Squam Lookout

June 2019 Forever Squam? Squam’s Land Trust Forever Squam; our web address, a tag line, and now a book title (see below). It also summarizes our approach for the perpetual stewardship of each completed land conservation project, such as Coolidge Farm and the Bridle Trail Lot (see page 2). While you can correlate permanently protected land with the concept of Forever Squam, protecting some of Squam is not the same as protecting all of Squam. At what point can we say that Squam is likely to endure forever? Land conservation, ironically, is not just about protecting land. It’s also about connecting the past with the future, wildlife with people, the spiritual with science, and individual values to community character. How often have you heard visitors marvel how Squam is unchanged? Yes, with 30% of the land in the Squam watershed now permanently protected, the landscape is largely the same. But there have been many, many changes in our community, and looming threats such as climate change and unbridled development. The antidote to these threats and social change is only partially addressed by land conservation. The biggest factor in maintaining the integrity of Squam has been, and remains, the ongoing commitment of the whole community, which has demonstrated time and again that stewardship goes beyond the management of their property. The power of Squam is that its stewardship is shared by the entire community. (1907) In the end, our success will not be measured by the number of protected acres or percent of land conserved, but by the sense of collective stewardship by subsequent generations. The challenge before us is to successfully transfer our commitment to steward Squam all the way to forever. Onward…

Forever SQUAM by Robert J. Kozlow Pick up your copy now at the SLCS office - $30.00 All proceeds go to land conservation when purchased at SLCS Dr. Kozlow has a special gift for capturing the timeless spirit of Squam and its community. His images in this book transcend time and reach across everyday experiences to inspire us and connect us to the awe and majesty of Squam’s land, lake, and people. Forever Squam . . .

West Rattlesnake - Bridle Trail Lot Area Protecting trail networks in the Squam watershed is a high priority for the Conservation Society. West Rattlesnake, with over 70,000 hiker visits a year, is the most popular hike in the Squam Region. Two of the trails, the Old Bridle Trail and the Undercut Trail, are located on a 12-acre tract owned by Rockywold-Deephaven Camps (RDC) in Holderness, NH. In May 2019, SLCS and RDC recorded a Conservation and Trail Easement to protect this key parcel lying between SLA’s Rattlesnake parking area on Route 113 and the UNH-owned Armstrong Natural Area leading up to the peak of West Rattlesnake Mountain. In addition to ensuring public access to the trails, conservation features include the protection of 545 feet of undeveloped land along Route 113, three natural-spring wells, and the upper watershed of the clear-running Bennett Brook leading into Big Squam Lake. Funding for this bargain- sale purchase came from generous SLCS donors as part of the Squam Uplands Initiative to conserve the upper reaches of land in the Squam watershed. Photo by Kenneth Hamilton

Coolidge Farm Coolidge Farm is a classic New England farmhouse located in Sandwich Bay in the northeast section of Big Squam Lake. Formerly the main dwelling of the 350-acre Samuel Smith Farm, which included Fore Point, Long Point and many miles of lake frontage, it was acquired in 1893 by Coolidge family members who had attended Camp Asquam, the nation’s first boy’s camp. Called Upper Asquam Farms, it was the first country estate at Squam. In the 1950’s through the mid-70’s, Judy Coolidge operated a high- volume chicken farm, with as many as 20,000 chickens producing eggs and meat. Coolidge Farm, now six acres with a restored farm house, small cottage, large barn, and 515’ of shoreland, is presently owned by the Coolidge Farm Preservation Trust (CFPT). In February 2019, the CFPT donated a conservation easement to the Conservation Society protecting 4.3 acres of land, including all of the shorefront. This scenic property is very visible, situated across the Town of Sandwich Beach. We are grateful to the CFPT Trustees and Coolidge family members for protecting this iconic property.

2 Night Lights This dark sky map of central NH shows nighttime light emissions from 2016. Note how much darker the Squam watershed is compared to nearby Newfound and Winnipesaukee Lakes. For more information go to: https:lighttrends.lightpollutionmap.info

Squam Lake

“In my youth we could look out across the lake and see thirteen lights at night. It’s up to 17 now. That’s not too bad in 60 or 70 years.”

