Guilford Land Conservation Trust Bartlett Land Preserve Acquisition Information and Maps

Acquisition Details

The Guilford Land Conservation Trust is applying for a grant under the Open Space and Watershed Land Acquisition Grant Program to support the acquisition of a 65-acre property on Totoket Mountain, in the area of Bluff Head, for $425,000. At closing, in the summer of 2020, the Bartlett Family will donate an additional, nearly adjacent property of similar size resulting in a total of 130 acres of newly protected conservation land.

Acreage

This property is immediately adjacent to open space properties owned by GLCT, the South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority, and the Town of Guilford totaling 464 acres. Beyond the adjacent properties and reaching beyond Guilford’s borders, the area of protected land contiguous to the current acquisition parcels stretches into Madison, Killingworth, North Branford, and Durham and totals more than 20,000 acres.

Watershed Protection

The properties to be acquired protect two important watersheds. Wetlands on the property to be purchased are headwater streams that flow into the Coginchaug River which then runs north and into the Connecticut River. The property to be donated, though on the same ridge, contains headwater streams to the West River, which flows south and directly into the Long Island Sound.

Local and Regional Ecosystem Protection

The area to be protected includes fragile plant and animal species including some listed as species of Special Concern, Threatened and Endangered in the State of Connecticut. The area is home to an array of wildlife commonly found in the region from bobcat and fisher to barred owl and box turtle (a Connecticut Species of Special Concern). The frequency of black bear sightings in this part of Guilford in recent years points to the importance of such larger scale corridors of conserved land.

Recreation

The Bluff Head area is home to a trail system that is utilized by local and regional residents as well as visitors to Connecticut. Guilford’s Northwoods Trail System connects properties owned by GLCT, the Town of Guilford and the State of Connecticut. The Connecticut Forest and Parks Association utilizes trails on these properties, including the properties to be acquired by GLCT, as a part of the Blue-Blazed Hiking Trail System. And, since 2009, the New England National Scenic Trail, a federally designated trail running from Guilford’s coast to Mount Monadnock in New Hampshire, has also passed through Northwoods and across the proposed acquisitions.

*Please note: in order to be included in the grant package, the letter of support should be mailed or emailed to:

Sarah Williams 32 County Rd Guilford, CT 06437 [email protected] Cell: 203-640-1043

The letter itself should be addressed to:

Allyson Clarke, Property Agent CT DEEP Open Space and Watershed Land Acquisition Grant Program Office of Constituent Affairs/ Land Management 79 Elm St, 6th Floor Hartford, CT 06106-5127