Aerial photo by Matthew Pendergast shows BSLT’s Marks Ranch and lands we transferred to Toro County Park.
Dear Friends,
As Salinas’ River Fire and Carmel Valley’s Carmel Fire are subsiding, and the Dolan Fire in Big Sur persists, we are witnessing heroic efforts from firefighters, support crews and neighbors helping neighbors. These moments remind us of the strength of our community even in the face of what feels like unrelenting challenges.
In our role as stewards of the lands you love throughout Monterey County, when the River Fire began on August 16th, Big Sur Land Trust was called into service. Our beloved Marks Ranch that lies between Toro County Park and the Las Palmas neighborhoods in Salinas started out as part of the incident command center. It quickly became clear that a critical firefight would be waged on this beautiful and historic 73-acre ranch. In a back-burning operation to protect nearby neighborhoods, several acres of chaparral, oak woodland understory, rare expanses of grassland habitats and important wildlife corridors were burned.
In the aftermath, water infrastructure and safety repairs on roads and trails throughout the property must now be a priority so that the ranch can stand at the ready once again. We also want to ensure that the property is safe for hikers and visitors.
Because of our amazing donors, Marks Ranch exemplifies land in service to community. We are grateful to you for upholding our mission and embracing our vision for healthy lands, healthy people and healthy communities.
If you are able, we hope you will consider supporting our recovery efforts. We are confident that with your generosity, these efforts along with nature’s remarkable resilience will bring this beautiful landscape back so that it can serve as a critical community asset during emergencies – and just as importantly, as a place that people can find nature’s beauty and solace during challenging times.
Thank you for your concern and support,
Your generosity helps us restore the lands you love.
