Located at the corner of Thompson and Iby Roads, the newly-conserved Hewes Ravine property adds to a growing block of more than 3,000 acres of interconnected wildlife habitat and public open space on Hanover’s Moose Mountain. Abutting our already-protected Mayor-Niles Forest and Britton Forest to the east, this project continues our work protecting vital natural resources on Moose Mountain and downslope of the Appalachian Trail corridor.
The property’s 37 acres of mature forest support a diverse array of wildlife, including moose, black bear, white-tailed deer, and more. A tributary of Hewes Brook cuts dramatically across the landscape, running in a steep-sloped ravine with old growth characteristics. And within the ravine itself, a spectacular quartz glacial erratic gathers moss and reminds visitors of the long geological history of the land.
We are currently looking for your support to help ensure this place and others like it are protected and cared for forever. To make a gift, visit our donation page and enter Hewes Ravine into the property name field.
A grant from the Appalachian Trail Conservancy’s Wild East Action Fund, which seeks to accelerate the pace of conservation within the Appalachian Trail landscape, helped support transaction costs for the purchase of this special place.
Hewes Ravine Map and Brochure (coming soon)
How to get there
Parking is available at the snow plow turnaround at the top of Iby Road (google map link). Please park respectfully and not block the neighbor’s driveway. A trailhead kiosk for Mayor-Niles Forest and Britton Forest is located just up Plummer Hill Road/the Harris Trail.
No formal trails currently exist on the property. Visitors should expect a bushwhack over uneven terrain. Stay tuned for more information on plans for a future trail.
Hewes Ravine is open for non-motorized recreational use in all four seasons.
- Leave no trace—please carry out your own trash
- Please pick up after your pet; dogs must be under direct control of their owners at all times
- No fires or camping
- Leave wildflowers, mushrooms, and wildlife undisturbed
- Deer hunting is permitted in season; please follow all state and local regulations, and be aware of private residences abutting the property
- Be mindful of barbed wire along old fence lines
A landscape with a long past
A massive glacial erratic, deposited by a receding glacier more than 10,000 years ago, makes a magical endpoint to a hike along the brook. Please appreciate its grandeur from a respectful distance (no climbing!).
Your support is still needed!
When the Hewes Ravine lot went on the market in June 2025, we knew we needed to act fast. Working with the longtime landowners, we purchased the property in July 2025, permanently protecting a range of natural resource values (including habitat for native species, climate change resilience, and recreational access).
Thanks to the success of our Promise to Protect capital campaign, our organization had the ability to move quickly when an opportunity to expand the growing block of conserved land on Moose Mountain arose. Now, we are looking for your help to fill in the hole, as we seek to cover $150,000 in project costs. To make a gift, visit our donation page and enter Hewes Ravine into the property name field.
A healthy habitat
Hewes Ravine’s mature forest supports a diversity of native plant and animal life, including black bear, moose, white-tailed deer, and more. The property contains sections of Tier 2 and 3 habitat identified in the New Hampshire State Wildlife Action Plan, and is identified as having high resilience and high flow by The Nature Conservancy’s Conservation Dashboard.
Three headwaters streams of Hewes Brook run across the property, sustaining wildlife here and supporting healthy brook trout habitat lower in the watershed.
Plants
Largely covered by a mature, even-aged northern hardwoods forest, the Hewes Ravine property also contains sections of hemlock-dominated stands with old-growth characteristics. While the majority of the property was cleared for agriculture at several points in its history, the steep ravine may have limited opportunities for meaningful timbering operations in past generations.
A more comprehensive survey of native plant species is underway.
Our fund-raising to protect Hewes Ravine continues, with $150,000 needed to permanently conserve and care for this special place. Your support will mean an irreplaceable piece of Moose Mountain will be conserved forever, providing a home for wildlife, recreational access for the public, and important natural services like flood resilience and carbon storage.
Make a gift to protect this special place today. Donations toward the project are tax-deductible.
We are grateful for the support of the following organizational partners who assisted with the conservation of the Hewes Ravine:
Appalachian Trail Conservancy
