Champlain Area Trails seeking input on Twin Valleys' future

LEWIS | Earlier this year, Champlain Area Trails announced ownership of Twin Valleys Outdoor Education Center and is now seeking community input on its future. Last October, College Auxiliary Services (CAS) at SUNY Plattsburgh reached an agreement with the community-supported non-profit and accredited land trust to sell its 675.5-acre property that has long served as a hub for environmental education, hosting college programs, workshops, and events since 1944, when then-President Charles Ward first arranged to purchase the property from Mason's Lumber Company at $2 an acre. At first, Champlain Area Trails worked alongside CAS to revive the 15-mile trail system, which had fallen into disrepair after the Moriah Shock Incarceration Correctional Facility in Mineville, responsible for maintaining the trails, officially closed in March 2022. Now, since the trails are fully accessible to residents and visitors, plans are underway to determine the future use of the buildings to enhance and expand their use in alignment with Champlain Area Trails' mission, which is to save land throughout the Champlain Valley, make/maintain trails for people of all ages, promote economic vitality, and connect people with nature. "With those four main pillars of our mission, we're taking a look at how we can use the buildings on site to support Champlain Area Trails' mission and to make a really nice resource for the community," said Champlain Area Trails Executive Director Arin Burdo. "We want to attract tourism, and we want to be part of good things happening in the local economy." Besides the trail system, Twin Valleys includes 12 sleeper cabins, a maintenance workshop, and a lodge with a great room, a commercial kitchen, and a bunkhouse with bathrooms. Serving students studying life and earth sciences, the property also contains classrooms and labs. There's even an observatory in front of a man-made pond — a favorite of Dr. David Levy, renowned astronomer and co-discoverer of Shoemaker-Levy 9, the comet that collided with Jupiter in 1994, due to it being one of the darkest spots in the United States because of the lack of ambient "light pollution." Champlain Area Trails recently released a survey (https://tinyurl.com/TVSurvey26) and formed a committee to garner public opinion on future use of Twin Valleys. The non-profit is also planning to host an Open House on July 16 from 5 to 7 p.m. "We want to get as much feedback as possible on what people envision here and what we could use the property for," said Burdo, who is currently working with the Department of Health to obtain a Certificate of Occupancy for overnight lodging. "We're hoping for the best." Regardless of the outcome, a "forever-wild" conservation easement will keep Twin Valleys permanently undeveloped. Champlain Area Trails received assistance from Northeast Wilderness Trust, a regional land trust focused on wilderness conservation, in purchasing the property. This support came through the Wilderness Trust's Wildlands Partnership program, which offers guidance and funding to local land trusts to help protect their lands as forever-wild. Through the partnership, the Northeast Wilderness Trust will hold a conservation easement on Twin Valleys, adding an extra layer of legal protection in addition to Champlain Area Trails' ownership of the land. This project continues the long-standing relationship between the non-profit and Northeast Wilderness Trust. "The forever-wild protection of Twin Valleys is a win for wildlife and people, and a testament to the longstanding relationship between CATS and Northeast Wilderness Trust," said Peter Mandych, land conservation director at the Northeast Wilderness Trust, in a press release. "This project embodies what the Wildlands Partnership is all about: collaboration between land trusts to deliver tangible results for local communities, biodiversity, and the climate." Since its founding in 2009, Champlain Area Trails has created and maintained over 100 miles of trails; conserved 3,000 acres of land through direct action and partnerships; and offered hundreds of hikes, outdoor education experiences, and volunteer opportunities that bring people outdoors and draw visitors to the region. The addition of Twin Valleys, Burdo says, significantly expands Champlain Area Trails' ability to provide welcoming outdoor spaces, foster environmental stewardship, and contribute to the economic and recreational vitality of the Champlain Valley. For more information or updates, visit champlainareatrails.com.

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Champlain Area Trails seeking input on Twin Valleys' future

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