Mount Ascutney and the West Windsor Town Forest: Linked Conservation and Recreation Planning at Mount Ascutney Photo courtesy of Northeast Explorer Environmental Studies 50 Dartmouth College June 2017 ENVS 50 Advisors Nicholas Reo Karen Bieluch Contributors Tegwyth Alderson-Taber Ricky Berman Jessica Caron Robyn Chemago Meghan Christie Connor Clark Nevin Cunningham Margaret Currie Star Gulant Francesca Gundrum Eli Harrison Molly Kornfeind Michael Machlin Charles Mack Ryan O’Hanlon Luka Pejanovic Foreste Peterson Adam Philie Kepa Police Zachary Shank Ryder Stone Eleni Tebano Camille Wang Mark Widerschein Executive Summary Over the course of the spring academic quarter, April to June 2017, the students enrolled in Environmental Studies 50 at Dartmouth College worked alongside active members of the Brownsville &West Windsor communities to further develop a conservation and recreation plan for Mount Ascutney, building off work done by the previous year’s ENVS 50 class. In 2015, the town of West Windsor obtained 468 acres of land that was previously the Ascutney Mountain Resort. Ascutney Outdoors (AO), a local non-profit, has taken a pivotal role in leading the expansion of the property and acquiring funding to increase the recreational potential of the land. The students of the Environmental Problem Analysis and Policy Formulation, or ENVS 50 class at Dartmouth College have had the unique opportunity to work with AO board members, members of the Upper Valley Land Trust (UVLT) and Sports Trails of Ascutney Basin (STAB), administrators and activists within local communities, and experts within the Dartmouth community to identify and implement strategies to increase the depth of activities and range of users on Mount Ascutney. The 24 students in the class divided themselves into six groups based on the needs of the mountain and the interests of the individual students: Mountain Bike Revenue, Camps and Events, Interpretive Trails, User Research and Monitoring Study, Grantmaking, and Music on the Mountain. This document is an expansive report of the research and implementation efforts of each group over the spring of 2017. Acknowledgements Michael Bell Tabitha Bowling Steve Crihfield Dartmouth Bikes Dartmouth Mountain Biking Club Rynard Gundrum Jr. Erin Kershaw Patrick Kiloran Steve Lawson Jim Lyall John Roe Deb Shearer Tom Steussy Laura Stillson Jennifer Waite Kim Wind Table of Contents Executive Summary........................................................................................................... i Introduction........................................................................................................................1 Chapter One: Mountain Biking Revenue .....................................................................11 1.1 Introduction..................................................................................................................13 1.2 Background Literature ................................................................................................14 1.3 Recommendations for Implementation .......................................................................17 1.4 Digital Marketing.........................................................................................................30 1.5 Local and Regional Information Distribution Plan .....................................................32 1.6 Methods .......................................................................................................................33 1.7 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................35 Chapter Two: Camps & Events ....................................................................................37 2.1 Introduction..................................................................................................................39 2.2 Website Recommendations .........................................................................................40 2.3 Camps Database and Pilot Camp Program .................................................................45 Chapter Three: Interpretive Trails ...............................................................................55 3.1 Introduction..................................................................................................................57 3.2 Literature Review: Theory of Place ............................................................................60 3.3 Methods .......................................................................................................................62 3.4 Introduction to the Interpretive Trail at Mount Ascutney ...........................................71 3.5 Results: Recommended Trail Design Elements ..........................................................77 3.6 Interpretive Trail Map with Waypoints ................................................................... 109 3.7 A Note about Accessible Trail Design ...................................................................110 3.8 Conclusion ................................................................................................................112 Chapter Four: User Research and Monitoring ..........................................................115 4.1 Introduction................................................................................................................117 4.2 Literature Review of Relevant Studies......................................................................118 4.3 Methodology..............................................................................................................121 4.4 Ecological Impact .....................................................................................................131 4.5 Long Term Monitoring .............................................................................................138 4.6 Financial Costs ..........................................................................................................143 4.7 Results and Conclusions ..........................................................................................150 Chapter Five: Grant Research and Composition ......................................................155 5.1 Introduction................................................................................................................157 5.2 Education and Community Grants ............................................................................158 5.3 Mountain Infrastructure/Recreation ..........................................................................160 5.4 Trail Monitoring Technology for Conservation .......................................................166 5.5 Methods .....................................................................................................................172 5.6 Overall Project Methods ...........................................................................................175 5.7 Key Considerations and Next Steps ..........................................................................177 Chapter Six: Music on the Mountain ..........................................................................181 6.1 Introduction................................................................................................................183 6.2 Stage Design .............................................................................................................185 6.3 Concert Production ...................................................................................................192 6.4 Additional Usage for the Designed Space ................................................................195 6.5 Artist Selection ..........................................................................................................197 6.6 Outdoor Amphitheater ............................................................................................. 199 6.7 Recommendations………………...….......................................................................203 6.8 Conclusion ................................................................................................................204 Summary of Recommendations ....................................................................................205 Appendix A: Camp Website Recommendations .........................................................213 Appendix B: Local Camps Database ...........................................................................217 Appendix C: Pilot Camp Deliverable ...........................................................................221 Appendix D: Grants .......................................................................................................230 Appendix E: Annotated Bibliography .........................................................................253 Works Cited ....................................................................................................................259 Introduction Report Outline The students of the Environmental Studies 50 class at Dartmouth College worked in close collaboration with Ascutney Outdoors (AO) board members, staff at the Upper Valley Land Trust (UVLT), administrators and board members from the Town of West Windsor, and other local community members to further develop the revitalization or creation of several exciting facets of Mount Ascutney. In the introduction of this seminar report, each sub-group topic, of which there are six, provide a brief description of the