A local group of volunteers on March 31 used public and private funds to buy 593 acres of forestland near Brattleboro. The group then gave the land to the town of Marlboro, Vermont so the land can be protected from development forever. The cost of saving Hogback Mountain was $1.7 million.

“We're thrilled,” said Bob Anderson of the Hogback Mountain Conservation Association www.hogback.org

On clear days, hikers on Hogback Mountain can see for many miles into Massachusetts and New Hampshire. It takes about 15 minutes to drive from I-91 exit 2 in Brattleboro to the Hogback Mountain trailhead. A map of the hiking trails is at:

http://hogback.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/hogback_trail_map_with_con...

Hogback Mountain is now open to the public for hiking. The land includes several wetlands.

Between 1992 and 2002, the U.S. lost an average of more than 5,000 acres of open space every day to shopping malls, roads, and other development. Protecting open space helps reduce global warming by encouraging dense development rather than sprawl. Dense development is best for public transit, and it helps reduce obesity by making walking a viable means of transportation.

People who want the government to spend more money on open space protection can contact their members of Congress and state legislators, and support advocacy groups like the Sierra Club www.SierraClub.org

The Vermont Land Trust www.vlt.org has paid staff. It helped the volunteer-run Association save Hogback Mountain.

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This map shows the Pioneer Valley section of the Connecticut River watershed. Land outside the watershed is light green, meaning streams in that area do not flow to the Connecticut River. Dark green land has been protected from development. Red land is vulnerable to being "developed." Please click on the map to enlarge it. Map by the Trust for Public Land, 2006.

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(This article replaces a Valley Post article about the effort to save Hogback Mountain that was published on 12/3/2009.)