A big year for HCT: Highlights of 2025
Thanks to your generous support, 2025 has been a banner year for land preservation, transformative eco-restoration, wildlife surprises, and inspiring outdoor adventures. We are grateful to Harwich Conservation Trust (HCT) donors, volunteers, staff and partners for their hard work, expertise and can-do spirit! There were so many wonderful accomplishments during the year that we thought it would be a good idea to look back on some of the highlights. Here’s to another great HCT year in 2026!
A burn pile at Thompson’s Field. Photo by David Cockcroft
January 2025
HCT volunteers led by HCT Director of Land Stewardship Connor O’Brien started the year off in fiery fashion by cutting woody invasive plants at Thompson’s Field Conservation Area and burning them in brush piles. Joined by Town of Harwich Conservation Department staff, the group helped maintain the sandplain grassland habitat at this popular property. Thanks to all our volunteers and our partners, AmeriCorps Cape Cod and the Town of Harwich who make our mission of saving land and preserving habitats possible!
February 2025
More than 100 Harwich community members learned about the Hinckleys Pond – Herring River Headwaters Eco-Restoration Project during a fascinating presentation by Nick Nelson at the Harwich Community Center.
Nick Nelson at the HCT presentation.
Nelson, who grew up in Harwich and is based in Cambridge, is a senior fluvial geomorphologist with Inter-Fluve, a firm that specializes in restoration of wetlands, lakes, rivers and estuaries. The Harwich Conservation Trust (HCT) partnered with Inter-Fluve for the design, permitting, and eco-restoration construction management phases. For the next two years, Inter-Fluve will monitor changes in vegetation as biodiversity flourishes in the rewilded wetlands.
March 2025
HCT was honored with the Massachusetts Land Trust Coalition’s inaugural Excellence in Conservation Award at the 2025 Massachusetts Land Conservation Conference, in recognition of the Cold Brook Eco-Restoration Project at the Robert F. Smith Cold Brook Preserve in Harwich Port. An audience of 600 was on hand for the presentation at UMass Amherst. HCT Land Protection Specialist Kelly Grant shared remarks and Congressman Jim McGovern gave the keynote address.
Restoration construction began on HCT’s Hinckleys Pond – Herring River Headwaters Eco-Restoration Project, which included the rewilding of two retired cranberry bogs that bookend 174-acre Hinckleys Pond in Harwich. The project also restored several hundred feet of pond shore habitat, created wheelchair accessible ramps to the Cape Cod Rail Trail, a new pond overlook and mile-long All Persons Trail that allows people of all abilities to connect with nature. HCT’s Director of Communications Eric Williams chronicled the progress with lively stories throughout the 8-month eco-odyssey.
Scottish Highland cattle from Seawind Meadows farm at the 2025 Meet Your Local Farmers event. Photo by Gerry Beetham
HCT and the Orleans Farmers’ Market teamed up to sponsor the Meet Your Local Farmers event at the Harwich Community Center. HCT’s Outreach & Administrative Coordinator Halley Steinmetz coordinated this multi-faceted agricultural expo. More than 1,700 people attended the event, which featured over 40 farmers from all around Cape Cod. The happy crowd scooped up local produce, fish, meat and handcrafted products.Folks of all ages marveled at farm animals, including Scottish Highland cattle, a horse, a pig and even a Flemish Giant rabbit.
April 2025
HCT and our Cold Brook Eco-Restoration Project partners including most notably Inter-Fluve, the specialty engineering firm with the technical expertise and experience to create the innovative design, were honored with the prestigious 2025 Grand Conceptor Award, presented by the American Council of Engineering Companies of Massachusetts (ACEC/MA).
On April 7, the HCT’s Cold Brook Eco-Restoration Project was honored with the prestigious 2025 Grand Conceptor Award.
The Cold Brook project finished first in a field of 37 projects from throughout the state and Northeast region, as well as an entry from Saudi Arabia. Other notable projects included major engineering feats at Logan Airport, highway interchanges, bridges and entire buildings.
