Fisher Museum at Harvard Forest

Inspired by our Book Club selection for this month, I decided to visit the Fisher Museum in Petersham this afternoon. The Museum and Forest are barely a half-hour’s drive away, but I had never been, so the threat of showers notwithstanding, it seemed as good a time as any. Everyone wants to see the 23 dioramas, and they really are worth the visit. I was fascinated by the models which portray the changes in the landscape of central New England. The dioramas were designed and built in the 1920s and 1930s, but what they teach us about human impacts on the environment is a timeless lesson and perhaps even more relevant today. These are the seven scenes depicted:

Pre-European settlement is characterized by mature forests – 1700
Settlers cut down trees to create small homesteads – 1740
Forests have been cleared for intensive agriculture – 1830
Farms are abandoned as settlers move west – 1850
White pine forests now dominate old farmland – 1910
Hardwoods succeed white pines – 1915
Hardwood forests are now mature – 1930

These 3000 acres of forest, owned by Harvard University (yes, yes, that Harvard) since 1907, are open to the public, and apparently there are miles of trails which can be hiked. I limited myself to the two trails which begin at the Museum, the Natural History Trail Through John Sanderson’s Farm, and the Black Gum Trail.

The Sanderson Farm Trail is a self-guided interpretive trail, and they’ve done a really good job. I had no trouble following the map, and each of the 27 points of interest are so well-marked that I didn’t miss a single one. You can even take a virtual tour online. I learned about such matters as evidence for past land use, tree growth, stumps and sprouts, clear-cutting, measuring wood, the meaning of double stone walls, snags, the best trees for lumber, and tree roots.

My map showed the Black Gum Trail as a longer trail heading uphill toward Little Prospect Hill and then passing through a swampy area before doubling back to the Museum entrance. By this time it was raining, but I had my umbrella with me, and in a little over an hour, I had completed the loop. The Hemlock Forest and the Boardwalk were my favorite parts of this trail. Here are some of the photos I took: