Happy "Birthday" to Lost River

Lost River is the Forest Society's oldest forest reservation, protected in 1912.  That makes this year the 100th anniversary of Lost River's protection, which is (of course) cause for celebration!   The Forest Society, along with White Mountain Attractions, which operates and maintains the gorge boardwalk and facilities, have some great events planned this summer to honor Lost River's milestone.  (If you're interested, you can find a listing of these events on Lost River's website here).

New steward Elaine Bernier and friend  prepare sign mountings at Lost River

In preparation for a busy summer, we recently held a land steward "spring cleaning" workday at Lost River.  The spring cleaning workday is something we do every year at Lost River, but this year we had some special tasks to accomplish.  One of these was to install a new set of 30 interpretive signs around the Lost River Native Plant Garden, a series of short boardwalk loops that start just outside the visitor center.  We also cleared and re-marked two popular hiking trails on the property, the Kinsman Notch Ecology Trail and the more strenuous Dilly Cliffs Trail which heads up talus slope to an overlook on the cliffs above the gorge.  Landscaping and view clearing were two other significant task areas this spring as well.  It was a busy day but sunny and breezy enough to be bug-free, so I didn't hear any complaints!  White Mountain Attractions provided a delicious BBQ lunch, and in the late afternoon many stewards and volunteers decided to take a walk through the gorge and boulder caves to cap off the day.  I hope you can all get up to Lost River sometime during this centennial season to celebrate a bit of the Forest Society's (and New Hampshire's) history while enjoying a spectacular natural wonder!

Landscaping volunteers!

Mulching flower beds

New interpretive signage will make it easier to identify and learn about many of the region's native plants

The crew enjoying a barbecue lunch on Lost River's deck