Guided walks continued throughout the year introducing all ages to the marvelous transformation at the Robert F. Smith Cold Brook Preserve in the heart of Harwich Port. Naturalist and field guide author Peter Trull led birding walks for all experience levels in all seasons. Naturalist Andrea Higgins led family programs including Newbies in Nature, Preschool Explorers, Ecosystem Explorers, and Monomoy High School’s SAIL and SHORE classes. Both walk leaders and their adventurous hikers also explored several other local conservation destinations. Meanwhile, HCT Board of Trustees President Tom Evans led groups rain or shine to learn about the eco-restoration process and amazing results.
May 2025
A wave from attendees of Cape Cod Land Conservation Legislative Day event at the Robert F. Smith Cold Brook Preserve.
The fruitful partnership between HCT and the nonprofit Harwich Fire Association (HFA) was front and center at the annual Cape Cod Land Conservation Legislative Day event, held on May 23rd at HCT’s Robert F. Smith Cold Brook Preserve. Town officials, legislators and land trust staff from several Cape communities assembled in the Old Bank Street Firehouse to hear more about the recently completed eco-restoration project at the Preserve, and the historic preservation effort at the firehouse, which will include three affordable apartments upstairs.
June 2025
HCT staff and volunteers led by dynamic duo Gerry and Karen Beetham planted a new pollinator garden at the entrance to the Robert F. Smith Cold Brook Preserve. The effort was launched with the goal of providing habitat to vulnerable butterflies, including monarchs, swallowtails and skippers. The plants were sourced from the Native Plant Trust, a Massachusetts-based non-profit plant conservation organization that focuses on New England’s native plants.
HCT summer intern Lucy Palmer digs in a plant at the new pollinator garden at the Robert F. Smith Cold Brook Preserve.
July 2025
The first generation of purple martins hatched in the new gourd racks at the Robert F. Smith Cold Brook Preserve were banded by master bird bander Sue Finnegan. Generous HCT donors helped purchase the modern looking homes for the beautiful birds, and banding the young ones will provide important information about their migration movements and longevity.
August 2025
HCT staff and volunteers led by HCT Trustee Herb Raffaele and HCT summer college intern Lucy Palmer attending the University of Vermont installed what could be the first human-made otter den in the country along a pond at the Robert F Smith Cold Brook Preserve. The den includes a buried chamber, built of cinder blocks and connected to the pond and upland by two pipes. A solar-powered camera was placed in the den, and soon all sorts of wild visitors began to drop in.
Harwich Conservation Trust (HCT) members mingle on the patio at the Wequassett Resort before HCT’s Annual Meeting. Gerry Beetham photo
A magical summer evening overlooking Pleasant Bay provided the perfect backdrop for HCT’s 2025 Annual Meeting. About 200 attendees ambled into the beautiful Wequassett Resort, marveled at the view and enjoyed hors d’oeuvres, drinks and conversation. Tom Evans, President of HCT’s Board of Trustees, thanked members for their generous financial support and many hours of volunteer work.
The Annual Meeting included a look at HCT’s accomplishments and the mission ahead. Several land-saving successes were featured including preservation of 6.3 acres in the Pleasant Bay watershed, 1.5 acres on Rushy Pond as part of HCT’s Priority Ponds Project, 50 acres on the Cape Cod Rail Trail (wow!), and the launch of the Pine Island Preservation Project. HCT Director of Operations Charlie Sumner took the lead on initial eco-restoration of the island which is important as a wildlife refuge and for protecting water quality in the Herring River watershed.
These bold land-saving endeavors are made possible by your support. HCT Director of Development Christy Laidlaw and our dedicated office volunteers of Chris, Taffy, Maura, and Becky make sure that your thoughtful donations are appreciated with timely thank you letters. Your gift dedications in honor of and in memory of people special to you are heartfelt and kind, and help us strive forward to save more special places.
September 2025
Harwich Conservation Trust’s ambitious Cold Brook Eco-Restoration Project went global when it was prominently featured in an Associated Press (AP) story about the growing trend among cranberry farmers in our region to choose conservation over development. The article also celebrated the sighting of the celebrity river otters at the Cold Brook Preserve, and how Cold Brook is running freely through the property for the first time in more than a century.
