Wildlands Conservancy PA

Nature is golden right now! By way of colorful leaves, and in the ways nature gives back every time you come explore! When we come together as a community of support, we create a vibrant spectrum of lasting connections to nature, right here at home like with our NOVEMBER PROGRAMS! ✨ 📸 Explore Black River Sanctuary through the lens of your camera for our Fall Photo Contest, open NOW through Fri., Nov. 8! 🦃 Join wildlife biologist Bob Erikson at our nature preserve in Emmaus to learn about wild turkeys! 🍂 Free, guided hikes as part of our Get Out for Wellness program See something you like? Get more info and register at www.wildlandspa.org/events

HUGE NEWS 🎉🌎 Our NEWEST nature preserve, Black River Sanctuary, is officially OPEN! Today, approximately 100 people gathered to celebrate the grand opening of this 187-acre nature preserve located in the heart of the Lehigh Valley near Allentown and Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. There are approximately 3 miles of trails out here for you to explore as well as endless possibilities for viewing wildlife, ooo-ing and aww-ing at fall foliage, and getting connected to nature. Starting now, we invite you to explore Black River Sanctuary! Read more at https://lnkd.in/ewfYMfzC And, sign up for our email newsletter for upcoming get-outdoors adventures!

The Mëkëke trail at our newest nature preserve is derived from the Lenni Lenape's language for the nature in our beautiful region. Mëkëke is Lenape for a meadow, a verb meaning the land has a clearing without trees. (Source:talk-lenape.org) In our case, the meadow supports wildlife habitat with native wildflowers and grasses. We acknowledge that the honorable Lenni Lenape inhabited the land our nature preserves are presently on. They stewarded it with indigenous knowledge, traveled along the springs of South Mountain, and were out here in the Lehigh Valley 10,000+ years before colonialism. Stay tuned for more information on our newest nature preserve! Opening later this month.

Shoutout to some of our most tree-mendous Wildlands friends... our volunteers! Last Friday, Oct. 4, about 40 volunteers joined us to plant 325 native trees along Saucon Creek thanks to @CityofBethlehem. These are part of a larger project totaling 1,025 trees planted in the last year, all to help: 🌊 Improve water quality ⛈ Increase storm/flood resiliency 🐟🦆 Provide wildlife habitat These groups donated their time & talent: Martin Guitar, CHEP, Just Born, Inc., The Lehigh River Fish and Game Protective Association, Guardian Insurance, Wildlands Conservancy's Stream Team, and other members of the public. THANK YOU, volunteers!

So, what goes into opening a nature preserve? 🌎 We told you last week about how we make trails, which is one of the first steps, but there's more: 💚 A community of support! In order for nature preserves, local parks, and trails to significantly contribute to our quality of life, we look to our giving community to keep conservation alive -- today, tomorrow, and always. THANK YOU! 💚 All of our staff have a hand in the process. Our Conservation team works on acquisition, maps, trails, and accessibility. The Development team creates brochures, websites, and giving opportunities to maintain our preserves. And, our Education team connects people to nature by guiding the experience. 💚 Our volunteers help us build and maintain our trails- like the Promise Trail, a nod to @wearepnlv's volunteer corps' time and talent that they generously shared with us at our newest nature preserve (Stay tuned for great news later this month!) Next time you get out here with us, keep in mind that connections to nature are a product of our shared passion! 🌳⛰ 📸: Rachel Butler at our 📍 South Mountain Preserve in Emmaus, Pennsylvania

Did you know our Wine & Dine was held on the last day of summer? 🌞 It felt like Mother Nature celebrated with us, giving us beautiful weather and farm-fresh offerings through @rootscatering. And, we said "Cheers!" to local natural places and spaces with @domainepterion and @weyerbacher_brewing. 🍷🍻🌎 Each dinner served and additional funds from our generous giving community that were raised at the event support Wildlands Conservancy's mission-- working toward a Lehigh Valley and Lehigh River watershed that contains expansive natural areas, connected green spaces, healthy waterways, and an enlightened community where people embrace conservation and sustainability.

Have you ever been on a trail and wondered, "How did this even get here?" 🤔 Michael Hock manages our nature preserves, which means he's in the business of designing and building trails! And, here's how he did it at our newest nature preserve: 1. Slope. He has a Goldilocks rule- If the trail is too steep, it'll erode. If it's too flat, it'll have puddles. 2. Natural features. If there's a point of interest like an overlook, he'll lead the trail to it. 3. Length. How many miles should it be? He maps a few options and then does a test run (or test hike, rather). After some fine-tuning, the trails are ready to be constructed! 🌳 When you're on our trails, keep our VOLUNTEERS in mind! We're grateful for their dedicated time and talent in helping us with what goes into making and maintaining a trial. 📸: Steve Miller

Happy October! Have you ever smelled a fox before you saw it? 🦊📸⁠ ⁠ Entries are open for our 2024 fall photo contest! 🍂⁠ ⁠ Wildlands friend Steve Miller snapped this photo of a fox at our 📍 South Mountain Preserve in Emmaus, PA last fall and submitted it to our fall photo contest. ⁠ ⁠ Getting this shot wasn't pure luck; he said he smelled the fox’s presence and knew this picture would be possible. What he might have seen coming was this photo winning the contest! ⁠ ⁠ For more details about entering the photo contest, visit https://lnkd.in/eaJeG-i4

Autumn is the season to be spooky! Nature is full of tricks and treats like fascinating fungi and ooey-gooey s'mores. So, meet our spookiest animal ambassadors and make your next outdoor adventure a scary-good one! 📸 Share your fall Wildlands snapshots for a chance to win our fall photo contest. 🦉 Look for nocturnal creatures in the night and enjoy sweet treats. 🌳 Join us for fall plantings. See something you like? Registration is required at www.wildlandspa.org/events

Over 100 of you gathered for, "a reservation you can only get with Wildlands" at Lock Ridge Park in Alburtis, Pennsylvania for our Wine & Dine last Saturday! 🍷🌎 Out of each of these things: 🍅 the farm-to-table dinner from Roots Catering, 🍻 locally sourced drinks from Domaine Pterion and Weyerbacher Brewing, and 🌞 the scenic backdrop, our favorite part of the evening was being surrounded by your smiling faces! 😄 Being with our community of support who makes our mission of local NATURAL spaces and places possible is our idea of an ideal evening. THANK YOU! 🌲🌎 View the photo album from Wine & Dine: https://lnkd.in/d4RGrBfQ