By Erin Cabral, recreation technician
Anchored in the middle of Thorndike Pond in Jaffrey, NH, sits 5 acres of natural beauty formally known as Whittemore Island. To prevent the development of a resort on this island, it was first donated to The Nature Conservancy in 1975 by the Whittemore Family. Ownership was then transferred to The Monadnock Conservancy in 2012. This conserved property is currently being co-managed by the Monadnock Conservancy and the Thorndike Pond Conservation Association.
The island is host to a flurry of native plants such as teaberries, blueberries, and witch hazel. During my first visit to the island, I enjoyed the sight of these plants alongside the sounds of a Barred Owl, Grey Catbird and Eastern Kingbird singing in the trees. I was careful to stay away from the southwest edge of the island, where a loon chose to build her nest early in the spring. The well preserved natural landscape here makes a great environment for wildlife of all kinds to flourish.
The Conservancy partners with a local girls camp, Camp Waklo, on an annual basis to teach campers about maintaining conserved lands. On Tuesday, July 8th, 11 of the campers joined us on Whittemore Island. The girls got to work removing invasive buckthorn and other plants impeding the trail paths. They also cleaned up the landing, placed stepping stones in wet areas and reinforced a boardwalk on the trail. The girls did a great job improving the safety and beauty of this island; they even let us in on a little known nickname, “Sagey,” that the local campers use to refer to it. It has yet to be uncovered if this nickname simply originated from around-the-campfire stories, or if it is rooted deeper in the history of the area.
The island has been managed specifically to maintain its timeless beauty by limiting human interference. This allows for the quality of the water, wildlife habitat and native vegetation to remain high for all who want to enjoy it. It can be accessed via the public boat launch on Dublin Road in Jaffrey, near the intersection of Dublin Road and Page Road. The landing area can be found on the southern side of the island, marked by a wooden sign that reads “Whittemore Island.” While paddling out, make sure to look to the West to catch an unbeatable view of Mount Monadnock!