Trstensky Preserve

The Hunterdon Land Trust has preserved an additional 33-acre property in the Lockatong Creek watershed in Kingwood Township in January 2010. The newly protected property adds to the contiguous greenbelt of preserved land that the land trust is assembling along the Lockatong Creek, a tributary of the Delaware River. 

The land had been owned by the Trstensky family for over 30 years. While the property could have supported 5 houses, the owners decided to preserve the undeveloped meadows and woodland. The property will now be owned and managed by the Hunterdon Land Trust as a preserve, open to the public for activities such as hiking trust plans to develop hiking trails on the site.  There will be no motorized vehicles allowed on the property to protect sensitive wetland areas and the stream bank from erosion.  

The Hunterdon Land Trust secured grant funding to purchase the property from a variety of sources and partners including the state Green Acres program, Hunterdon County Open Space Trust Fund, and Kingwood Township.“Hunterdon County is blessed to still have high quality waterways like the Lockatong Creek.   Look to our neighbors and you can see what sprawling development has done to creeks, streams, and rivers elsewhere—erosion, flooding, loss of habitat, water recharge areas, and recreational opportunities.  Preserving properties along this creek ensures that future generations will be able to enjoy the land and clean water as well,” said Margaret Waldock, executive director of the Hunterdon Land Trust.