The Friends of Princeton Open Space would like to welcome the Princeton community to Mountain Lakes House for some holiday treats and refreshments. We will be hosting an open house from 10 am to 4 pm on the following dates in December; Saturday, 5, Wednesday, 9, Sunday, 13, Monday, 21, and Saturday, 26. Stop in and warm up after enjoying all that Mountain Lakes Preserve has to offer!
Black Friday OptOutside Open House
Stop by for cider and snacks at Mountain Lakes House from 10 am to 4 pm on Friday, November 27 during while participating in the 1st annual Give Thanks for Nature Photo contest sponsored by REI and Friends of Princeton Open Space.
Sincerely,
Adam Schellhammer
Natural Resource Manager
1st Annual FOPOS Give Thanks for Nature Photo Contest
The Contest
Friends of Princeton Open Space and REI are encouraging the Princeton Community to OptOutside and enjoy nature this Thanksgiving weekend. Plan a visit to Mountain Lakes Preserve on Thanksgiving Day or Black Friday and bring your camera to participate in the 1st annual FOPOS Give Thanks for Nature Photo Contest.
Take your best shot of all that Mountain Lakes Preserve has to offer, and submit your photo for a chance to win an REI gift card!
Directions to Mountain Lakes
Mountain Lakes Preserve is located at 57 Mountain Ave, Princeton, NJ 08203. Contestants can park at the Community Park North parking lot.
File Format
Files must be in JPG format. Any aspect ratio is acceptable, but please size the file so that the longest dimension is 1500 pixels and set the quality to “high.”
Filenames MUST include your name brief description of picture:
For example: if your name is Joe Smith and you are submitting a photo of an oak tree, you might name your file:
JoeSmith-Oak tree.jpg
DO NOT send files with your camera's default filename!
In order to ensure anonymous judging, please include no signatures or watermarks that would reveal the name of the photographer on the photo itself.
Entries must be submitted by midnight, Tuesday December 1st. Please e-mail jpeg files to info@fopos.org, with Photo Contest in the subject line.
Copyright
The photographer retains full copyright to his or her images. However, participation in the contest requires the contestant to give Friends of Princeton Open Space permission to use the photographs without compensation on the website as well as in news releases which may appear in print or on third party websites for the purpose of publicizing the contest. Friends of Princeton Open Space will always include the photographer's name when using a photograph for any purpose.
Timeline
- Submission: You may submit starting November 26. The deadline to submit is midnight, Tuesday, December 1, 2015. (Eastern Time)
- Judging: mid-December
- Finalists Announced: January 15, 2016
Friends of Princeton Open Space
Come Join Us for a Night Hike!
Exploring the Night
Adults and families with children 8 and older are invited to join Jeff Hoagland, Education Director of Stony Brook-Millstone Watershed Association, on an autumn evening walk of the Watershed Reserve trails. Gain an intimate glimpse into the nocturnal world as we look for glowworms, listen for flying squirrels and call for owls. Bring a flashlight. Registration is required – please email mpolefka@thewatershed.org or call 609-737-7592 for more information and to sign up. Fee is $8pp for members of either organization, $12pp for non-members.. This program is co-sponsored by Stony Brook-Millstone Watershed Association.
When: Friday, October 9, 2015, 8:00-9:30PM
Where: Watershed Center, 31 Titus Mill Road, Pennington, NJ\
Adam Schellhammer
Natural Resource Manager
Friends of Princeton Open Space
D'Ambrisi Ribbon Cutting
FOPOS HELPS ADD IMPORTANT LAND TO PRINCETON BATTLEFIELD
On September 16, 2015 President Wendy Mager and several board members joined Mayor Liz Lempert, County Executive Brian Hughes, State Park Service Director Mark Texel, State Senator Kip Bateman and many others to celebrate the addition of the D’Ambrisi tract to Princeton Battlefield State Park. Kip Cherry, Vice President of the Princeton Battlefield Society, organized the event and was instrumental in working with the D’Ambrisi family to preserve their land. Mrs. D’Ambrisi and two of her sons looked on proudly as they were commended for their decision, and the Mayor referred to all of the citizens who helped make this happen as modern-day heroes, who compliment the heroes who fought on this land during the American Revolution.
FOPOS contributed $200,000 toward the acquisition, consisting of a grant from the County’s open space program and $100,000 of funding from the DEP’s Green Acres program.
As part of the acquisition process, the D’Ambrisihouse was removed and the dam for the on-site pond was repaired by the municipality. A tributary of Stony Brook flows through this and adjacent lots, all of which were once part of the landscape of the Drumthwacket estate designed for Moses Taylor Pyne after the Revolution. The site contains many lovely, mature trees, and a new trail provides access from the area of the colonnade in Battlefield Park.
The 4.6-acre D’Ambrisi property provides a critical link from Battlefield Park to Stockton Street (Route 206 South), and was the site of critical events in the Battle of Princeton on January 3, 1777. That event was a turning point in the Revolutionary War, the first battle won against professional British soldiers. After the battle, 21 British and 15 American soldiers were buried in one grave in this area due to the frozen ground and the need for American troops to hasten away from the approach of General Cornwallis and his 8,000 soldiers. The Battlefield Society has received a federal grant to study the site, and has already performed ground penetrating radar studies.
The vision for the future is to connect the D’Ambrisi property with many other preserved lands on both sides of Battlefield Park, by continuing a bike path from the eastern side of the Park over to Stockton Street and along Stockton Street to Edgerstoune Road.
