Protecting Habitat and Preserving Access in the Sierra
Nevada Land Trust conducts an assessment on every new project opportunity to ensure that limited staff resources and precious donor contributions are used wisely and deliver the biggest conservation return possible. NLT’s Ash Canyon project checks most of the boxes on the inventory portion - from wildlife and water, to history, public access, and location next to other protected lands. Located high above Carson City, these 45.5 acres include the main access route to the east side of Lake Tahoe State Park and the parking area for Hobart Lake.
“It’s a beautiful place to ride and hike,” says Michael Tristram, an avid hiker, biker, equestrian, and member of Nevada All-State Trail Riders, “and it’s critical that we protect it. Access from the east side is so limited, and too much has been lost over the years. People don’t want to have to drive for miles before they can even start to hike or ride. They want to get up there and get going,” he adds, emphatically.
The land contains a significant meadow complex, and includes dramatic granite outcroppings and mixed pine and fir forest with stands of aspen at an elevation of 8,000 to 8,500 feet. “The meadows here are part of a unique wildlife corridor,” reported Chuck Pope, formerly of NLT. “These animals move from meadow to meadow. It’s their pathway, and we need to protect all the links for it to work.”
The area is home to an impressive 170 species of birds, including the Mountain Willow Flycatcher, hawks, and eagles, and falls with-in Nevada Audubon’s Important Bird Area in the Sierra. Seventy species of mammals, from black bear and mountain beaver to the Sierra Nevada snowshoe hare and pine marten consider this land part their home range. It’s also prime habitat for numerous amphibians, such as the endangered yellow-legged frog.
Thanks to a $250,000 grant award from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Desert Terminal Lakes Restoration Fund, NLT focused on raising matching funds to complete the acquisition. “We engaged with our partners at Nevada State Parks and Carson City, and we began approaching private donors,” explained Chuck Pope. “This is an important acquisition to so many people, and saving these kinds of special places truly takes a village.”