This post is written by Don Malatesta who lives with his wife Linda at our Hogum Bay Conservation Easement:
In August 1999, my wife and I rounded the corner of a gravel drive in Thurston County in search of “it,” the perfect location for a bed and breakfast inn. We entered a thick forest of tall firs and maples to find an awesome, unobstructed view of Puget Sound saltwater. We didn’t know it at the time, but we were looking at Nisqually Reach. My wife was the first to say it. “This is the place!”
Yes, there was a house, old but cute. With some remodeling, it had the potential to become a nice B&B as well as a very comfortable home for us. However, the house was not what made us fall in love with this place. It was the peaceful, quiet waterfront location, one that seemed protected from the busy outside world by fourteen acres of tall trees, other native plants and 400 feet of pristine salt waterfront.
Back in 1999, the zoning in this area was one house per acre. That meant if someone else bought this property, they could have cut down the trees, ripped out most of the native vegetation and built up to twelve houses! What would happen to the wildlife? How much extra pollution or rainwater runoff would have been generated by this? Fortunately, the owners sold it to us. Our mission was to become good stewards of the land and water, while still running a B&B.
The word used above, “protected,” became, quite coincidentally, our path to the Nisqually Land Trust (NLT). One of our very first B&B guests was a board member of a land trust back east. He gave us a set of three books, Preserving Family Lands, Books 1-3. From these, we learned the benefits of a conservation easement for the land itself as well as for the owners. We contacted the Nisqually Land Trust to get advice.
Two members of the NLT, George Walter and Joe Kane, visited us and explained the easement process. We learned that NLT already had an easement for property just west of “our” cove, Mallard Cove, a mini estuary. This neighboring parcel is now owned outright by NLT. By the end of our meeting with George and Joe, we felt like we were part of their team, whose goal is to preserve and protect nature.
Don and Linda Malatesta
Twenty years later, we still enjoy being part of that team. NLT work parties come out twice a year to help us control invasive plant species. Staff members give us great advice on the best native trees and plants to add to our forest when needed. Our goal is to plant at least two trees for every one that falls due to old age, disease or storm. After thirteen years of donating a stay at our inn and a guided kayak tour of Nisqually Wildlife Refuge to NLT’s annual auction, we are actively looking for other ways to support the land trust. There are plenty of volunteer opportunities. We’ll see you out on a work party someday!