Pocono Heritage Land Trust

Preserving the Poconos.

Since 1984

Founded in 1984, Pocono Heritage Land Trust is a non-profit organization

committed to protecting the outstanding natural places of the Pocono Mountains

for the benefit of our communities and future generations.

History

The 61.5-acre Rail Gap Nature Preserve, acquired in 2020, contains a section of the Pocono Creek with Class A Wild Trout Waters, clean and cold enough to support naturally-reproducing trout populations. Its forests boast thickets of old growth rhododendron, colonies of spring wildflowers (such as trout lilies and Canada mayflower) and wetland habitats for wood frogs and salamanders, amidst humbling groves of Pennsylvania's state tree, the Eastern Hemlock.

Resting on the Hamilton-Stroud township line just south of Bartonsville, this property features many interesting landmarks, including a path of the old Wilkes-Barre & Eastern (WB&E) Railroad, which transported coal, ice, and passengers between Wilkes-Barre and Stroudsburg from 1893 to the 1930s, as well as an abundance of small marine fossils, dating back approximately 400 million years!