The Westerly Land Trust

World Meditation Day: BarreCoast Meditation/Slow Flow
2023-05-21 11:00 - 12:00 (America/New_York) | Winnapaug Farm Preserve, 109-119 Rhode Island 1A, Westerly, RI, 02891, United States
To honor the intersection of land conservation and mental and physical health, the Westerly Land Trust is thrilled to partner with BarreCoast for another season of outdoor yoga. This year, we added mediation and outdoor bootcamps!
To kick things off join Anja Mertl, at WLT Winnapaug Farm Preserve, for a guided meditation and slow yoga flow.
Bring your yoga mat, another mat or sheet/blanket to place underneath and a bottle of water.
HOW TO REGISTER
Enroll Online at barrecoast.com or contact the studio.
WLT MEMBER DISCOUNTS
WLT members please contact Erika Lebling at elebling@westerlylandtrust.org for reduced price registration of $10!
Not-yet a WLT member but would like to be?
To become a member today please CLICK HERE.

Historic Cemetery Picnic Tour: Winnapaug Farm Preserve
2023-05-23 17:30 - 19:30 | Winnapaug Farm Preserve, 109-119 Rhode Island 1A, Westerly, RI, 02891, United States
Join us for our last stop of our Spring Historic Cemetery Tours and discover the history of cemetery picnics.

There are nearly 90 historic burial grounds in Westerly, five of which are on Westerly Land Trust properties. The WLT is hosting Michael Carroll, Executive Director of Rediscovering History, Inc. and Larry Hunter, local commissioner of the Rhode Island Advisory Commission on Historic Cemeteries and member of Rediscovering History, Inc. for our last stop on our Spring tour: Winnapaug Farm Preserve.
Pack your picnic baskets, beverages, and blankets or lawn chairs, and experience a fad of the past! Michael will take us back in time to the 19th and early 20th century when picnics in cemeteries were a fashionable and respectful way to stay connected to both the living and the dead. Larry will lead us through a history lesson and Cemetery 101 introduction.

Carry in/ Carry out
Tours are recommended for adults.
Please prepare for being out in the grass and woods, and bring bug repellant and water.
Sign up for 1 or all 3 tours as each burial ground offers its own unique characteristics and experience.
Tours are FREE for WLT members and $10 for not-yet-members, which Larry has generously pledged to donate to WLT.

Not a WLT member yet, but would like to be? CLICK HERE. Joining us with a family member? Sign up for our family membership and get not only a discount on attending all three tours but also all our other monthly adventures!

River Rangers: State Street (Grades K - 2)
2023-05-24 15:45 - 17:15
Living Laboratories for State Street Elementary School Grades K-2

Join WLT educators to explore the plants and animals that call the river home. Use a dip net to trap and observe these animals in their natural habitat. Discover the important role rivers play on our Earth. Grade 3 – 4 will have the opportunity to perform a water salinity test using more advanced technology!
Program is FREE thanks to a partnership with WPS.
Bus transportation available to and from program.

Thursday Hike: Level Best Farm, Richmond
2023-05-25 10:00 - 12:00
Join us for a walking tour around the private property at Level Best Farm, in Wood River Junction (town of Richmond). Ken will also give some brief history about the land and the surrounding area. Mostly flat terrain, on well kept trails, and an easy hike consisting of three loops (~ 1 mile each) that meet in the middle near the parking area. Enjoy various types of pine and deciduous forests, swamp views, meandering streams, meadows, and fields. There are also two milkweed meadows for the monarch butterflies. From the Westerly area, take route 91 east, towards Carolina. Drive through Bradford and continue past Alton Pond / Wood River and the Village of Alton. Turn left onto Homestead Road (located between the Alton Fire Station and the, “Food Truck on 91”). Meet at the end of the ~ ¼ mile dirt road. Address: 22 Homestead Rd, Wood River Junction, RI.
To sign up, contact Co-hike leaders: Ken and Rebecca Mitchell Call/text 269-808-5623 OR Email: rebecca.paperwork@gmail.com
Thursday hikes are FREE. Be sure to wear hiking boots or good walking shoes.
PLEASE NOTE:

Hikes leave promptly.
Ending times are estimated as it difficult to ascertain when it will finish due to number of people, how fast/slow the hikers walk, etc.
Please sign up with leader so that person will know how many are coming. If no one signs up the leader may not show up.
Inclement weather cancels and if in doubt, contact leader.
If you wish to bring a dog please contact the leader as some properties do not allow them. However, if a dog is present, they must be leashed at all times.