In memory of Ham Coolidge, 1924 - 2018 Hamilton Coolidge celebrating the conservation of Hoag Island in 2009.

Did you know . . . that you can easily access an interactive map of the Squam watershed at our website foreversquam.org?

You will be able to toggle between type of terrain, conservation land, trails, streams, town boundaries, and much more. Go to: foreversquam.org/map-of-conserved-land/ 3 All Things Stewardship

We welcomed spring with lots of planning, organizing and preparing for the upcoming summer and fall. In May, Jules Stanley and Dane Doormann, two AmeriCorps members with the Lakes Region Conservation Corps, joined the team to help with land conservation projects, research, and general stewardship of the lands and conservation easements in our care. We are very excited to have them here. Looking to the future, the Conservation Society is transitioning to a new Salesforce-based database system (called LOCATE). The new system will be cloud-based and allow us to track properties and projects, and all of the long-term information and stewardship of the full SLCS-conserved lands’ portfolio. It is a big undertaking and a big investment in the future of the organization. When completed, we will be better positioned to engage all-those-who-love- Squam with the hard (but satisfying) work and responsibility of caring for this remarkable place. Also looking to the future (notice the theme?), we have taken some time to revamp and update our “Stewardship Calculator.“ The calculator is used to determine what funding levels are needed in the future to ensure that we can deliver on the promise of forever. The Conservation Society is well positioned, but costs continue to increase, and there’s always a potential for legal challenges. Reviewing our assumptions and goals proved valuable. Thanks to the calculator, it looks like we could use a bigger piggy bank! We are always looking for new folks to help with monitoring lands on which we hold conservation easements, and to assist with managing the lands we own. We have a bunch of new conservation projects that have been completed with more in “the pipeline.” It really is an exciting time! If you are interested in joining the team or have some time to help, give a call at 603-968-7900 and ask for Pete, or visit our web page at foreversquam.org and send us a note. We’ll give you all the training you need, and all the fresh air you want! Artwork by Max Gagnon - mcgillustration.com There go our superheroes.

Welcome Our 2019 AmeriCorps Members Dane Doormann Hello! My name is Dane and I graduated from Keene State College in May with a B.S. in environmental studies and a minor in sustainability. I grew up in a small town in Connecticut, but moved to Franconia, NH in the beautiful White Mountain region after my senior year of high school. My love for the outdoors began as a young child when my father would take me on hiking, skiing, and boating trips. My passion and love for the environment continued to grow as I explored the White Mountains and traveled and explored other countries such as, Costa Rica, Ireland, Croatia, Austria, and many more! Through each and every experience my desire to conserve Earth’s natural resources has grown. I’m incredibly excited to begin my journey with the SLCS and learn more about land conservation practices. And I am thrilled to call the Squam watershed my home for the next six months! Jules Stanley Hello! My name is Jules and I’m from Hershey, Pennsylvania. I’ve just graduated with an undergraduate degree in organismal biology and ecology from Colorado College. I have a great love for field work, especially relating to botany, and I have worked as a guide for Hershey Outfitters in my hometown, leading kayak trips, high ropes courses, and hiking. You can usually find me outside hiking or camping. I’m excited to work with the SLCS and to spend time in New Hampshire!

