There are only 11 days remaining in a remarkable quest to secure Middle Earth! We can almost hear nature cheering us all on!
Middle Earth is 261 acres forest, creeks and wetlands east of the existing Cumberland Forest lands, and it marks our largest purchase project to date!
This project furthers a community vision of an interconnected corridor of protected forest lands on the south of the Village of Cumberland that supports habitat, ecosystem and watershed health and maintains low impact recreational access for our community – now and for future generations.
Over the past 2 months we have secured $60,000 in community donations (unbelievable) and have only $10,000 left to go before our fundraising deadline on May 15th.
These community donated funds, combined with revenues from this last weekend’s The Cumby trail race take us to the FINISH LINE for this 2.1 million dollar project.
Together we are helping this forest grow old and creating a legacy of land protection for generations to come. You can support our work and help us close the deal with a tax deductible donation – Donate TODAY!
More about Middle Earth…..
In the spring of 2025 the CCFS launched an exciting new purchase project to the east of the existing Cumberland Community Forest called Middle Earth, a 261 acre forest in the Trent River Watershed, K’omoks Territory. Wetlands, riparian corridors, rocky bluffs and multi-use trails wind through this forested landscape. This area is home to trails including Round Out, Outfox, Sapsucker, Rapture Genesis, and Resurrection. All of this is private timber land.
In addition to areas of high ecological value, and amazing non motorized multi-use trails, Middle Earth also includes forest lands targeted for ecological restoration and wildfire mitigation. This project is an important step in our work in landscape scale conservation, and in new ways of looking at conservation through a collaborative, integrated land management lens that brings together community and ecosystem values. We are also excited about new opportunities for collaboration with United Riders of Cumberland and the Village of Cumberland.
Our land protection work to date!
Since 2000, the CCFS has been engaged in land protection in the Puntledge / Pentlatch Watershed with 5 successful purchases to date the latest being the purchase of the Lower Perseverance Creek corridor in 2023. Our goals are consistent – to remove these lands from the industrial forestry base and bring them into local community ownership, to restore ecosystems, and to work collaboratively with our community and rights holders on sustainable, integrated, management plans – with future generations in our hearts and minds. We are grateful for a willing seller in Manulife Investment Management who continue to support our efforts to create this legacy for our community.
Our community has been incredible in stepping up to once again make conservation history on Vancouver Island.
If you have been considering making a charitable donation to the CCFS in 2026, now is the time to do it! Any surplus funds raised will be directed to forest management and wildfire resilience planning and action in the next 12 months. Donate HERE today!