A great horned owl was certainly photo-worthy for the audience.
Owl fans flocked to the Harwich Community Center for the rare opportunity to see these riveting raptors up close. Renowned naturalists and educators Marcia and Mark Wilson presented two live owl programs, hosted by HCT. The shows marked the 19th year that the Wilsons have partnered with HCT to bring their “Eyes on Owls” program to Cape Cod audiences. The Cape Cod Chronicle has been an annual sponsor ever since the owls first touched down in town back in 2006.
October 2025
After a successful eco-restoration, HCT’s Hinckleys Pond –Herring River Headwaters Preserve re-opened to the public. Many of the partners involved in the project came together for a ribbon-cutting celebration at the Preserve on October 22nd. In fitting land trust style, the ribbon was re-usable pink property surveying tape cut by project partners with giant “scissors” in the form of loppers, the ultimate trail opening tool.
Harwich Conservation Trust (HCT) staff, volunteers and partners gathered at the new pond overlook to celebrate the completion of HCT’s Hinckleys Pond — Herring River Headwaters Eco-Restoration Project. Photo by Gerry Beetham
“This eco-restoration transformation is a testament to the power of partnerships,” said Michael Lach, HCT’s Executive Director. “Thanks to support from HCT donors and project partners, together we’ve helped to protect pond health, rewilded 30 acres of wetland habitat, created a mile-long All Persons Trail, connected wheelchair access to the Cape Cod Rail Trail, and provided a panoramic pond vista for all to enjoy.”
November 2025
Tom Evans, President of the HCT Board of Trustees, received the 2025 Outstanding Volunteer of the Year Award, presented by Philanthropy Partners of the Cape & Islands (PPCI).
According to a Philanthropy Partners news release:
“As President of the Harwich Conservation Trust Board of Trustees, Tom Evans has helped lead transformative conservation and historic preservation projects. A key figure behind the award-winning Cold Brook Eco-Restoration Project, he continues to champion efforts in affordable housing, land protection, and public education through decades of dedicated volunteer service.”
December 2025
Bird experts were baffled by the appearance of a Cooper’s hawk in the HCT human-made otter den at the Robert F. Smith Cold Brook Preserve. The bird tripped the motion sensor camera in the underground den after traveling through an approximately 18-foot-long pipe and exiting through another similar pipe.
A Cooper’s hawk made its way into Harwich Conservation Trust’s otter den at the Robert F. Smith Cold Brook Preserve.
“If it were not for the photo, every raptor specialist in the world would likely treat the report of a Cooper’s hawk behaving in this way as nonsense,” wrote HCT Trustee Herb Raffaele, a noted ecologist, author of books on wildlife conservation and the birds of the Caribbean, and former chief of international conservation for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Thank You for Making a Difference
You made these inspiring highlights possible along with so many other HCT happenings. Your generous donations as well as volunteer time, energy, and enthusiasm are deeply appreciated. Together, we get great things done (and have fun!) on this special corner of the Cape.
If you’ve already contributed your annual membership donation or year-end gift, thank you so much. If you still have room to give, please consider a donation to support HCT’s educational adventures for youngsters led by naturalist Andrea Higgins, who cultivates curiosity and creativity with kids and their caregivers.
To keep these unique programs free, our goal is to raise $50,000 which will provide 300 guided walks for children and their families in 2026. Teaching kids about the wonders and science of nature is critical because they are our future conservation leaders and caretakers of the Cape. To donate, please click here.
Onward into the New Year with saving priority properties, caring for your conservation lands, learning about our wild neighbors, and discovering the natural world. We’re grateful to partner with you. Thank you for making a lasting, local difference with Harwich Conservation Trust.
Enjoy these photos of our shared time together in 2025.
—Your tax-deductible contributions help fulfill the mission of the Harwich Conservation Trust to preserve land that protects woods, water, wildlife and our shared quality of life. And your land-saving financial support helps us preserve beautiful properties that can become stellar trail destinations. Find out how to donate by clicking here.