CAROLINA MOUNTAIN LAND CONSERVANCY

As a local nonprofit organization dedicated to saving the places you love, CMLC is

helping to create a regional network of protected farm, forest, park and natural lands.

CMLC serves Henderson, Transylvania, and parts of neighboring counties, protecting

forested wilderness, working farms, clean drinking water, healthy fishing streams, native

wildlife, and sweeping views. Partnering with private landowners, community visionaries,

organizations like Carolina Mountain Club, estate management professionals, and western

North Carolina’s land trust network, Blue Ridge Forever, CMLC works to educate the

public on the importance of conversation. One way CMLC raises awareness about the

practice of land conservation is by leading monthly hikes on exclusive properties. Every

other hike is for members only so CMLC members enjoy the added benefit of 6 special

hikes every year!

Celebrating 15 years of conservation in 2009, CMLC’s efforts have protected more than

18,500 acres and we continue protecting land for future generations. We’ve grown from a

purely volunteer organization to 10 staff and 5 AmeriCorps members today.

The past few years alone have been monumental for CMLC. In 2005, for example, CMLC protected

1,568 acres of land in the Hickory Nut Gorge known as the nationally-significant World’s Edge,

which has become part of North Carolina’s newly formed Chimney Rock State Park. In 2007,

CMLC also celebrated a banner year by completing the organization’s largest conservation project to

date, which protected more than 3,000 pristine acres in the upper Green River watershed,

and 20 other projects; more than in any previous year. In 2008, CMLC became the first

North Carolina land trust awarded national accreditation from the Land Trust Accreditation

Commission, and broke ground on our new permanent home! Come take a tour of our new

office located at 847 Case Street in Hendersonville.

Our newest project called, Weed Patch Mountain, will serve as one of the essential links for

the publicly accessible Six Summits Trail which would circumnavigate Lake Lure and

eventually connect to the Hickory Nut Gorge trail system. Time is running out and we hope

you will seriously consider joining and supporting us in this cause. We need your help to

protect the special places remaining in our mountain home. Join now by clicking here

or discover other ways to support CMLC by clicking here.