Friends of Mount Sunapee

The  Sunapee-Ragged-Kearsarge (SRK) Greenway Coalition's Fall 2011 hike schedule continues with hikes crossing parts of Goshen, Sunapee, Springfield and New London. The hikes, all free to the public, are listed below. Contact the leader at least a day before to get details on start time and location. Bring water, sun screen, hat, and a snack.  (E) is Easy. (M) is Moderate. (D) is Difficult. The SRK Greenway Coalition is a non-profit volunteer organization that promotes hiking and land conservation. The SRK Greenway's 14 sections covering 75 miles of trails are open to all.  For information, visit http://www.srkg.com.

The August 27th camping festivities at Mount Sunapee State Park, planned to begin at 5 p.m. as part of the Welsh Centennial Celebration, are canceled. All New Hampshire State Parks and Historic Sites will close Saturday evening, August 27 at 6 p.m. in preparation for the arrival of Hurricane Irene, which will impact the state with heavy rains and high winds Sunday morning.

Climb the mountain and get their glad tidings. - John Muir

Treat your senses to beautiful scenery and a night under the stars with family and friends on Mount Sunapee.

Join the Friends of Mount Sunapee, on Saturday, August 27, 2011, for a family-oriented day—a hike to Mount Sunapee’s Lake Solitude and old growth forest followed by music and camping on the mountain.

The event is part of the Welsh Centennial Celebration honoring 100 years of citizen-led conservation efforts on and around Mount Sunapee including land now part of Mount Sunapee State Park, one of New Hampshire’s iconic mountain parks.

The day will start with a hike to Lake Solitude, located at 2,510 feet along the top of the Sunapee Ridge between the summit and South Peak, and offering spectacular views. Leading the hike will be naturalist Dave Anderson of the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests and ecologist Chris Kane, who has studied Mount Sunapee's natural heritage including its old growth.

The largest known fragment of old growth forest south of the White Mountains remains in Mount Sunapee State Park.

Hikers will meet at the state park campground at 9 a.m., lunch at Lake Solitude, and return around 2 p.m. (Hikers should bring water and lunch.) The hike is of "moderate" difficulty. There will be short increments of very steep walking on a road and off-trail bushwhacking to see special hidden old growth features. (Wear appropriate hiking shoes/boots.)

After the hike, one can further explore the mountain or relax at the Sunapee State Beach. (There is free entrance to the beach area for campers; otherwise, there is a nominal state park fee.)

Evening camping activities will start at 5 p.m. and will include music, singing around the campfire and a celebratory cake. Participants are asked to bring their own dinner and drinks. Event organizers have reserved several campsites that are available on a first-come basis.

For camping contact FOMS camping coordinator Lisa Bozogan, phone 603-877-0037.

And, please contact us if you'd like to help out or otherwise contribute to this fun event. 

On Saturday, August 27, 2011, at Mount Sunapee State Park, the Herbert Welsh Centennial Celebration Committee is sponsoring a day of outdoor activities to honor Herbert Welsh and 100 years of conservation efforts to protect land that is now part of Mount Sunapee State Park—one of New Hampshire’s iconic mountain parks. Dave Anderson, director of education for the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests, and Christopher Kane, a conservation biologist who has studied Mount Sunapee’s old growth forest, will lead a hike to Mount Sunapee’s Lake Solitude from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Music and camping on Mount Sunapee will follow later in the day. The public is invited to participate.

Read more....

The Sunapee Historical Society will hold a cracker barrel talk, The Life and Times of Herbert Welsh presented by Barbara Chalmers, on Thursday, July 21, 2011, at 7 PM at the Sunapee Historical Society Museum, Sunapee Harbor.

All are invited to attend and learn about Herbert Welsh---the artist, humanitarian, Indian rights activist, and father of public lands on Mount Sunapee.

"In so many ways he seems a man ahead of his time," said Chalmers, a member of the Friends of Mount Sunapee, Welsh Centennial Organizing Committee.

"I started out this research only knowing that he painted, summered at a cottage in my neighborhood and was instrumental in the effort that created the public lands on Mount Sunapee. What I discovered was so much more," Chalmers added. "He was a man blessed with a financial position that enabled him to use his intelligence, writing and public speaking gifts to support many humanitarian causes in pursuit of justice and conservation causes to benefit future generations."

Refreshments will be served after the program.

View the program announcement here: The Life & Times of Herbert Welsh (pdf 349kb).

The cracker barrel talk is part of the Mount Sunapee: Welsh Centennial Celebration. For more information, email FOMS or call 603-863-0045.

Photo: Herbert Welsh (1851-1941) from his book The New Gentleman of the Road that chronicled his 450-mile trek from Philadelphia to Sunapee. 

The Friends of Mount Sunapee and the Welsh Centennial Organizing Committee announce the Mount Sunapee: Welsh Centennial Celebration....a series of events designed to honor Herbert Welsh and 100 years of citizen-led conservation efforts on and around Mount Sunapee including land now part of Mount Sunapee State Park, one of New Hampshire’s iconic mountain parks.

