The Backlands Coalition

Writes Liv Monck-Whipp, Nova Scotia Nature Trust Stewardship Coordinator

It’s funny how time works, and it’s funny how brains work.

Almost exactly 1 year ago, I had my first field day as the new Stewardship Coordinator with the Nova Scotia Nature Trust; Joanna Skomoroski, our Stewardship Manager, took me out to the Purcells Cove Conservation Lands to look at the trail system and do some baseline surveys. It was my first day learning about this unique and beautiful place, and I was very glad to be out of the office and on the land to see the work the Nature Trust does.

I was blown away by the stark beauty of this area, made all that much starker by the late winter, early spring season with deciduous leaves not yet out. The trail provides spectacular views of the granite ridges, which pop with light green lichens, the Jack Pines and Black Spruce forests dark against the sky, and of course the pond, which is an intense blue.

And now, a year later, I find myself walking the same trail, looking for other areas where we might do some maintenance work for the many community members who use it. The cycle continues. As I take a step down on the trail, I remember vividly: that exact rock was where I rested briefly when doing some of the trail maintenance work last year.

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