It is late evening when I stop at the house of Donna Gibson of Williamsburg. She is sitting on her porch looking out over the field. In the far distance the suns last rays brighten the Holyoke range. The porch, whose supports and roof are covered in trumpet vine, is part of the farmhouse which belonged to one of the original settlers of Williamsburg.

Donna bought the house and 4 or 5 acres in 1975. Later she purchased the surrounding 120 acres essentially putting the original dairy farm back together. When I asked her why this property, she smiles and says, “It has wonderful mushrooms.” She reflects on how lucky she was to be able to purchase the property. “I could never afford to buy it today,” she says.

Managing the Land Donna loves being in the woods. Over the years, with the help of cost-sharing funds from the Forest Stewardship Program, she has put in an extensive trail network. In the late 1990’s she brought back a portion of the fields as woodcock habitat. “I enjoy listening to them in the spring and sometimes try and sneak up on them. They are such a funny looking bird,” she smiles. “Although rarely am I successful in catching a glimpse of them.” Donna has also worked with a consulting forester to have some of the old field white pine harvested along with poorly growing hardwood trees. The younger, straighter pines she has had pruned. Donna, now in her 60’s, still gets her firewood from the property using the neighbor’s tractor to drag the trees out of the woods. In addition, she has worked with a forester to remove exotic invasive species such as bittersweet and multiflora rose from her property.

Favorite Things When I asked Donna to describe her favorite things about the property she immediately said “sleeping in the woods.” Recovering from cancer, Donna expounds upon the healing properties of nature. “Being at home through my illness gave me time to watch the subtle changes,” she says. “Watching the colors and textures change with the seasons is amazing as well as meditative.”

Future Donna is considering the long-term protection of her property and has spoken with a conservation organization about her options. She would also like to put up a tree house and a sweat lodge. Looking for ways to keep the fields open is a big concern. Renting them to a farmer for hay or pasture would be an option she says. “I’d also like to get more involved with my town,” she adds.