Explore the Land Bank's Natural Resources

The Martha's Vineyard Land Bank invites you to visit the properties it maintains for conservation purposes. They're great for a range of activities, including hiking, picnicking, and birding.

Here is a small sampling. You can use the map in the centerfold to find your way, or stop by the Land Bank office at 167 Main Street, Edgartown for a map and complete listing of all Land Bank properties open to the public. For more information, call 508-627-7141.

•Katama Point Preserve. This wedge of public land on Katama Bay provides a long view of downtown Edgartown as well as a direct view of Chappaquiddick Island. It is great for birding because it is the site of an osprey pole complete with a nesting pair. The area is also great for fishing, sunbathing, swimming, and picnicking.

Directions: Start on Katama Road in the direction of South Beach. Turn left onto the Edgartown Bay Road which is located 1.7 miles past the Katama Road - Herring Creek Road intersection. Proceed .7 miles down the Edgartown Bay Road and park at the town landing. Walk back 750 feet and look for the Land Bank logo sign.

•Poucha Pond Reservation. More secluded than other Land Bank holdings, this tract offers a broad range of habitats, including the sole site on Martha's Vineyard where ospreys have nested naturally. This 99.3 acre area is a great spot for birding, fishing, hiking, horseback riding, picnicking and hunting by permission only.

Directions: Located on the southeastern end of Chappaquiddick Island, the preserve can be reached by taking the Chappaquiddick Ferry and following the paved road approximately 3.8 miles. A Land Bank logo sign on the left marks the entrance.

•Priester's Pond Preserve. This property fronts on Priester's Pond, one of the ponds in the Mill Brook Valley. The pond is surrounded by dense trees and is a serene picnic spot as well as a great place for canoeing, fishing, hiking and birding.

Directions: Located at the intersection of North and State Roads in North Tisbury, across from the Liberty Oak.

Waskosim's Rock Reservation. Containing one of the highest peaks on Martha's Vineyard, the reservation offers views of the Vineyard Sound foothills, the Mill Brook Valley and seven miles in the distance, the Vineyard Haven water tower. Perched on one of the ridgetops is the Waskosim's Rock, a boulder whose shape and location has long figured in Wampanoag Indian history. This rock marked the beginning of the "Middle Line," a stone wall boundary running to the Menemsha Pond separating English and Indian lands in the mid-1600s.

Directions: Take North Road past Chilmark/West Tisbury line. Parking for the reservation is marked on the left as you drive up-Island. If you come to Tea Lane, you've gone too far.

•Sepiessa Point Reservation. More than 7,300 feet of shorefront have been conserved here, much of which is visible from the walking and horseback-riding trails along the Tiah's and Tississa Coves of the Tisbury Great Pond. The beach at

Sepiessa Point is often broad and sandy for pleasant sunbathing and swimming. A canoe launch and boat slide are also available.

Directions: Start at the intersection of New Lane and Edgartown Road. Stay on the paved road 1.2 miles; turn right onto the dirt track. The main trailhead is located a short distance down the track, with maps there to the other trailheads.

•Ramble Trail Preserve. You can enjoy a birds-eye view of the entirety of Lagoon Pond from this preserve. At the bottom of the preserve's tall bluff is a stony beach that makes a good starting point for a walk around the lagoon. At the preserve you can sunbathe, fish, hike, picnic, and swim.

Directions: Start at the intersection of Winyah Lane and the Edgartown-Vineyard Haven Road. Proceed down Winyah Lane .6 miles and turn right at Weaver Lane. The Ramble Trail Preserve is located at the end of Weaver Lane adjacent to the Shellfish Hatchery at the bottom of the slope.

•Tisbury Meadow Preserve. Seventy-two acres of lush meadows off State Road in Vineyard Haven. The varying topography and plant diversity make for exceptional birding. It is a great starting point for a long "down-Island" hike, with trails leading east into Oak Bluffs, and west to other Land Bank properties like Ripley's Field.

Directions: Start about a mile-and-a-half up State Road from downtown Vineyard Haven, going past the Tashmoo Overlook. Continue along about one-fifth of a mile. The preserve is on the left.

•Christiantown Woods Preserve. This preserve, along with the abutting Christiantown Chapel and Indian Burial Ground, received a "Special Places Award" in 1988 from Massachusetts. The path from the parking lot next to the Chapel connects to a trail loop which takes walkers past the property's stone walls, cellar holes and a root cellar still evident from the previous century.

Directions: Turn left off Christiantown Road .6 miles up from its intersection with Indian Hill Road.

•Moshup Beach & Overlook. There are picnic tables for sunny days. The beach is wide and sandy, the surf lively, and it offers a stunning view of the famous Aquinnah Cliffs.

Directions: Follow State Road into Aquinnah. The Overlook is across the road from the town parking lot.