4 Squam Range Forest Monitoring Doublehead Preserve, Sandwich, NH Acid rain. The name is particularly nasty, and the effect on New England forests was especially damaging. Fortunately, federal policy makers made positive changes to the Clean Air Act in 1990 that helped reduce the impact of acid rain on the entire northeastern United States. The recovery, while not complete, has been remarkable. The science behind it? Fascinating. Here we are 30 years later, facing a similar but global environmental catastrophe with the insidious and ever-increasing symptoms of climate change. We all have to do our part to reverse this trend. If we don’t, expect to see more severe storms, rain events, draughts, and who knows what future generations will face. And what about the plants, animals, critters and bugs? Big changes for them, assuming they survive. As it was with acid rain, maybe science can provide some solutions. Here at SLCS we are always looking to the future and how we can work to protect and preserve. This year, in partnership with the Hubbard Brook Research Foundation (HBRF), we are embarking on an effort to examine the forest health of the Squam Range as our local climate changes. The Squam Range is a 20,000- acre, 95%-forested mountain range in the heart of Central New Hampshire nestled between the White Mountain National Forest and Squam Lake. The Range, with its many water courses and elevation differences, contains a broad array of species and habitat types. It is this diversity that offers great potential for these species and habitats to adapt to the changing climate. Over time, we may actually be able to measure movement of plant and animal species as they adapt. But we’ll never know unless we start collecting baseline data! We are very excited and fortunate to work with HBRF whose work supports the Hubbard Brook Ecosystem Study in the White Mountains of NH. For over 50 years, long-term studies at the 8,000-acre Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest (HBEF) have led to scientific breakthroughs including the discovery of acid rain, and the effects of lead, salt, and nitrogen pollution in streams and lakes. Together we will establish a series of three permanent, 30m x 30m plots and other sampling stations using protocols developed at HBEF. The location of the plots will be on Doublehead Preserve, a 150-acre parcel owned by SLCS. The plots will be positioned over an 800-foot elevational gradient: lowland oak-pine forest more typical to the south; mixed northern hardwoods more typical of western and central NH; and spruce-fir upland typical of northern forests. Again, the property is ideally suited to measuring whether, when, and to what extent plant species migrate up the elevational gradient in response to changes in climate. With assistance from HBRF and U.S. Forest Service staff based at Hubbard Brook, we expect to get the plots set up this fall and we hope to have this fully operational in two years, including the involvement of local school programs and trained volunteer forest monitors. Stay tuned!

5 Oh, Deer! The Delicate Balance of Orchid Life and Death By Nat Cleavitt, Research Associate, Cornell University, and Vegetation Crew Leader at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest

Orchids are one of the most diverse and beloved families of flowering plants. But populations of these alluring plants are experiencing declines, largely because of their complex interdependencies with other organisms. In northeastern North America, the sensitivity of orchids that live on the ground results from their close associations with different fungi and their vulnerability to being eaten by growing populations of white-tailed deer. Despite documented decline in orchids in the Northeast and general interest in conserving orchids, there are still large gaps in our understanding of orchid life history for the majority of species found in North America. The round-leaved orchids—also known locally as “dinner plate orchids” because of their two large, round leaves lying flat on the forest floor—are a prime example. They are dependent on soil fungi, live only in North America, and are listed as rare in Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. At Hubbard Brook, we have been following individual orchids since 2011 and have marked over 1,000 individuals with numbered flags. During this time, we have observed multiple potential pollinators of round-leaved orchids, including ruby- throated hummingbirds, carpenter bees, and a geranium plume moth. These observations of generalist pollinators contrast with the commonly held view that orchids have highly-specialized pollinators—Charles Darwin hypothesized that many orchids coevolve with specific pollinators in order to make the process more streamlined. Our study of individual orchids has revealed that although most die within the first 10 years, a small fraction of adults (between three and five percent) may live for 20 years or more. Throughout the study, mortality has been twice as high for juveniles as for adult orchids, and there were far fewer juveniles than adults. During the first five years of the study, we measured leaf area and tracked the amount of leaf area damaged. Even a 25 percent loss of leaf area resulted in the inability to progress to the next life stage (for example: from vegetative to flowering adult) suggesting a very delicate carbon balance. This knowledge is worrisome given the increase in the white-tailed deer population. Starting in 2016, the number of orchid flowers and leaves eaten by deer in the Hubbard Brook valley has increased dramatically (from 10 percent or less between 2011 and 2015 to between 50 and 82 percent in more recent surveys). Because of the surge in deer damage, our current focus is on caging a subset of flowering individuals to decrease losses to deer and prevent local extirpation of the Hubbard Brook populations. We have much more to learn from these complex and fascinating plants!

6 Wetlands Protection Thanks to Sturtevant Bay By Tink Taylor, Holderness

In 1978, the New Hampshire State Legislature adopted regulations to protect the State’s valued wetlands. The origins of these regulations can be traced back to the shores of Squam Lake! The push to protect NH’s wetlands came at a time when marshes, swamps, bogs and fens were seen as wastelands in need of economic “improvement” and viewed as dismal, mosquito-breeding dark holes in need of dredging or filling in. They had been places for disposal of everything from old automobile hulks to dead animals. In the early 1970’s, so many of New Hampshire’s wetlands had been altered beyond restoration that folks started to notice. Then Sturtevant Bay happened. An out-of-state developer sought to create The Asquam Lake Beach and Ski Club, consisting of 600 tiny lots along the Sturtevant Bay shore. Work began with the bulldozing and covering over of a bothersome marsh that was in the way of the project. A marina, clubhouse and other vacation home attractions were already well underway when Bill Mead of Center Harbor raised the alarm. Was any notice to abutters required? Or a heads up to the Town of Center Harbor? Surely a state permit must be required. At this time, there was no state law preventing the destruction of wetland areas, only a well-worn statute requiring approval by the Governor and Executive Council allowing the placing of fill upon or removal of same from State property. Since below the mean high water line was State property, such approval was required, but nothing was required for adjacent wetlands. In 1978 the NH State Legislature passed the Wetlands Protection Law. Today the NH Wetlands Bureau protects and preserves tidal and freshwater wetlands against unregulated alteration that would adversely affect these important natural areas. All thanks to the events, or potential events, at Sturtevant Bay!

The Heron Society Leaving a legacy of Squam protected in perpetuity— could there be a better way to make a difference? By including the Squam Lakes Conservation Society in your estate plan, you are leaving a legacy for future generations to enjoy and appreciate. Steps taken now can ensure that some of your assets will continue the conservation and stewardship of Squam’s Land. “So many of us contribute one way or another to keeping Squam the way it is. We don’t do it for ourselves but for our grandchildren. “I took my grandchildren down to the end of our dock and I said, ‘What you see in this cove will always look the way you see it today. You will be able to stand here and say the same to your grandchildren. Some of the family money will be left to the people who will take care of this John and Carol Thompson place. That is my gift to you.’”

7 PO Box 696 Holderness, NH 03245-0696 Phone: 603-968-7900 foreversquam.org

Squam’s Land Trust

Board of Directors OFFICERS Winthrop Brown President Anne Lovett Squam Climate Change Forum Vice-President Frank Stevens June 8, 9:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. Vice-President What can we do as a community to prepare for the impacts of climate change? Peter Gross What actions can we each take to reduce these effects? Join us for this important Vice-President conversation about taking action to mitigate climate change in the Squam Lake David Martin watershed. We will hear from scientists and community leaders before engaging in Treasurer discussion about moving forward together to create collective impact. Meet at the Patsy Carega Secretary Squam Lakes Association Barn on Route 3. Location: The Fisher Family Barn, 534 US-3, Holderness, NH 03245. This program is DIRECTORS Penelope Beal hosted by Squam Lakes Natural Science Center, Squam Lakes Conservation Society, Thomas Beale and Squam Lakes Association. Ashley Bullard Lawrence Coolidge Leo Dwyer Passing it on . . . Generational Property Transfer Ken Evans Chris Grant Thursday, August 8, 2019 • 9:00 to 11:30 am Susan Gutchess Holderness Library • 866 US Rte 3, Holderness Chip Harris Bonnie Hunt A detailed and thoughtful discussion for property owners seeking to ensure the land they Pam Simonds John Thompson love will become part of a family legacy that will be enjoyed for generations to come. Four property owners will discuss their challenges, limitations, and triumphs in dealing HONORARY with this important issue. DIRECTORS Laurie Beeson Sponsored by: Squam Lakes Conservation Society, Lakes Region Conservation Trust John Morgridge and NH Preservation Alliance. Daphne Mowatt Peter Richards Details at foreversquam.org Tim Vaill Peter Van Winkle Betsy Whitmore

STAFF Roger Larochelle Executive Director Alicia Abbott Advancement ANNUAL MEETING Peter Helm August 17, 2019 - 10 a.m. Stewardship Beij Preserve Zak Brohinsky Doug Hill 167 East Holderness Road Land Protection Holderness

The Society’s mission is to preserve the unique quality and character of the Squam watershed by protecting lands for present and future generations.

Squam Lookout is printed on 100% post consumer recycled paper manufactured from sustainable raw materials and free of chlorine chemistry.