Your help is needed to seal the deal on Tom Ball Mountain.
You have saved Undermountain Valley and opened it up for people of all abilities. You protected the Hoosac Range in North Adams, and helped build trails so that all who want to experience the peaceful forest or the breathless climb up a steep trail can do so, for free.
Now your help is needed to preserve the glorious windswept peak of Tom Ball Mountain in Alford.
Rising 1,933 feet along the border between West Stockbridge and Alford, Tom Ball Mountain is prime habitat for wildlife. Its rocky outcrops and pitch-pine groves have been off-limits to hikers for generations.
To protect this special spot and open it to the public, the first step is to buy the land, 1116 acres in all, from John Springstube, whose family has farmed in Alford for generations. With some assistance from BNRC staff, John plans to place an Agricultural preservation Restriction on the prime soils below the summit.
John has also decided that now is the time to conserve the peak of the mountain in perpetuity. Your donation will preserve the ridge of Tom Ball Mountain forever.
The Springstube land is just one piece of a classic BNRC landprotection puzzle—there are three other landowners in the mix.
Dwight Lane sold 14 acres to BNRC—a small but very key connector parcel. Henry Flint, a BNRC board member, purchased two parcels and placed conservation restrictions with trail easements on them. Charlie Schulze is donating three parcels to BNRC and allowing a trail easement across his own property.
You can build on the generosity of these donors to protect Tom Ball Mountain forever.