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An annual gift of $30 (individual) or $50 (family) makes you a member of the Westerly Land Trust—and part of something lasting. Many members choose to give more, expanding their impact on the land, trails, and community programs they care about most. With a gift of $1,000 or more, you’ll join the President’s Circle—an inspiring group of supporters who provide essential leadership for our most ambitious conservation efforts. This special level of giving offers a meaningful opportunity to deepen your impact and connect more closely with our mission.
If you prefer to give by mail, please make your check out to The Westerly Land Trust and send to P.O. Box 601, Westerly, RI 02891.
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🌸Thanks to an early Memorial Day and a late Labor Day, 2026’s “unofficial” summer will last a whopping 106 days, the maximum stretch until 2037. This seems only fair after the winter we endured in New England. But how should you spend your bonus seven days of summer? We’ve got some ideas...
🌿Active Hope: Emotional Support for Eco-Grief
Wednesday, June 3, 4:30-6pm
Barlow Nature Preserve
Eco-grief is our emotional responses to climate change and environmental loss. This workshop, led by WLT friend Dr. Zoe Hanley, will include a mix of group practices, journaling and one-on-one discussion to honor our pain for the world.
🥾Thursday Hike
Thursday, June 4, 10am-12pm
Wahaneeta Preserve
This 4-mile walk goes through Wahaneeta Preserve and adjacent Woody Hill Management area, past interesting geological features and foundations from the 1800s.
🏞️National Trails Day Hike
Saturday June 6, 10am-12pm
Champlin Farm Preserve
Join WLT for a hike in honor of National Trails Day, a nationwide initiative established by the American Hiking Society to celebrate and protect the trails that connect us to nature and one another.
🐝Wednesday Wonder Walk
Buds and Bugs
Wednesday, June 17, 10-11:15AM
Avondale Farm Preserve
Every month, WLT teams up with @wildrootsplay.ri for a guided family hike curated to spark curiosity and nurture a lifelong love of nature. June’s theme is Buds and Bugs.
🌅Summer Solstice Yoga with BarreCoast
Sunday, June 21, 6-7pm
Winnapaug Farm Preserve
Celebrate the summer solstice with a special outdoor yoga class led by @barre_coast Register through the BarreCoast website. WLT members, contact Erika Lebling at elebling@westerlylandtrust.org for a reduced registration of $10
🪦Historic Cemetery Hike
Wednesday, June 24, 6:30-8pm
Champlin Farm Preserve
Step into history for this guided hike and historic cemetery tour led by WLT volunteer and RI Historic Cemetery Commissioner Larry Hunter.
We hope to see you at a WLT event or out on the trails this June!💚🥾
We’ve officially wrapped up our Spring Living Laboratories after-school program with Westerly’s three elementary schools! 💚
Together we identified the feathered friends that call our preserves home and explored the amazing world of plants and how they support our ecosystem. 🦅🌱
We love watching and helping these growing minds connect with the land! 🌎
#westerlyri #rhodeisland #outdooreducation #environment #students
In Westerly, May is a month of return. Longer days return, green leaves return to the trees, and snowbirds (avian and human) return from from their winter spots. May is also a perfect time to return to outdoor hobbies and explore all the natural sights and sounds of spring. Read on to learn about the Westerly Land Trust’s May plans:
Migratory Bird Day- Guided Bird Count
Saturday, May 9, 7:00-10am
Barlow Nature Preserve
Join us for a brisk, cool morning walk as we look and listen for birds at Barlow Nature Preserve.
Wednesday Wonder Walk
Eco Engineers
Wednesday, May 13, 10-11:15AM
Mastuxet Brook Greenway South
Every month, WLT teams up with @wildrootsplay.ri for a guided family hike curated to spark curiosity and nurture a lifelong love of nature.
Outdoor Bootcamp with BarreCoast
Sunday, May 24, 10 am - 11 am
Winnapaug Farm Preserve
Join Christina Coleman of @barre_coast a one-hour, heart-pumping, full-body bootcamp. Register through the BarreCoast website. WLT members, contact Erika Lebling at elebling@westerlylandtrust.org for a reduced registration of $10
Lil’ Rhody Compost Week
Various locations
There will be site visits and workshops across the state, including a presentation on micro-scale and backyard composting by Westerly’s @clewcompost on May 7.