FLUORESCENT ORANGE REQUIREMENTS:
In State Management areas everyone is required to wear 200 square inches of solid daylight fluorescent orange from last Thursday in April to the last day in May, annually.

River Rangers: State Street (Grades 3-4)
2023-05-25 15:45 - 17:15
Living Laboratories for State Street Elementary School Grades 3-4

Join WLT educators to explore the plants and animals that call the river home. Use a dip net to trap and observe these animals in their natural habitat. Discover the important role rivers play on our Earth. Grade 3 – 4 will have the opportunity to perform a water salinity test using more advanced technology!
Program is FREE thanks to a partnership with WPS.
Bus transportation available to and from program.

Forest Bathing
2023-05-27 09:30 - 11:30 | Wahaneeta Preserve, 118 Moorehouse Road, Westerly, RI, 02891, United States
Slow down, awaken your senses and connect with Nature as you luxuriate in a Forest Bath!

Join Dr. Deirdre O’Connor for a slow and easy walk in Wahaneeta Preserve. Forest Bathing is the pleasant practice of spending time in nature for the purpose of enhancing health and happiness. Evidenced based research confirms that time in nature has profound healing benefits for physical and emotional well – being. The term Forest Bathing comes from the Japanese tradition of “shin-rin yoku” literally translated to “bathing in the atmosphere of the forest”. On this walk you will experience and learn about how the regular practice of Forest Bathing can restore health and vitality by strengthening immune function, lowering stress hormones, improving mood and sleep, and stimulating creativity. Forest Bathing also offers us the opportunity to deepen our relationship with the natural world.
You will be walking slowly for about one mile on mostly flat but uneven forest trails as you are offered a series of invitations to explore the landscape with your senses and connect with the natural world. We will be walking and sitting for 2 hours and will finish our walk by sharing tea together. This experience is open to ages 15 and up.

Registration is required. Spots are limited.
Each walk is $30 per person which Deirdre has generously pledged to donate to the Westerly Land Trust.
Parking is limited please carpool if you can

Dr. Deirdre O’Connor is a Certified Forest Therapy Guide through the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy. She practiced Naturopathic Medicine in Mystic, CT for over three decades where she was the founder and former Clinical Director of Natura Medica – The Center for Natural Medicine. Deirdre is delighted to continue to share the healing power of Nature through Forest Bathing where Nature and our true natures come to know one another. She resides in Westerly, enjoying birding, botany, bicycling and exploring the next cool place to share Forest Bathing.

Thursday Hike: Herman E. Sheets Family Preserve, North Stonington, CT
2023-06-01 10:00 - 12:00
This preserve offers an enchanting hike through a mixed forest and features vernal pools, active beaver dams, high views of the Green Fall River and various stone foundations of Laurel Glen one of North Stonington’s original villages. The hike is 2.5 – 3.0 miles on a variety of surfaces including packed dirt, grass, pine needles, small boardwalks, occasional rocks and roots, lots of short ups and downs and a switchback or two making it somewhere between easy and slightly moderate in difficulty. Trailhead and parking are located at the mailbox of 94 Puttker Rd, just off of Denison Hill Road. Parking is limited, if you are able, please carpool. Dogs on leash are permitted.
To sign up, contact hike leader: Deirdre O’Connor , 860-287-7281. Email: deirdreo@snet.net (email preferred).
Thursday hikes are FREE. Be sure to wear hiking boots or good walking shoes.
PLEASE NOTE:

Hikes leave promptly.
Ending times are estimated as it difficult to ascertain when it will finish due to number of people, how fast/slow the hikers walk, etc.
Please sign up with leader so that person will know how many are coming. If no one signs up the leader may not show up.
Inclement weather cancels and if in doubt, contact leader.
If you wish to bring a dog please contact the leader as some properties do not allow them. However, if a dog is present, they must be leashed at all times.

FLUORESCENT ORANGE REQUIREMENTS:
In State Management areas everyone is required to wear 200 square inches of solid daylight fluorescent orange from last Thursday in April to the last day in May, annually.

