through Friday.
Montshire Museum of Science
Montshire Museum of Science
“The Montshire Museum of Science is a hands-on science museum in Norwich, Vermont. Located on a 100-acre site along the Connecticut River, the Museum offers over 150 exhibits relating to the natural and physical sciences, ecology, and technology. The outdoor space includes miles of trails and David Goudy Science Park, which features water exhibits.
Here is their website. Phone 802-649-2200 Trails
Meadow Walk 0.3 mile “a demonstration plot for native grasses, an enriched riverside environment for birds and other animals, and the solar-powered Meadow Sounds Kiosk.”
River Loop Trail 0.8 mile “…winds along the Connecticut River.”
Equinox Preservation Trust
Equinox Preservation Trust
“Consisting of 914 acres on the slopes of Mt Equinox
in Manchester, the Trust “is the home to rare plants & varied wildlife, diversified woodlands, marble ledges, springs, wetlands and a pond. From the upper slopes, there are exceptional views.”
Here is the Trust website. Phone 802-366-1400 Trails Trail Map
Pond Loop 0.75 mile “Easy loop through beautiful hardwoods around Equinox Pond on a level woods road.”