Grow Your Own- The Cutting Garden Workshop w/ Echo Rock Flowers
Saturday, May 16th, 10am-1pm
Barlow Nature Preserve
Join @echo_rock_flowers for a hands-on gardening workshop designed to educate and inspire. Stephanie has generously pledge 10% of her workshop proceeds to support WLT’s conservation work.
42nd Annual Garden Market Fair
Sunday, May 17th, 9am-2pm
Westerly Library and Wilcox Park
Many thanks to @westerlylibraryandwilcoxpark for hosting this perfectly spring event! Come say Hi at the Westerly Land Trust table!
Huge thank you to the 40+ volunteers who spent their Sunday morning cleaning up downtown Westerly, Route 1, Potter Hill, and the Bradford roads. Together with the Greater North End Community Development Corporation, we cleared 420 pounds of litter out of our woods and off our streets! 🚮
We couldn’t have finished the job without the support from the Westerly Transfer Station. Thank you for helping us get all that trash to the right place by accepting our collection free of charge.
🍻We celebrated our hard work afterwards @greysail with a cold beverage, fresh @vetranoswoodfired and live music from Geoff Kaufman. Special thanks to @greysail for hosting us and to the @thejonnycakecenter for their gift card donations.
Thank you for helping keep our community clean! 💚🌎
#westerlyri #communitycleanup #earthday #stewardship
We had a special visit from a Girl Scout troop from Vermont with unique ties to the Crandall Family Preserve. We explored the vital importance of Crandall Swamp, one of the most ecologically diverse places in Westerly and a home to rare Atlantic White Cedar. 🌲
🐢💧As the “birthplace” for many species and the site of our town’s single-source aquifer, this land is incredibly sensitive. We discussed how WLT makes stewardship decisions to protect wetlands, which is why public access is limited here. WLT makes decisions on access based on many criteria, and we are pleased to be able to offer more than 20 miles of trails across our properties. We also took time to honor the layered history of this landscape, acknowledging the Narragansett People as the original and enduring stewards of the land.
Adding to the adventure we were joined by environmental photojournalist Bruce Fellman. Bruce is currently on the hunt for the elusive Ringed Boghaunter (Williamsonia lintneri), one of North America’s rarest dragonflies which relies on the specific, acidic wetlands found here. 🔎
#girlscouts #westerlyri #conservation #ecology #wetlands
🌎 We also celebrated Earth Day (April 22) with a rainy and resilient Wonder Walk at Champlin Farm Preserve with @wildrootsplay.ri
💦Students pulled on waders and headed straight into the magical stream. They spent the morning building habitats and searching for critters tucked among the rocks and roots. It was a perfect way to see how the creatures big and small fit into the web of life we protect here in Westerly. 🐸🐜🦌
🦫Join us for next month’s adventure on Wednesday, May 13th at Mastuxet Brook South as we become Eco Engineers. All WLT youth education programs are free but registration is required. Click the link in our bio to sign up!
#wonderwalk #westerlyri #community #explore #play
On Earth Day, April 22nd, we gathered at Camp Quequatuck and Riverwood Preserve for our 3rd Annual Westerly Land Trust Book Club in partnership with @westerlylibraryandwilcoxpark . This year, we discussed the book 𝙄𝙨 𝘼 𝙍𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝘼𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚? by Robert Mcfarlane. The weather was, well, April in New England, but we were (mostly) cozy round the fire, under blankets. This book explored the question of whether humans afford rights to natural elements, specifically rivers. We were treated at the end to an acoustic tune by Geoff Kaufman, followed by a short walk to the Pawcatuck River. Thank you to all involved!
🌎Our Earth Week kicked off with a great crew of volunteers at Champlin Farm Preserve. The crew was hard at work installing birdhouses to support bluebird nesting managing a flooded section of the trail.
🥾Later in the week, veteran CCCer and former WLT Board member, Dave Prigmore led a hike at one of his favorite spots in Westerly, Champlin Farm Preserve.
Under a bright blue sky, Dave took the group up and down hills, exploring the tectonic rock formations, all the way down to Otter Bend on the banks of the Pawcatuck River. ☀️
#earthweek #stewardship #volunteer #community #westerlyri
