Athens Conservancy is a nonprofit land trust that preserves wild and scenic places for people to explore and enjoy, protects water quality, and maintains healthy, resilient ecosystems that support native biodiversity and help counteract the cause of climate change. The Conservancy’s lands in Athens County and surrounding areas are mostly forested and include ridge tops, stream bottoms, dramatic rock formations and beautiful vistas. They’re home to creatures like luna moths and box turtles, foxes and deer, fish and salamanders, bobcats and a bevy of bird species.
Our nature preserves and conservation easements encompass about 3,200 acres, with more than 2,100 acres open to the public to explore. In addition, the Conservancy has partnered with the city and county to protect more than 300 additional acres of public land.
Conservancy lands connect people with nature for recreation, education, research, and inspiration. We work to control non-native invasive plants, collaborate with local environmental organizations and community partners, and plan for long-range land management at private and public levels.
Athens Conservancy is led by a passionate and focused volunteer Board of Directors. The Conservancy was established in 2002 to realize the vision of creating a non-profit land trust focusing on Athens County. It launched with a 2003 effort to rescue a beautiful stand of old forest – which was well known to local naturalists – that had been purchased by a lumber company. That forest is now the breathtaking and rugged Hawk Woods, part of the Riddle State Nature Preserve adjacent to Athens and Strouds Run State Park. Today, the Conservancy owns and manages 17 nature preserves, 13 conservation easements and a portion of the Athens-Belpre Rail Trail.
The lands featured on the Preserves page are open to the public. Deer hunting is permitted on certain preserves; see our Hunting Policy.