Hiking Challenge

“The light in the late afternoon at the confluence of the rivers made a perfect picture.”

-Virginia Stell, Hiking Challenge participant

“I felt as if I was in a cathedral on sacred ground amongst the towering beech trees.”

­Stephen Buczynski, hiker and volunteer

“My favorite part of this hike was the high ridge on the Old Field Bluff Trail, overlooking Old Field Creek. The tender spring green of new leaves added a welcome touch to the expansive winter view of the bluff without obliterating it. Very beautiful. Spring migrants were singing and flowers were still in abundance.”

- Pam Timmons, Hiking Challenge participant

"I just really love the outdoors. For me, it’s the belief in something bigger than myself and also having the ability to leave a legacy, because this is all we’ve got."

- Eric Ginsburg, TLC member

"All I want is to sit on my porch and see tomorrow what I see today...and I want my grandchildren to see it too."

- Bob Nutter, Easement donor and owner of Maple View Farms

“Gorgeous day, beautiful hike with my young dog, Mara. Trails are soft and lovely, easier on the knees. Love the variety and locations of benches. The creek is full today, eager and inviting. Jack-in-the-pulpits almost over now.”

- Happy Sayre McCord, Hiking Challenge participant

“We have so many things in common with nature. We have families and there are families outside in nature. All of these families need the same things like nutrients and a place to live.”

-Lyric, 8th grade student

“It was the most magical moment of my life.”

- Jordan, 6th grade student on his experience at TLC’s Temple Flat Rock Preserve

“Hiking through Swift Creek Bluffs with TLC was a breath of fresh air for me and my college friend during this chilly winter. This was our first hike with TLC, and we really enjoyed learning about native plants and birds in the area while exploring the hilly landscape.”

- Grace Williamson, event participant

“In some ways, I actually support TLC for selfish reasons. I want to have undeveloped places we can get to quickly—but where we can lose ourselves entirely—even if it’s just for half an hour on a Tuesday afternoon.”

- Dr. Diane Allen, River Society member

“TLC’s mission is to ‘protect important open space – stream corridors, forests, wildlife habitat, farmland and natural areas …’ Programs in support of this mission are vital because these members of our community do not have a voice to speak for themselves. They need an advocate, and TLC is their advocate.”

Larry Tombaugh, TLC Board Member

“The powerful intellectual step TLC has taken is this: by linking its transactions to the four public benefits, it has actually linked the land community with the human community. Through the lands it protects, TLC demonstrates that it is possible for both communities to be integrated in relative harmony. In reality, these are not two separate realms but one complex, interrelated and interdependent community known as ‘the Triangle’.

- Larry Tombaugh, TLC Board Member

“I like the idea of ‘think globally, act locally.’ Being a member of TLC is a nice way to be able to make a difference locally.”

- Alec Bethune, TLC member

“In so many places, our natural resources are being destroyed faster than they will regenerate. People just need their awareness raised constantly about taking more care of the environment.”

- Elizabeth Anderson, TLC member

“If people can give as much as possible, I know that TLC will turn it around to conserve property efficiently and strategically. I wish that I could give more.”

- Jennifer Maher, River Society member

“I really admired how the conservancy adapted in reaction to growth in the Triangle, evolving from saving small plots of land with interesting flora and fauna on it to looking at the big picture of open spaces and how we can conserve corridors and preserve water quality. As TLC has evolved, its mission has become more and more important.”

- Jennifer Maher, River Society member

"I just really love the outdoors. For me, it’s the belief in something bigger than myself and also having the ability to leave a legacy, because this is all we’ve got."

- Eric Ginsburg, TLC member