West Success Stories
Up one levelBorn with a Passion for Land
Joyce Lucas cares about history and she cares about land. “I have a passion for what people did before me; when people left their home country, they wanted to have land. I think my passion for the land was born in me.”
Sonoma Land Trust Acquires Iconic Coastal Property
CA - After a five-year quest, and in spite of significant hurdles related to California’s economic crisis, the Sonoma Land Trust closed escrow today and acquired the stunning 5,630-acre Jenner Headlands — a nationally significant project and the single largest conservation land acquisition in Sonoma County.
Iconic Maui Views Preserved
HI - The Erdman family is proud to be a part of this historic preservation agreement of Ulupalakua Ranch. 11,300 acres along the leeward slopes of Haleakala in Maui will be protected forever as a working ranch and wildlife habitat.
An Elementary Land Deal
OR - Behind each piece of conserved land, there is a person - a farmer, a retiree, a carpenter - who took it upon himself to ensure that the land would be saved for future generations. In this case, it was an elementary school student.
Arizona Ranch Unifies Landscape
AZ - The recently protected Clyne Ranch is a critical addition to existing conserved lands - enhancing wildlife movement corridors, protecting expansive native grasslands, and continuing to secure key water sources for generations to come.
Past Generation Plants New Future
CA - The Ichord Ranch's 2,900 acres of rolling grasslands, vernal pools and endangered species are now protected forever by a conservation easement.
Forest Conserved on Historic Parker Ranch
WA - The forested portion of a historic ranch, originally homesteaded in the 1800s, has been conserved in Kittitas County.
Paradise on the Edge of Town
OR - David Atkin grew up living right next to the Illinois River. Every summer, he would eagerly await the returning salmon and rejoice at the sighting of the first one each year. David traces his love of his land back to those moments as a young boy.
Trust Preserves 646 Wetland Acres in Guadalupe Delta
TX - More than 640 acres of wetlands with key breeding areas, stop-over and wintering habitats for migratory birds are protected in the Guadalupe River Delta, thanks to the Guadalupe-Blanco River Trust.
Land Trust Protects Critical Heron Habitat
WA - The Whidbey Camano Land Trust is helping to protect 36 acres of critical Great Blue Heron nesting habitat on Camano Island.
Creating a Legacy
CA - Acquisition of two land parcels in southern Sierra Nevada will protect two ecologically rich areas.
Texas Keeps It Wild
TX - Pineywoods Mitigation Bank to provide restoration of a critical wetland ecosystem.
15 Ranches and 11,000 Acres Protected in Saguache Creek Corridor
CO - A 1,575 acre conservation easement preserves four more miles of Saguache Creek.
1 Easement -- 6,300 Acres of Land Protected
CO - 6,300 acres of wetlands, pine savannah, pine forests and woodlands, mixed-conifer forests, mountain shrubland plant communities, and ranch land are now protected by a conservation easement in Archuleta County.
5,040 Acres of Sands Ranch to be Preserved
AZ - The missing link between the Las Cienegas National Conservation Area and the Whetstone Mountains, and is the most significant grasslands habitat acquisition in Pima County’s history.
Three Key Properties Preserved Along San Mateo Coast
CA - Peninsula Open Space Trust acquires three properties near San Gregorio, Half Moon Bay and Moss Beach totaling 1,001 acres.
Over a Thousand Acres More
NM - 1,029 acres of exceptional wildlife habitat, prehistoric rock art and incredible views are protected by Taos Land Trust in New Mexico.
Arizona Open Land Trust Partners to Protect ‘Western Way of Life’
AZ - Accelerated development in southern Arizona threatens to stifle the Western way of life, especially ranching, but some landowners are fighting back. Dennis and Deborah Moroney have taken a stand with the permanent protection of 960 acres of their 22,000-acre working ranch.
Island Community Keeps Watmough Wild
WA - Once again, San Juan Preservation Trust members and the island community came together to protect a dramatically beautiful, ecologically sensitive and much loved property. This time it was Watmough Bight on Lopez Island in Washington state.
Franklin Canyon Protected
CA - The Muir Heritage Land Trust has protected 423 acres once slated for large-scale development projects in Franklin Canyon.
A Big Sur State of Mind
CA - Glen Deven Ranch, an 860-acre mixed use property above Highway 1 in the hills of Big Sur, is a striking example of the beauty, simplicity and raw power of Big Sur.
The Jewel of the Ka’u Coastline
HI - Hawaii Island Land Trust, The Nature Conservancy, and The Trust for Public Land work together to save Honu’apo Bay and its surrounding tidal wetlands.
Patience Key to Using Nevada Act to Protect Land
NV - Thanks to a unique piece of federal legislation, and despite pressure from a growing population, 300 acres in western Nevada will now be preserved by a conservation easement brought about by the American Land Conservancy.
Saving the Old West
CO - Drive down White Hill Road in Carbondale and look east. You’ll be treated to a beautiful vista, reminiscent of the Old West and uninterrupted by the signs of development that have become common in this part of the state.
Capps Ranch
CO - When Sam Capps of Walsenburg was asked why he wanted to protect his productive and beautiful 28,000-acre ranch at the foot of southern Colorado's Spanish Peaks, he would get a very stern look on his face. "Because I want to know that this place will always look the way that God made it" was his answer.
Big Victory, Small Package
MT - “Sometimes our success comes not in thousands of acres, but in thousands of hearts that are touched.” The conservation of the last 1.8 acres of Burke Park represented a big victory for the community despite its small size.
An Ancient Grove of Trees Stands Tall
MT - At a spot between the Rattlesnake Mountains and the Big Blackfoot river in Montana, there stands a grove of trees centuries older than the United States itself. the oldest ones - some more than 400 years old - are yellow-bark ponderosa pines, which are very tall and very straight, with trunks measuring as many as four-feet in diameter.
