Outdoor Observer

A Fascination with Turtles Rod Christie, Mianus River Gorge Executive Director Ever since I was young, I have been captivated with all types of turtles. As a child I rescued baby turtles and raised them in my mother’s washroom sink, a large sink that could accommodate 30-40 baby turtles at a time. I have rehabbed […]

Protecting Land, the key to protecting our drinking water supply

Water, a finite commodity that we cannot live without, is often taken for granted, but water protection is a long and complicated process that begins with protection of watershed lands. Whether it’s safeguarding the well on your property or an entire municipal water supply, land protection plays a vital role. Undeveloped, healthy land protects aquifers […]

Riparian Corridor Restoration Project Update

May 3, 2021–Healthy riparian zones are crucial to the health of watersheds such as the Mianus River Watershed. Riparian buffers and wetlands help dissipate floodwaters, recharge groundwater supplies, filter out pollution, provide fish and wildlife habitat, and sustain the health of downstream water sources. The healthier the riparian zones, the better job they do at […]

Hobby Hill Farm Protected

Mianus River Gorge recently completed a conservation easement on the 8-acre property known as “Hobby Hill Farm”.  Located on Mianus River Rd. with a house dating back to the 1700’s, pond, and surrounding fields, this parcel was important to MRG as it is the headwaters of Havemeyer Stream.  Havemeyer Stream flows through the Mianus River […]

Board Spotlight–Meet Tim Evnin

Mianus River Gorge is grateful for the leadership and support of its Chairman of the Board, Tim Evnin. Tim has been a Trustee for nearly 15 years and has been Board Chairman since 2011. Tim leads with spirit, a steady hand, and a genuine love for the Gorge. We caught up with Tim via Zoom […]

Join the Anable Society

When we first came to Mount Kisco in 1958, a resident professional naturalist, Stanley Grierson, led a group of us through the Gorge in spring. I remember that we went all the way to Havemeyer Falls at the head of the reservoir. We had no idea until then that such beautiful wilderness existed here in […]

Animals Nobody Loves

I always loved the book by Ronald Rood called “Animals Nobody Loves” or the poems by Ogden Nash on the same subject.  I still remember Nash’s rhyme:  “God in all his wisdom made the fly, and then forgot to tell us why”.  The truth of the matter is that there are legions of critters that […]

Brilliance hidden in forest canopy

In the northeast we are fortunate to have our forests growing older.  As forests age, soils become more complex, topography more undulating, species composition more diverse, and the layering of the forest more apparent – herbaceous, understory, and overstory habitats more defined.  One indicator of this change, is the presence of a distinctive group of […]

Mianus River Gorge to Make Historic Land Acquisition

Mianus River Gorge (MRG) is closing in on an important acquisition for an 11-acre parcel bordered on three sides by the Mianus River Gorge Preserve. With recent funding commitments including from The Nature Conservancy, MRG needs $275,000 more to fully fund its highest priority property. This critical parcel features rare species of flora and fauna, […]

Donation adds 13 acres to MRGP

Thanks to an extremely generous donation from Susan Heller, Mianus River Gorge (the Preserve) has just added almost 13 acres of sugar maple woodlands along Mianus River Road. This beautiful land was once the site of an orchard in the late 1800’s and now is a mature sugar maple grove. Laced with ancient stone walls […]