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The mission of Great Mountain Forest is to be a leader in forest stewardship. We practice sustainable forest management, promote biodiversity and resilience to climate change, support education and research, and welcome all who love the woods. |
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In this issue:
Health Benefits of the Forest
Awe in Nature
Growing Up with the Trees
Children & Nature Network
#NatureForAll
Park Rx
GMF's New Recreational Trail Map and Descriptions
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A Healthy Forest Leads to a Healthier You
Great Mountain Forest is good for your health.
In our teched-up, screened-up, work-laden world, even small amounts of time in the Forest could substantially benefit your physical, emotional, psychological, and spiritual well-being.
With 13 miles of trails, myriad diverse ecosystems, and the constantly changing forest scape, you'll find something new every step of the way. And as you leave the Forest's East or West gates, you'll thank yourself for doing something that makes you healthier.
Even gazing at GMF nature photographer Tom Blagden's stunning forest photos can produce beneficial effects.
Here are just some of the benefits associated with time outdoors:
- improved cognitive function, attention, and memory
- reduced stress and inflammation
- increased energy and lower burnout
- increased happiness and contentment
- enhanced sense of life's meaning and purpose
- lower levels of anxiety and depression
- higher creativity and problem-solving skills
- more cooperation, kindness, generosity, trust, connectivity, and sociability
- less negative rumination and brooding about your life
Studies have found that at least two hours of recreational time in nature per week can have an outsized effect on health. And time spent--as little as 20 minutes--in areas noted as "high environmental quality," such as GMF, are even more beneficial.
To read more about these health benefits, click here and here.
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GMF Leaves You Feeling Awe-Full
Feeling awe is good for you, and the good news is that you don't need to go far to experience it. Around every trail bend in GMF is an opportunity for awe--from the breathtaking panoramic view to lush moss blanketing the forest floor.
Awe is a state of being that generates wonder and curiosity, challenges our understanding of the world and our place in it, and helps us transcend our everyday experience to the level of the sublime.
It also makes us feel more connected to the people and the world around us.
Experiencing awe in the Forest can produce feelings of gratitude, peace, and contentment. It reduces stress, promotes prosocial bonds, and builds our bodily health through physical activity.
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Those who dwell among the beauties and mysteries of the earth are never alone or weary of life. Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts. The more clearly we can focus our attention on the wonders and realities of the universe, the less taste we shall have for destruction. --Rachel Carson |
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Growing Up with Trees: How Nature Benefits Your Child
An attachment to the natural world is a critical component of childhood development. Spending unstructured time outdoors is therapeutic and restorative. It can boost creativity, ease anxiety and depression, build attention spans, and help develop capacities to self-soothe and be comfortable with solitude. Yet, increasingly children spend more time indoors, more time on screens, and more time electronically connected, particularly through remote learning during COVID.
Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods and founder of the Children and Nature Network, coined the term “nature-deficit disorder” to describe “the human costs of alienation from nature.” Among these are diminished use of the senses, attention difficulties, and higher rates of physical and emotional illness. The flip side of this is natural abundance, defined as the myriad benefits of a positive relationship with nature.
Louv cites E.O. Wilson’s term “biophilia” to provide a foundation for why connecting to the natural world is part of being human. Biophilia refers to the “urge to affiliate with other forms of life.” It’s a desire for and feeling of connectedness to the natural world that stems from an evolutionary and deep-seated need to be in a relationship with nature.
Howard Gardner, the founder of the multiple intelligences theory, posits that IQ is a limited measure of intelligence. He asserts that there are at least eight different ways in which intelligence can manifest itself. One of these is naturalistic intelligence. This intelligence involves distinguishing, identifying, and classifying elements and species of the natural world. It relies strongly on paying attention and noticing details, which has applications and value throughout the human-made world.
So how can we help our children reduce nature deficit disorder, cultivate their innate connection to the natural world, and develop a naturalistic intelligence?
The long answer is creating opportunities for them to be outside, explore, observe, draw attention to, and talk about the benefits that nature can provide for them.
The short answer is to take them for a hike at GMF!
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In 2016, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) launched #NatureForAll, a global movement to inspire, celebrate and restore a love of nature. It is a community of interested organizations and individuals who are inspired to work together to effect positive change. At its core is a very simple idea: the more people experience and share their love of nature, the more support and action there will be for its conservation.
Great Mountain Forest is a member of IUCN.
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The Doctor is In--the Forest: Park Rx |
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Park Rx is an organization dedicated to the real health benefits of time in nature. It focuses on programs or interventions that
- include a health or social service provider
- who encourages their patients/clients to spend time in nature
- with the goal of improving their health and well-being.
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Park Prescription programs can be as diverse as the communities for which they are designed. They often include collaboration between park and public land agencies, healthcare providers, and community partners.
Ask your medical professional if time in the Forest is right for you!
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Happy Trails: New Downloadable Recreational
Trail Map and Trail Descriptions
Has this newsletter about how GMF and time in nature can improve your health made you want to hit the trails? We thought so. So, we've created a downloadable trail map with descriptions that includes trail length and difficulty. It focuses on sections of GMF property with the concentration of trails.
Thank you to Director of Communications Mary O'Neill, Forest Manager Jody Bronson, Forester Russell Russ, and Office Manager Heath Hughes for creating this recreational map for YOU!
We hope it will help you plan your visit and enjoy your time in the Forest. Be sure to download to your phone the maps and descriptions before you come to the Forest.
Happy Trails!
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Forest Notices
Welcome to the forest!
GMF is a place of peaceful co-existence for everyone
- Keep your dog on a leash and if you pack it in--pack it out.
- Sign in at kiosks at the East and West Gates.
- Watch for inclement weather notices on social media.
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Stand with the Trees!
Donate to Great Mountain Forest.
Your generosity makes our work possible!
GMF is critical to the environmental and economic sustainability of the region as well as an important contributor to research and education about climate change and environmental health. Help us support the forest as a vital natural resource and a place for those who love the woods.
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