Citizens for Lexington Conservation promotes the enjoyment and appreciation of our natural environment through education and advocacy.
CLC is a non-profit organization in the town of Lexington, Massachusetts.

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>> Calendar of Events

CLC 2017 Fall Walks

(All walks rain or shine unless otherwise noted.)

September 16, 8-10 am: Fall Birding at Dunback Meadow

Look for seasonal fall migrants including hawks, sparrows and several species of warblers in addition to a full array of our resident bird species in one of Lexington’s  best and most reliable locations for bird watching. Meet at the Allen Street entrance opposite 23 Allen Street. 

Walk Leader: Bobbie Hodson (robertahodson@comcast.net, 617-571-5841)

September 24, 1-4 pm: Autumn Harvest at Cotton Farm

(Rain date October 1, check the CLC web site www.clclex.org for details)

Please join the Lexington Conservation Stewards and Citizens for Lexington Conservation for an afternoon celebrating the beginning of autumn and our local sweets. The Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, is celebrated each fall with apples and honey, both of which are found at Cotton Farm, one of Lexington's loveliest conservation lands. This event is family friendly, with apple and honey tasting, and bee and tree investigations. The Lexington High School Bee Keeping Club will be on-hand to show-off their Cotton Farm Apiary while Citizens for Lexington Conservation will offer its Junior Ranger Program, from 1:00-3:00. 

Location: 121 Marrett Road. (Please park on the shoulder of Marrett Road)

October 3, 10-11:30 am: Senior Sneaker Walk of West Farm and Liberty Heights

Explore two of Lexington’s less traveled Conservation properties (show of hands, how many have ever been to Liberty Heights?) and enjoy early Fall color. Gently graded paths and sidewalks. Meet at the intersection of Oak Street and Massachusetts Avenue with parking along Mass Ave on either side of Oak Street. No registration necessary.

Walk Leader: Keith Ohmart (781-862-6216, kohmart@verizon.net)

October 8, 1:30-3:30 pm: ACROSS Lexington Route H Introductory Walk

Be amongst the first to explore ACROSS Lexington’s newest addition, Route H. This 3.8 mile route wends its way around the Old Res, through a wooded portion of the Bridge School property and both the Idylwilde and Hayden Woods Conservation properties, as well along a newly completed Town trail through the Shire property off of Shade Street. Steady rain cancels. Meet in the Old Res parking lot on Marrett Road.

Walk Leader: Eileen Entin (781-862-6418, eileenhome@gmail.com)

Oct 14 – 1-3 pm: Meadows in Lexington, An Inside Look at the Restoration of Joyce Miller’s Meadow

Join Jordan McCarron, Conservation Stewardship Coordinator for the Lexington Conservation Division, for an inside look at the meadow restoration project currently underway at Joyce Miller's Meadow followed by an optional walk around a portion of the adjacent Arlington’s Great Meadow property. Participants will get an in-depth overview of the Conservation Division's Conservation Meadow Preservation Program, its goals and practices, and what the Division hopes to achieve by reclaiming old meadows in town. Meet at the Waldorf School parking lot, 739 Massachusetts Avenue

Walk Contact: Keith Ohmart (781-862-6216, kohmart@verizon.net)

Oct. 22, 1:30-3:00 pm: "Walk in My Moccasins" at the Paint Mine.    

View the Paint Mine Conservation area through the eyes of Native Americans who lived there before the colonists came.  Find out how native people used plants, animals, and minerals from this special place for food, clothing, shelter, medicine, toys and ceremonies.  Meet at the parking lot of Estabrook School, 117 Grove St.  Children with adult companion are encouraged to attend. 

Walk Leader: Fran Ludwig (fludwig12@yahoo.com, 781-861-7231)

Oct 28, 9-11:30 am: Nature Photography in Whipple Hill

Late fall is one of the best times to visit the Whipple Hill Conservation property. With the leaves off of the trees the property’s magnificent stone walls and rocky features of the landscape really stand out. Sunder Neelakantan will be your guide in how to best capture these and other features of the property in memorable photographs. Steady rain cancels. Meet at the signed entrance to the property at the top of Winchester Drive opposite Berkshire Drive.

Leader: Sunder Neelakantan (781-424-7558, diadensunder@gmail.com) 

Apples and Honey to Sweeten the Fall!

Sunday, September 24, 1:00-4:00pm (Rain Date: Sunday, October 1)

Cotton Farm, 121 Marrett Rd, Lexington

Please join the Conservation Stewards and Citizens for Lexington Conservation for an afternoon celebrating the beginning of autumn and our local sweets. The Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, is celebrated each fall with apples and honey, both of which are found at Cotton Farm, one of Lexington's loveliest conservation lands.

This event is family friendly, with apple and honey tasting, and bee and tree investigations. The Lexington High School Bee Keeping Club will be on-hand to show-off their Cotton Farm Apiary while the Citizens for Lexington Conservation will offer crafts and activities for children, including our Junior Ranger Program, from 1:00-3:00.

Let us know if there is an upcoming event that should be listed here.

Citizens4LexingtonConservation@gmail.com

Joe-Pye-Weed in Dunback Meadow, August 2016 (photo courtesy John Andrews)

Are you looking for a new route to walk, run or bike?

ACROSS Lexington is waiting for you - try it!

You can find route information here on the Town website.

ACROSS Lexington stands for Accessing Conservation land, Recreation areas, Open space, Schools and Streets in Lexington.

Please let us know if you would be interested in working with CLC in any capacity. Could you write a piece for the Newsletter? Lead a walk? Work on the website? Take a leadership role on the Board? Help manage marketing/outreach? Drop us a line if you think you can help - we always welcome new faces!

Walks Publicity Coordinator: Each spring and fall CLC sponsors a series of walks in conservation and open space. We are looking for someone to focus initially on walks publicity, and eventually to organize and broaden the types of walks we conduct. 

Events Coordinator: Each year, CLC features a speaker on conservation, resource, or environmental issues. To deepen and enlarge our educational focus, we are seeking a new film/speaker coordinator to take on the tasks of identifying, scheduling, and publicizing videos and speakers. Our plans are to offer 3-4 events per year as an exciting new way for CLC to continue to raise public awareness regarding local, regional and national environmental issues.

Conservation Restriction Monitors: CLC is in the process of acquiring conservation restrictions (CRs) on five Town-owned properties that were acquired in whole or in part with Community Preservation Act (CPA) funds. We are seeking individuals who are interested in helping to complete the remaining CR applications for three of the five parcels and/or participating in the annual monitoring of the properties. 

Recording Secretary. This position involves taking minutes at Board meetings and filing any forms required to maintain our status as a nonprofit organization. 

If you would like to know more about any of these positions, please contact Eileen Entin (eileenhome@gmail.com, 781-862-6418).

CLC is sponsoring a new program for children - the Junior Ranger Program - aimed at getting kids out into Lexington's Conservation properties with games and activities. In conjunction with Cary Memorial Library we have a booklet to guide children and their parents. The kids will visit several different Conservation areas, fill out some activity sheets that will guide nature observation, and can, upon completion, receive a Junior Ranger Certificate from the Library.

You can find the Junior Ranger booklet here.