The property under agreement includes 630 feet of Susquehanna River shoreline and protects critical undeveloped forestland.
“Growing existing nature preserves is always a high priority, and this addition to Robert A. Kinsley Nature Preserve further safeguards habitat while serving as a connector to the Susquehanna River. The Conservancy will continue to work with our partners to ensure this ridge is protected forever,” said Fritz Schroeder, president & CEO of Lancaster Conservancy.
The property’s forested slopes buffer and protect the water quality of Wildcat Run and another unnamed tributary flowing to the Susquehanna River.
The 31 acres were placed on the public market and could have been developed and timbered, but now these woodlands will be preserved forever.
In addition to protecting the water quality of the Susquehanna River and subsequently the Chesapeake Bay, the forest serves as a migratory corridor for mammals as well as critical habitat for birds along the Atlantic Flyway between nesting areas in the North and wintering areas in the South.
The permanent protection of this property will preserve a portion of the forested view from the Northwest River Trail in Lancaster County as well as the viewshed from the Mason-Dixon Trail as it runs along Wildcat Run through the preserve.
“This property is the last undeveloped tract fronting on the Susquehanna River adjacent to the Robert A. Kinsley Nature Preserve and Wildcat Run,” said Kate Gonick, senior vice president of land protection and general counsel at the Conservancy. “Its protection is critical to sustaining important water resources and a wildlife corridor for large mammals.”
Robert A. Kinsley Nature Preserve is in the Susquehanna Riverlands Conservation Landscape.
This state-designated landscape, led by the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and the Conservancy, includes the municipalities that border the Susquehanna River in Lancaster and York counties and is a priority for conservation.
The preserve is located between the Conservancy’s Wizard Ranch and Roundtop nature preserves to the south and the Susquehanna Riverlands State Park, which the Conservancy helped protect in 2022, to the north.
It is part of the Conservancy’s Hellam Hills Conservation Area, which includes over 2,500 acres of protected natural lands.
Since 2015, the Conservancy has protected over 4,000 acres in York County along the Susquehanna River, which includes 12 of its more than 50 nature preserves.
Visitors who want to access the 9-mile trail system at Robert A. Kinsley Nature Preserve can use limited shoulder parking available at the intersection of Furnace Road and Chimney Rock Road, and the Mason-Dixon Trail can be accessed by parking along the shoulder at the intersection of Furnace Road and River Drive.
Please respect the preserve’s neighbors and do not block the road.
The Conservancy continues to fundraise to design and build a trailhead, parking lot, and universally accessible trail at the preserve.
The Lancaster Conservancy is a nonprofit land trust that has protected over 11,000 acres of natural lands in Lancaster County and in York County along the Susquehanna River.
The Conservancy manages more than 50 nature preserves which conserve vital wildlife habitat, protect the water quality of over 40 miles of streams and rivers, and provide opportunities to hike, hunt, fish, and explore the outdoors on over 60 miles of trails.
[Posted: April 22, 2026] PA Environment Digest
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