Thanks to a major donation and financial support from many committed individuals, the Bethany Land Trust has acquired another parcel of land: 16 acres purchased from Cathy and Dan Van Epps on Beacon Road (Route 42) near the border with Beacon Falls.
This new parcel expands the existing 6.9-acre Van Epps Preserve to over 20 acres. Cathy and Dan have now created an enduring legacy in partnership with the Bethany Land Trust to preserve in perpetuity pristine forest adjacent to their home, with Cathy’s Emerald Trail now named in her memory.
The Van Epps Preserve lies in a glacial cirque and is fairly flat on the southern side gradually rising until it abuts the ridge of the Naugatuck State Forest to the east and the north. Once an area of pastureland, first worked by the Lounsbury family in the 18th century, it is forested primarily with mature, second growth trees. Very large glacial erratics are present on the property.
The Preserve provides habitat for a number of mammals, reptiles, amphibians and birds including coyotes, red bats, box turtles, owls, and hawks. Streams rising from the ridge flow into wetlands on the property. These wetlands feed Hockanum Brook in the Mendell’s Folly Preserve, which flows from there to the Naugatuck River.
This newly acquired parcel enlarges a protected bridge of land between the Naugatuck State Forest and the Bethany Land Trust’s Mendell’s Folly Preserve. It connects hiking trails in the State Forest to multiple land trust preserves and allows movement of animals and plants between terrestrial and wetland areas.
The Land Trust Trail Crew will soon be building trails that will connect the new parcel with the existing trails in the original preserve. Access will continue to be from Route 42 via an 8-foot wide pasture road that passes by an open area bordered by a grove of conifers. The existing trail map will also be updated when the trails are finished.
An ample area for parking several automobiles exists on the southern boundary along the 350 feet of frontage on Route 42. In addition to providing access to the Van Epps Preserve, this parking area can be used to access Mendell’s Folly across Route 42 using a trail that begins through an opening in the guardrail.