Head to Toe Wellness Fair- Wilcox Park
2023-06-01 14:00 - 18:00
Come stop by our table at the Westerly Library and Wilcox Parks to learn more about our Wellness in the Woods initiative! There will be a variety of different vendors, demonstrations, and give aways. Something for everyone from Head to Toe! For more information CLICK HERE!!

Forest Bathing
2023-06-03 13:30 - 15:30 | Wahaneeta Preserve, 118 Moorehouse Road, Westerly, RI, 02891, United States
Slow down, awaken your senses and connect with Nature as you luxuriate in a Forest Bath!

Join Dr. Deirdre O’Connor for a slow and easy walk in Wahaneeta Preserve. Forest Bathing is the pleasant practice of spending time in nature for the purpose of enhancing health and happiness. Evidenced based research confirms that time in nature has profound healing benefits for physical and emotional well – being. The term Forest Bathing comes from the Japanese tradition of “shin-rin yoku” literally translated to “bathing in the atmosphere of the forest”. On this walk you will experience and learn about how the regular practice of Forest Bathing can restore health and vitality by strengthening immune function, lowering stress hormones, improving mood and sleep, and stimulating creativity. Forest Bathing also offers us the opportunity to deepen our relationship with the natural world.
You will be walking slowly for about one mile on mostly flat but uneven forest trails as you are offered a series of invitations to explore the landscape with your senses and connect with the natural world. We will be walking and sitting for 2 hours and will finish our walk by sharing tea together. This experience is open to ages 15 and up.

Registration is required. Spots are limited.
Each walk is $30 per person which Deirdre has generously pledged to donate to the Westerly Land Trust.
Parking is limited please car pool if possible

Dr. Deirdre O’Connor is a Certified Forest Therapy Guide through the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy. She practiced Naturopathic Medicine in Mystic, CT for over three decades where she was the founder and former Clinical Director of Natura Medica – The Center for Natural Medicine. Deirdre is delighted to continue to share the healing power of Nature through Forest Bathing where Nature and our true natures come to know one another. She resides in Westerly, enjoying birding, botany, bicycling and exploring the next cool place to share Forest Bathing.

Thursday Hike: Carter Preserve, Charlestown
2023-06-08 10:00 - 13:00
This 5-mile walk on Nature Conservancy property has trails through various terrain, including grassland and woods. Easy trails on rolling hills with beautiful scenery. Mountain laurel will hopefully be in bloom during our visit. Meet and park at 400 Old Mill Road. Follow short dirt road under power lines to parking area.
To sign up, contact hike leader: Jeff Walker # 401-447-1879. Email: Jeffrey.walker@cox.net
Thursday hikes are FREE. Be sure to wear hiking boots or good walking shoes.
PLEASE NOTE:

Hikes leave promptly.
Ending times are estimated as it difficult to ascertain when it will finish due to number of people, how fast/slow the hikers walk, etc.
Please sign up with leader so that person will know how many are coming. If no one signs up the leader may not show up.
Inclement weather cancels and if in doubt, contact leader.
If you wish to bring a dog please contact the leader as some properties do not allow them. However, if a dog is present, they must be leashed at all times.

FLUORESCENT ORANGE REQUIREMENTS:
In State Management areas everyone is required to wear 200 square inches of solid daylight fluorescent orange from last Thursday in April to the last day in May, annually.

POP-UP: Bloomin' Brunch
2023-06-10 11:00 - 13:00 | Crandall Family Preserve, 79 Pound Road, Westerly, RI, 02891, United States
SCHEDULED FOR JUNE 10!! After keeping a watchful eye on the Rhododendrons and Mountain Laurel blooms we believe this will be the best time!

Join us for a guided hike through Crandall Family Preserve and walk through the forest of mountain laurel and rhododendrons. We will end the hike at the overlook where we will gather for a light brunch and mimosas. The trail we will be hiking is only accessible through special guided hikes such as this event. You won’t want to miss these plentiful blooms that line the trails in every direction. Hike is approximately 3.5 miles total.
This event is $5 for members, and $10 per person for not-yet members. Not a member, but would like to be? CLICK HERE!
Registration required, spots are limited.
