2024 Deer Management in February
The South Mountain Reservation was closed this week and in late January due to the controlled culling of deer. It will be closed again on two more Tuesdays, Feb 13 and 20, to ensure the safety of park users. (If there is another rain cancellation, Feb. 27 is also possible.)

Reducing the deer herd is crucial for forest regeneration as deer are now overbrowsing the understory, the future forest. The current estimated deer density in SMR is 42/sq. mile, more than four times the recommended level for an ecosystem that is damaged. 
SMC Welcomes New Board Member
New board member Neal Templin has a life-long love affair with mountains. A California native, he began hiking as a boy in the Sierra Nevadas. As a young man, he spent a year building trails and fighting fires in the mountains of Southern California. 

These days, he hikes in the South Mountain Reservation. He began helping out on trail repair there several years ago. He has two big hopes for the reservation: The first is restoring its magnificent trail system. The second is eliminating non-native plants, and bringing the forest back into balance. 
Neal makes a living as a journalist. He spent 29 years with the Wall Street Journal, and now works for Barron's, a sister publication of the Journal.
He lives in South Orange. 
Come to our
Annual Public Meeting 
Annual Public Meeting
Millburn Free Public Library
200 Glen Ave, Millburn
 March 19th, 7:00 - 8:30 pm

Come and learn about our 2024 programs directly from the program coordinators and discover ways you can get involved and volunteer. Trash Tackers, Trailkeepers, Chainsaw Gang, Citizen Science, Hiking and Fairy Trail coordinators and board members will be on hand to answer questions and describe their accomplishments last year and plans for the upcoming season.

This year's featured speaker will be Dr. Kirk Barrett, President of the Rahway River Watershed Assocition. His talk titled, How's the water? The Rahway River in South Mountain Reservation and Beyond, will cover water issues in and around the SMR. 
SMC Frog Team is Calling You!

Thursday, February 29, 7:30pm, 12+
Location: Cora Hartshorn Arboretum
FrogWatch Training Info & Registration

Explore the sounds of breeding season! In this Part 1 of 2 training series you will learn all about FrogWatch USA & become familiar with local frog breeding calls.

Frogs are not only cute, but serve as indicator species!
Like other citizen science programs, the data we collect throughout
February-August contributes to a national database AND deepens our understanding of the frog diversity and abundance throughout South Mountain Reservation. Over time, this data will can inform habitat management decisions and can even be compared with climatic data to track changes over time.

Our program operates under the umbrella chapter of Cora Hartshorn Arboretum. The training will take place at their location.

Upon completion of this FREE 2-part training you will understand the importance of monitoring frogs and toads in our rapidly changing environment, how to identify South Mountain Reservation's frog residents by sound, how to collect field data and input it into a national database, and will be assigned a special breeding location in SMR to monitor throughout the breeding season (March-August).
Interactive Trail Map Available for Android and, finally, iOS-Apple Devices!


The South Mountain Reservation Trail Map, now available from Avenza, allows owners of Android and, for the first time, iOS-Apple devices to access our detailed and up-to-date version (Nov. 2023) of our 2110-acre forested park.

Developed by the Conservancy, the map, which is also available in printed form, details over 55 miles of trails, blazed and unblazed, multiple picnic areas, amenities and special features. The Avenza app allows plotting and measuring routes beforehand, provides your exact location, and tracks your route. 

One Avenza license allows downloading the map on up to five devices! Never get lost again!

Winter Hikes
South Mountain Conservancy is pleased to offer free, guided hikes all through the winter months! Give yourself the gift of wellness and join our experienced hike leaders for fresh air and friendship. See Eventbrite for full details.
Hike Information
Active SMC Members receive early bird access to hikes; non-members may register one week in advance. To become a 2024 Member please visit our Membership Page. 
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Double Your Gift
Many companies offer matching gift programs to encourage employees to contribute to charitable organizations. Most match contributions dollar for dollar, and some will even triple the amount of your gift! To find out if your company has a matching gift program check with your Human Resources Department.
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Would you like to get involved, schedule a program
or have an idea to share?

We'd love to hear from you!
 
Citizen Science: Lori LaBorde, citizenscience@somocon.org
Chainsaw Gang: David Berry, chainsawgang@somocon.org
Community Outreach: Dave Berry, community-outreach@somocon.org
Fairy Trail: Julie Gould & Beth Kelly, fairytrail@somocon.org
Forest Regeneration: Christy Zolty & Rich Rockwell, forestregen@somocon.org
Hikes: Bobbette Clarke, hikes@somocon.org
Mayapple Trail Runs: Dennis Percher, Mayapple-Trail-Runs@somocon.org
SMR Family Campout: Penni Malakates & Dennis Percher,  familycampout@somocon.org
Trailkeepers: Dennis Percher & Dave Berry, trailkeepers@somocon.org
Trail Work Crew: Dennis Percher & John Verzani, trailwork@somocon.org
Trash Tacklers: David Berry, trashtacklers@somocon.org
Wildflower Sculpture Park: Doris Cacoilo, sculpturepark@somocon.org
Operations Director: Penni Malakates, opsdirector@somocon.org
Copyright © 2024 South Mountain Conservancy, All rights reserved.