Activities will recognize the remarkable legacy of Herbert Welsh, who with the Forest Society, completed in 1911 the first of several campaigns to protect land for public use on Mount Sunapee. The Centennial will bring attention to this important milestone and provide an opportunity to highlight Mount Sunapee’s natural and cultural history and special place in our regional landscape.

Mount Sunapee: Welsh Centennial Celebration will include the following areas of interest: History, Arts, Education, and Outdoor Activities.

For more information and to volunteer, contact Friends of Mount Sunapee or call 603-863-0045.

(Photo: Panoramic view looking across Lake Sunapee to Mount Sunapee. Scanned from a glass negative, this photo was taken over 100 years ago. Courtesy of SooNipi Publishing.)

Thursday, July 21, 2011 - The Life & Times of Herbert Welsh - A cracker barrel talk at the Sunapee Historical Society Museum, Sunapee Harbor. All invited. Join us in learning about the father of public lands on Mount Sunapee: Herbert Welsh. Read more...

Saturday, August 27, 2011 - A guided hike to Lake Solitude on Mount Sunapee followed by a BBQ, music, and overnight camping at Mount Sunapee State Park. For more information and to help with this event, email FOMS or call 603-863-0045.

Check back for event updates and info.

To help with Centennial activities, programs, research, and media, contact Friends of Mount Sunapee or call 603-863-0045.

What changes took place at the ski area during the past year? And what's being proposed for 2011-2012? Here's an opportunity to find out. 

The Mount Sunapee Advisory Committee will meet on Tuesday, May 24th at the Newbury Town Office in the Small Meeting Room at 9:30 a.m. 

The agenda includes the proposed 2011-2012 Annual Operating Plan presented by Okemo/Mount Sunapee Resort.

Read the proposed Annual Operating Plan document and map. 

Great thanks to the Upper Valley Lake Sunapee Regional Planning Commission for scanning and posting these documents originally on their website.

The meeting is open to the public. For more info about the advisory committee and the oversight policy for the ski area, go to FOMS on-line library. Also, here's the link to the N.H. State Parks website.

The Land and Community Heritage Investment Program (LCHIP) this week announced the award of matching grants to 24 projects including an  initiative to protect 1025 acres on Black Mountain in Sutton and Warner.

“LCHIP announced a $150,000 grant for Black Mountain, bringing the campaign over the $1 million mark,” said Forest Society Vice President for Development Susanne Kibler-Hacker. “Today’s total is $1,035,360. We have December 15 to raise the remaining $165,000.”

Read the Forest Society announcement.

See FOMS earlier article about the project.

The Sunapee-Ragged-Kearsarge Greenway Coalition is once again leading a series of exciting winter hikes in the Lake Sunapee region. The hikes are free and open to all. The hikes, as always, offer a variety of terrain and conditions, and will include snowshoe and cross-country ski events. A special feature again this year will be a moonlight snowshoe hike over a forgiving three-mile course.

The Sunapee-Ragged-Kearsarge Greenway Coalition is a non-profit volunteer organization that promotes hiking and land conservation amid the rugged beauty of three major mountains. Its 75-mile trail system, incorporating 14 separate hikes through Andover, Danbury, Goshen, Newbury, New London, Springfield, Sunapee, Sutton, Warner and Wilmot, is free and open to all.

The Weeks Act of 1911 Led to the Establishment of the White Mountain National Forest

A resolution authored by U.S. Senators Judd Gregg (R-NH) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) to commemorate the 100th Anniversary of the Weeks Act (S. Res. 679) was approved by the U.S. Senate.  In addition to celebrating the law’s centennial anniversary, the bipartisan resolution provides deserving recognition to the law’s author, John Weeks, a Massachusetts Congressman born in Lancaster, New Hampshire.  It also recognizes that the acquisition of the first 7,000 acres of White Mountain National Forest was made possible using the authorities provided by the Weeks Act.  Lastly, the resolution acknowledges the work and cooperation of local conservation groups, businesses, industrialists, and the tourism industry to ensure passage of the original law, and encourages further collaboration and continued support for the White Mountain National Forest.

Mount Kearsarge and Black Mountain together form a picturesque and historic backdrop to several communities. View from near NH 11 and NH 114 in Sutton. Photo by Jerry and Marcy Monkman, EcoPhotography.

The Forest Society is working to purchase 1,025 acres on Black Mountain, a secondary peak of Mount Kearsarge in the towns of Sutton and Warner. The property contains the Lincoln Trail segment of the Sunapee-Ragged-Kearsarge Greenway trail to Mount Kearsarge as well as a local snowmobile corridor. The tract features managed forest lands, scenic waterfalls on Mountain Brook, many different wildlife habitats, and extraordinary views that stretch from the Mount Sunapee highlands to Cardigan region. For more information including how to contribute, contact the Forest Society.

View/download the brochure here. (299kb pdf)

Andrews Brook forest pool on Mount Sunapee. Photo by Jeff Sluder.

Last summer, Delnoce Goubert, Sunapee, attended a Forest Society lecture about the natural history of the Mount Sunapee region. After the event, he approached the presenter about land that his family owned near the base of Mount Sunapee. He asked if the Forest Society would be interested in taking ownership of this land, which had been in his family for more than 70 years.

The draft Annual Operating Plan (AOP) for Mount Sunapee Ski Area was released this week. Download this 1.6mb file here:

 2010-2011 Annual Operating Plan (pdf)

On Tuesday, June 15th the Mount Sunapee Ski Area Advisory Committee met to discuss this draft plan. Director of State Parks Ted Austin informed the committee and the public present that they have a short window to provide comments about the AOP to DRED Commissioner George Bald. Send your comments to:

 Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Fax: 603-271-2629

Mail: Commissioner George Bald, DRED, PO Box 1856, Concord, NH 03302

Hurry- Commissioner Bald is required to respond to the the AOP by June 30th. Submit your comments today!

WHO: Senator Bob Odell, Rep. Ricia McMahon, and Rep. Sue Gottling, and FOMS

WHEN: Monday, January 25th, 6:45pm social time, 7pm forum begins

WHERE: Sunapee Methodist Church, 17 Lower Main Street, Sunapee

2010 is shaping up to be an important year for improving out state parks and the policies that govern them. Legislators will consider several bills that directly impact our local state parks, several of which are sponsored by our guest speakers.

Citizens will hear from our legislators about these bills and discuss them.

Want to read some of the bills being considered? Here's a taste:

SB0375: a bill that clarifies that "the general court does not intend or expect that individual state parks or their facilities, or the state park system as a whole shall be self-funding or financially self-supporting."

SB0313: A bill to extend the existence of the State Parks Advisory Council.

HB1378: establishing an adopt-a-state park program in the state park system.

This is the press release issued November 23, 2009 by the NH Department of Resources and Economic Development about the ten-year strategic development and capital improvement plan for NH state parks.

(Concord, NH) - The Department of Resources and Economic Development (DRED) today released a new draft of the Ten-Year Strategic Development Plan and Capital Improvement Plan for the New Hampshire State Parks System. The public is invited to comment on the plan through December 24, 2009. Public hearings will be held December 1st in Portsmouth, December 2nd in Concord, December 7th in Peterborough, and December 8th in Lancaster. The plan and the hearing schedule is available by visiting www.nhstateparks.org or calling 603-271-3556. Comments can be made through email, writing, or by attending one of the hearings.

Conservation New Hampshire recorded this week's press conference announcing the strategic plan for our state parks.  You can find them on YouTube at: http://www.youtube.com/user/ConservationNH

For more information about Conservation NH, contact Executive Director Jim O’Brien, 88 North Main Street, Ste 303-304, Concord, NH  03301. Phone 603-228-1970 or email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

CONCORD, N.H., Nov. 3, 2009--The FY 2010 Agriculture appropriations bill recently passed by Congress included a second year of funding for the Quabbin-to-Cardigan Partnership (Q2C), a collaborative land conservation initiative in the Monadnock Highlands of western New Hampshire and north-central Massachusetts. The funds will be used to support the permanent protection of priority lands in the New Hampshire portion of the Q2C region, via a competitive grants process.

The $282,000 appropriation was requested by U.S. Congressman Paul Hodes (NH-02), who secured for start up funding for the project in federal FY09.  “These funds will help the Quabbin-to-Cardigan Partnership continue its outstanding work,” said Congressman Paul Hodes. “I am pleased to support this partnership that will continue to preserve New Hampshire’s drinking water, wildlife, and natural environment for future generations.”

The Telluride Watch (Nov. 12, 2009), Karen James reports: Bear Creek Opponents Hope Decision Will Resonate Locally

http://tinyurl.com/ybc4n3m

This past April, the Merrimack Superior Court dismissed the lawsuit filed by the operators of Okemo/Mount Sunapee Resort over its controversial proposal to expand the ski lease area. The case is now under appeal.

As FOMS reported in our March 2008 newsletter, threat of a lawsuit emerged publicly in 2005 after Governor John Lynch refused to bring forward and approve the Resort’s request for an additional 175 acres of parkland to facilitate cross-border expansion and private, condo development on adjoining land in Goshen.

In October 2007, the Resort filed its complaint against the State of New Hampshire in the Merrimack court that led to the dismissal.

In the decision, Judge Diane M. Nicolosi said the Resort had “no valid right to use the land outside the bound, and therefore no right has been taken. Without a valid property right, Sunapee (the Resort) cannot maintain a cause of action…”

It has been eleven years since Okemo Mountain, Inc. leased the ski area located within Mount Sunapee State Park from the State of New Hampshire. Since then, the lease has been transferred to Sunapee Difference LLC to Triple Peaks LLC and, finally in December 2008, to CNL Lifestyle Properties based in Florida. Okemo has also used the lease as collateral interest to secure loans for improvements at Mount Sunapee and Okemo Mountain and for refinancing related to Triple Peaks’ acquisition of Crested Butte Mountain Resort.