NEWCASTLE 12/21/2007 – Last month’s DRA Community Conservation Cookout and boardwalk dedication marked the grand opening of the Damariscotta River Association’s Marsh River Bog Preserve. Dubbed “Hot Dogs on the Bog,” the November 10th event drew more than fifty partici-pants and featured free food and guided tours of the bog and its uncommon plant life. Several weeks later, soon after the season’s first big snow, DRA volunteers installed a new preserve sign to guide visitors to the publicly-accessible site.

Wanda Garland of Waldoboro led guided tours of the bog, pointing out bog species like cranberries and cotton grass, and explaining their biology. DRA lands director Steven Hufnagel then welcomed the assembled crowd, thanked the volunteers who contributed to the boardwalk, and paid special tribute to preserve steward Alan Pooley for his many efforts in making the preserve available to the public. He also thanked Newcastle residents for their support of the Association’s conservation efforts over many years. Pooley spoke of the challenges and rewards of installing a new trail system and boardwalk.

Hufnagel expressed his hope that the preserve and boardwalk will encourage visitors to consider the many values of wetlands, not only for the shelter they provide for plants and wildlife, but also for the benefits they offer in terms of drinking water quality and flood prevention, as well as simple enjoyment and exploration. He noted that its location, along Route 1 just north of Mike’s Place and opposite the spur to River Road, makes the preserve is easy to reach and will facilitate its use for DRA’s education programs.

The River Association purchased the 54-acre property from Lee Parsons and Regina Davies in 2004. Numerous individuals, foundations and public funds made the acquisition possible, among them the Maine Outdoor Heritage Fund, supported by the purchase of special instant lottery tickets, a North American Wetlands Conservation Act grant, the Fields Pond Foundation and the Falcon Foundation.

The parking lot for the new preserve is not yet plowed during the winter, though the DRA asks any local resident who might be willing to donate plowing services contact the organization. In the meantime, they request that visitors to the bog stay well off the shared access road to allow trucks to pass by.

Additional information about the Marsh River Bog Preserve is available from the Damariscotta River Association, a non-profit membership supported organization dedicated to preserving and promoting the natural, cultural, and historical heritage of the Damariscotta River, its watershed, and adjacent areas for the benefit of all. The Association has active programs in the areas of land protection, stewardship, community education, water quality monitoring, marine conservation, and cultural preservation. To reach the organization call 563-1393 or view their web page at www.draclt.org.

On Saturday, Nov. 10th the DRA combined its third annual Community Conservation Cookout with the grand opening of the Marsh River Bog Preserve and boardwalk. The location is shown on this map.

According to DRA lands director Steven Hufnagel, “The new boardwalk is an incredible and easy to get to recreational and educational resource for the people of this area, and for school children in particular. The structure extends more than 150 feet into the bog, opening up to exploration a natural community that few visitors ever have a chance to see. Cotton grass, bog orchids, cranberries, and stunted trees cling to a mat of peat moss which forms an ‘island’ in the center of the bog. The boardwalk crosses the moat around the island, making acces-sible this unique dwarf-shrub bog community.”

In addition to a boardwalk, preserve steward Alan Pooley created a system of trails across the remainder of the 54-acre property and a routed wooden trail map for the parking area. DRA purchased the bog property in 2004 from Lee Parsons and Regina Davies. Individual donors, foundations, and state and federal funds completely funded the purchase as well as the boardwalk construction.