Mt Jasper is an unassuming summit that defines the
northwestern viewscape of Berlin, NH. This
gentle and quiet summit, just over
1,000 ft in elevation and sitting in a 200 acre piece of open forestland, is within walking
distance of downtown Berlin, and in the longstanding North Country tradition of
public access on private land, is heavily used by the community (recent data collected by NH Fish and Game counted over 500 hikers in one week). It is a wild
and quiet green space in contrast to the urban development of Berlin. One can
walk from Main Street with brick storefronts and concrete sidewalks into the
deep quiet green of Mt Jasper in less than 10 minutes.
Mt Jasper is owned by the City of Berlin, and is on the
National Register of Historic Places, but has remained undeveloped and
unpromoted save for snowmobile trails and a network of undesignated and
unmarked roads and trails. Yet in community documents such as the development
of the recent Master Plan, it was identified as requiring some degree of
‘protection.’ In today’s dynamic world of conservation, recreation, and
grassroots organizing, we prefer the term ‘stewardship,’ indicating a level of
community engagement, education, and ownership of the management process. In
the past few years, thanks to partnership work led by AMC Trails, the community
has taken steps towards local stewardship of the summit.
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| White Mountain Ridge Runners snowmobile club building a trailhead parking lot, to be shared with hikers. |
Stewardship is a concept, and in every situation expresses
itself uniquely once that concept is translated into on-the-ground-work. In the
case of Berlin and Mt Jasper, ‘stewardship’ had to take its own course, develop
its own voice. This is the approach of grassroots organizing, and it has
yielded an extraordinary result.
So, what does ‘stewardship’ mean in this case? It means a
hiking trail built and maintained by Berlin’s Jobs for America's Graduates (JAG) program. It
means a natural resource and management plan developed by a subcommittee of the
Berlin Planning Board. It means a new parking lot built by the White Mountain
Ridge Runners Snowmobile Club, along with a new hiking trail that co-shares
part of the snowmobile trail. It means a series of interpretive signs depicting
the natural and cultural heritage designed by local artists. It means
infrastructure such as kiosks and benches built by the Enriched Learning
Center, an alternative educational program for at-risk youth. It means
developing a set of stewardship principles unique and tailored to the community
and to Mt Jasper itself, and has set in motion long-term stewardship of the
summit and surrounding land.
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| Local artists working on interpretive sigange for Jasper |
Upcoming work this year includes building a second hiking
trail, along with a trailhead kiosk and signage, as well as continuing to
develop the first hiking trail. With any luck, the processes of City government
will accept the recommendations and management plan for Jasper developed by the
Jasper Subcommittee of the Planning Board. Among these recommendations is a
recommendation that the parcel be for non-motorized use (excepting current
snowmobile trails during the winter months).
The Mt Jasper Stewardship Project has been ongoing for
almost five years, and is an example of the slow growth of grassroots community
work. The project is one of true and theoretically unlikely partners (such as snowmobile
clubs and alternative educational programs), but the common theme is a love of
the mountain and what it represents.
To read more about local coverage of the Mt Jasper work,
check out the Berlin Daily Sun
here
and
here,
and the White Mountain Ridge Runner’s blog
here.
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| A new trailhead kiosk, built by the Enriched Learning Center in Berlin |
Labels: Mount Jasper, North Country Trails Stewardship
