In May 2008, Scenic Hudson protected 102 acres atop the most prominent landmark visible from Olana State Historic Site
View of Mount Merino. Mount Merino is one of the most prominent natural features near Olana, the 19th-century home of artist Frederic Edwin Church and today one of the valley’s prime tourist destinations. It was a popular subject for Hudson River School painters. The wooded acres we’ve protected—the largest parcel of undeveloped land on Mount Merino— are directly visible when gazing north from Olana’s new Ridge Trail. They bring to 1,248 acres the landscapes we’ve conserved around this state historic site, safeguarding magnificent vistas that inspired Church and thrill visitors today. (This includes our spectacular RamsHorn-Livingston Sanctuary, across the Hudson River in Catskill, Greene County.) Our purchase builds on the accomplishments of the Columbia Land Conservancy, which between 1996 and 2001 preserved 122 acres on Mount Merino via conservation easements. Sixty of these acres are adjacent to our new acquisition. The purchase is part of Scenic Hudson’s collaborative campaign to Save the Land that Matters Most, protecting 65,000 acres of great scenic, ecological and agricultural significance.
Project highlights
- Scenic woodlands; 100 acres of contiguous forest
- Directly visible from Olana State Historic Site
- Increases the land conserved on Mt. Merino to 224 acres
Location
To view the Mount Merino property in relation to other nearby protected lands, download this map (pdf, 3.8M)
