FieldLabs

Concord Woods

Natural Area: Concord Woods

About Concord Woods

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Perhaps the least visited natural area, Concord Woods consists of a small tract of land on Miles Mountain in North Concord, VT. This rural lot is one of the few mature hardwood forests surviving in the state of Vermont, as the University’s conservation of the land protected it from logging. These qualities make for an ideal site for long-term research and monitoring projects that require undisturbed and secure northern forest ecosystems. 
 

An aerial photo of Concord Woods

Research

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Concord Woods is a key study site for the Vermont Center for Ecostudies Vermont Forest Bird Monitoring Program (FBMP). Since the program's inception in 1989, the area has served as one of the 31 permanent sites used to track population trends of interior forest birds. Because of its consistent survey history, VCE identifies Concord Woods as one of the "12 selected sites" in the state with the most complete and robust long-term data sets. 

Education

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Because it was relatively untouched while the rest of Vermont was being actively logged, Concord Woods serves as an "ideal laboratory" for education around interior forest dynamics, natural succession, and baseline ecological health. 

Community

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VCE’s monitoring work is a collaborative effort involving skilled community scientists who navigate the off-trail terrain each June to record the dawn chorus, providing data that informs the Vermont Forest Indicators Dashboard. 

Property Description

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Concord Woods consists of approximately 100 acres of mature hardwoods on the southwest slope of Miles Mountain in the Northeast Kingdom town of Concord, Vermont.  The remoteness and inaccessibility of this natural area limit its use as a field site by UVM individuals and groups. These characteristics along with its location in a region of large undeveloped forest tracts also limit its value for outdoor recreation.  Although logged in the past, the natural area exhibits little sign of recent disturbance with sugar maple, beech, and yellow birch trees reaching considerable size relative to the surrounding forests.  There are currently no site facilities and access is by way of a system of old logging roads and a rough poorly marked trail with no plans to improve conditions save for occasional boundary marking.  

History

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In 1839 Azarius Williams, a resident of Concord, deeded a piece of his land to the University of Vermont.  This deeded land was at that time considered to be half of a lot, which measured about 50 acres.  Since then, the University has acquired the other half of the lot which is located on the southwest side of Miles Mountain.  The two half lots together total about 100 acres.  To date, the University has remained firm in its commitment to manage the land as a natural area. 

Ongoing Monitoring & Research

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For over 20 years, the Vermont Center for Ecostudies (formerly the Vermont Institute for Natural Sciences) has been studying the resident forest breeding bird population in the area as part of a larger statewide effort.  Since the mid-1990’s, forest ecologists from the US Forest Service and the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks, and Recreation have been monitoring changes in the forest composition of Concord Woods. 

Site Access, Maps, and Facilities

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Directions to Concord Woods via Google Maps  

There are no trails or direct access to Concord Woods. 

Parking and Directions  

From St. Johnsbury, take Route 2 east to North Concord. After the intersection of Victory Rd, take Bona Rd northeast leading up Miles Mountain. Find a place to pull over and hike uphill towards the mountain. Concord Woods is the forested area surrounded by recently logged land 

Trail Map (In Development)  

Facilities:  

No facilites; best suited for day use.  

Site Characteristics

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  • Size: 100 acres  

  • Temperatures  

  • Average summer high: 78.3 

  • Average summer low: 52.1  

  • Average winter high: 25.5 

  • Average winter low: 9.5 

  • Elevation: 440-775m/1460-2550ft  

  • Precipitation: 40.81 in rain annually 

  • Soils: Tunbridge-Lyman complex, Peru Colonel complex, Cabot Colonel complex 

Stakeholders, Partnerships, and Resources

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  • VT Center for Ecostudies 

  • Vermont Department of Forests, Parks, and Recreation 

  • US Forest Service 

Past Research

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A full PDF of past research at Concord Woods is in development.