Hinckleys Pond — Herring River Headwaters Eco-Restoration Project
The Hinckleys Pond -- Herring River Headwaters Preserve has reopened after the completion of an ambitious eco-restoration project! Harwich Conservation Trust (HCT) would like to thank generous HCT donors and our many project partners for helping us create a special place that will provide environmental and recreational benefits forever.
We hope you will visit the Preserve soon!
More about the eco-restoration project:
Harwich Conservation Trust’s (HCT) Hinckleys Pond — Herring River Headwaters Eco-Restoration Project included the rewilding of two retired cranberry bogs that bookend 174-acre Hinckleys Pond in Harwich, which is at the headwaters of the Herring River estuary. Hinckleys Pond provides river herring spawning habitat and the connection to more spawning habitat upstream in Long Pond and Seymour Pond.
In addition to revitalizing wetland habitat that can help pond health, the Hinckleys Pond-Herring River Headwaters Eco-Restoration Project also seeks to restore the natural shoreline of Hinckleys Pond. The Brown family, who owns a retired bog on the other side of the pond, is partnering with HCT on the project. The collaborative eco-effort aims to increase biodiversity, restore wildlife habitats and create a mile of wheelchair accessible All Persons Trail that everyone can enjoy.
By the late 1990s, much larger off-Cape bogs were producing an extra supply of cranberries that caused the price to fall. This shift in the industry made it more difficult for some local growers to continue farming, so they’re faced with a choice: develop the upland or preserve.
Over the years, as a way to earn income from their land while also protecting natural resources, several local farmers have sold their properties to HCT. This partnership has set the stage for innovative eco-restoration.
Two eco-restoration locations are indicated with red circles. The blue arrows pointing into the three ponds show upstream migration of river herring each spring.
In 2021, generous HCT donors funded the initial purchase of the 31-acre retired bog area from the Jenkins family. The eco-restoration project was funded by HCT donors, the Brown family, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Southeast New England Program (SNEP) Watershed grant, EPA National Estuary Program Coastal Watershed grant under cooperative agreement with Restore America’s Estuaries, Massachusetts Department of Conservation & Recreation MassTrails grant, foundation funds through the Association to Preserve Cape Cod, and a Transformational Habitat Restoration & Coastal Resilience grant through the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration.
HCT is grateful for the generous support of our donors and the contributions of our project partners.
Catch up with the latest Hinckleys Pond - Herring River Headwaters Eco-Restoration Project news:
