NORWAY — The Shepard’s Farm Preserve off Crockett Ridge Road is now open to the public.

Lee Dassler of the Western Foothills Land Trust said the 20-acre parcel was donated to the Trust in December by the Bill Detert family of Norway in recognition and thanks for many happy decades they have spent in the community.

The property has been under development for the past several months and although more work will occur to open up a trail and recognize the donation with a plaque, Dassler said the parking lot and entrance have been completed and the land is accessible.

“Shepard’s Farm Family Preserve is also contiguous with the Trust’s Witt Swamp Preserve, creating a 161-acre protected corridor for wildlife,” Dassler said in a recently released statement. “In the future there may be the potential of a walking trail linking the two preserves and Pleasant and Crockett Ridge roads. This fall, Carl Castanzi and a student from the Ganderia School will be developing the trail head and walking trail on the uplands of Witt Swamp off Pleasant Street.”

Although reluctant to talk much about the donation, Detert said he wants Norway families to know that the preserve is there for them to enjoy.

“It’s on a hill with a good long view of several hills and Streaked Mountain. It adjoins a large acreage that the conservancy also has in its care,” Detert said. “It’s intended for use of Norway children and families.”

Dassler said the land has a rich history and has belonged to a series of notable local figures, including Henry Rust, Benjamin Witt, Joshua Crockett, Charles Freeman, John Shepard and Bill and Jan Detert.

The land was the subject of a presentation at the Norway Memorial Library this summer by Norway resident Joy Moll. It focused on the 113-acre peninsula off Crockett Ridge Road that includes the Shepard Farm Preserve land that she wrote about in “Ties to a Maine Lake.”

Dassler described the land as “undulating former pasture and managed woodlands” that sits high on Crockett Ridge and provides views of the Paris hills. “Perfectly suited for kite flying, safe sledding, and snowshoeing, the Preserve is a wonderful place for young families, dog walkers, star gazers, and picnickers,” Dassler said. “It is the wish of donor Bill Detert, former co-founder of Maine Machine Products, that the land be respectfully used now by the community and town whenever possible.”

The gift was acknowledged by the Land Trust at its annual meeting in August at the new preserve with members of Bill Detert’s family.

At that time, Detert said, “As immigrants from suburban Chicago in 1956 our family has had an opportunity to realize and appreciate the many virtues and opportunities present in Norway. We have known this land for a long time. We acquired it in the 1980s and feel it an appropriate vehicle to express our grateful thanks to Norway for all she has done, provided, and made possible in the lives of our family. Thank you Norway. Thank you Western Foothills Land Trust by providing a vehicle for this to happen in a convenient, dependable way. We fervently hope citizens will embrace and use this land with pleasure and pride in their town.”

Dassler said with the help of the town, the Trust completed a new entry and small parking area for Shepard’s Preserve off Crockett Ridge Road north of the causeway. There is a sign similar in overall design to the Roberts Farm Preserve sign at the entrance; icons specify dogs are welcome, as are hikers, snowshoers, sledding parties, and Nordic skiers. Motorized vehicles are not allowed.

A plaque recognizing the Deterts’ donation and a small kiosk will be installed at the parking area this fall and trails and trail maps will be developed. The land is park-like in nature and close to other residences so hunting on site is not appropriate, Dassler said. There is also a carry-in/carry-out rule.

ldixon@sunjournal.com

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