Sandy Brook Conservation Corridor: What Can Doolittle Do? June 16, 4pm at the Doolittle Clubhouse

On Saturday, June 16 at 4pm, Executive Director John Anderson will give a Sandy Brook Conservation Corridor Project presentation,

Protecting water quality and wildlife through forest and wetland conservation: What Can Doolittle Do? Doolittle Woods, which lies within the boundaries of the Sandy Brook watershed, is a forested area with lakes and wetlands that was created in 1929 as a place for residents within the woods to hunt and fish. While it remains largely forested, there have been recent concerns about declining water quality, invasive fish species which may be responsible for the decline of native trout, and the advance of non-native, invasive plants. Aton Forest will lead a conversation about what Doolittle residents can do within the context of ensuring the future health of the Sandy Brook watershed.

 

Location: The Doolittle Clubhouse, 528 Doolittle Drive, Norfolk CT 06058. Refreshments will be served. This talk is free and open to the public. For more information, call (860) 542-5125 or email contact@atonforest.org.

Sandy Brook Conservation Corridor Presentation on May 19 in Colebrook

On Saturday, May 19 from 3 to 5pm, John Anderson will give a talk and power-point presentation on the recently launched Sandy Brook Conservation Corridor Project, at the Colebrook Senior/Community Center in Colebrook Center. This conservation project seeks to protect land within the Sandy Brook watershed in the Connecticut towns of Colebrook, Norfolk, Hartland, Barkhamsted and Winchester, and Sandisfield and New Marlborough, Massachusetts. This pristine watershed has little land placed under protection, and landowners who aren't eager to have the watershed developed may want to learn about their options to preserve the wilderness for hunting, fishing, logging and healthy natural resources.  

This talk is free and open to the public. Location: Colebrook Senior/Community Center, 2 School House Road, Colebrook.

On Sunday, May 20 from 10am to 2pm, John Anderson will follow up this talk with a botanizing field trip in Algonquin State Forest and the Sandy Brook Natural Area Preserve. Location: intersection of Sandy Brook Road and Colebrook River Road (Route 8) in Colebrook.

For more information, call (860) 542-5125 or email contact@atonforest.org.

The 2011 Aton Forest Open House on Saturday, October 1 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Please join us on October 1 for an active, educational and fun program. In the morning, we'll have a guided hike on one of Aton's trails, with an opportunity to learn about local native species, followed by lunch in the beautiful Victorian Egler Mansion. In the afternoon is the feature presentation on conservation of natural resources. Speaker TBA. This event is free and open to the public; lunch is provided.

 

Aton Forest Headquarters, 270 North Colebrook Road, Norfolk, Connecticut 06058 

For more information, please call (860) 542-5125 or email to contact@atonforest.org.

Musical Composition & Landscape Design- Saturday, August 6 at 4 pm

Aton Forest and Norfolk Chamber Music Festival are co-sponsoring a talk by award winning native landscape designer and composer Larry Weaner entitled "Musical Composition and Natural Landscape Design: Harmony, Rhythm, and Time." Join Larry to explore the connection between music and landscapes. Discover how the process of musical composition can be used to create landscapes that evoke emotional responses, incorporate improvisation, and unfold gracefully over time. Free admission. Location: Battell Recital Hall, Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, Routes 44 & 272, Norfolk, CT. For more information, contact Aton Forest, (860) 542-5125 or contact@atonforest.org, or Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, (860) 542-3000.

AF Bird/Botanizing Walks and Work Days - Saturday, July 9 & Friday, July 15

Aton Forest is hosting two informative and fun volunteer workdays in July: Saturday, July 9, trail clearing and an erosion control project, from 9am to noon; Friday, July 15, rejuvenating the old Egler gardens, learning about native and non-native garden plants, and pulling invasive ones out, from 9am to noon. Both workdays will begin with a morning birding and botanizing walk from 8 to 9am, and on both days, lunch and refreshments will be served in the Egler Victorian mansion. These events will happen in rain or shine; please come for part or all of either day. The location is Aton Forest Headquarters, 270 North Colebrook Rd., Norfolk. Contact Aton Forest with questions at (860) 542-5125 or email (contact AT atonforest.org).