Summer, 2024

NEWSLETTER

We continue our look at the ways people have protected and conserved land dear to them on the Blue Hill Peninsula. How their actions have lead them to seek out Blue Hill Heritage Trust, and in doing so will hold these spaces in perpetuity as both wildlife habitat and development buffers to maintain some of the aesthetic that is iconic to the area.

Today we will hear from Rich Storck and his dedication to the creation of a trail system which celebrates the relationships many of us have with our dogs as hiking companions.

One of the Trust's most visited trail systems in Blue Hill, beside the mountain, is that of Peter's Brook & Penny's Preserve located off of the East Blue Hill Road. These trail systems, made up of gifts and easements going back as early as 2005, encompasses much of Peter's Brook leading down to Peter's Cove, Albion Meadow and a retired granite quarry. Their trails cross over from one bordering property to the next with only a few signs stating as such. With a variety of options (loops, bridges, a viewing platform, and connector trails) it is possible to create unique daily adventures, multiple days in a row. Popular year-round, Peter's Brook & Penny's Preserve have an impressive local following, especially after heavy rainfalls when the water in the brook can flow higher and faster.

The following is Rich Storck's personal account of his relationship with the land that would eventually be known as Penny's Nature Preserve. How he shape its trail system, and help guide how the property is used today.

Penny’s Nature Preserve:

Where a Dog Can Be a Dog

by Richard Storck

During the summer, I am at Acadia National Park almost every week, either climbing Cadillac or biking the Park Loop Road. I have always been inspired by Dorr's and Rockefeller's gifts to the nation…

In 1998, Blue Hill Heritage Trust was raising funds to acquire land in Blue Hill. At that time, I had the opportunity to meet with Peter Clapp and Lorenzo Mitchell, two founding members of BHHT. I was impressed with the Trust’s vision, hard work, and what they had accomplished to date. Also, with the fact that they were a local organization with a vested interest specifically on the Blue Hill Peninsula.

But the story of Penny’s Nature Preserve starts a few years earlier when I first came to Blue Hill in 1996. Continue Reading...

Congratulations to All Graduating Seniors

BHHT would like to take this opportunity to recognize three local graduates, Iris Kimball, Quinn Jackson, and Jessie Dyer all of whom have worked closely with us over the last few years and who will undoubtedly go on to do great things! Iris is heading to Vassar College in NY. Quinn Jackson is heading to Santa Fe College in FL. Jessie to heading to UMaine.