Familiar site is entrance to newest county treasure A well-known site along US421N., the double stand of Black Walnut trees, now signifies the entrance to a new NICHES Nature Preserve, the Moyer Gould Woods. 77 acres purchased last July will become a nature-lovers paradise by mid-spring. Photo provided From US421 one simple country lane to the west is only marked by a double stand of Black Walnut trees. For the property owners, the lane led to 77 acres of cherished land they did not want disturbed. The land is now destined to become Carroll County’s newest set of trails and a place for nature lovers to spend time hiking, bird watching, picking berries and mushrooms, do some fishing and be able to contemplate nature and life.

Local resident Fred Bergner became a Master Naturalist in November. He became involved with the Northern Indiana Citizens Helping Ecosystems Survive (NICHES) and quickly became the Site Steward for the group’s newest acquisition, the Moyer Gould Woods, located three miles west of Delphi off of US421.

Barn-be-gone! Volunteers are needed beginning Jan. 9 to help clear the 77-acre Carroll County NICHES Nature Preserve known as the Moyer Gould Woods of brush, debris and designated buildings. The preserve, located on US421N., roughly three miles from Delphi, will host nature activities including hiking trails. Photo provided Although Bergner, who is retired from Alcoa, does not hail from Carroll County, he and wife Barb, who teaches second-grade at Delphi Community Elementary School, raised their family here. Children Cathy and Debbie Bergner both graduated from Delphi Community High School and his mother, Mary Angell Cartright was a local native. The Moyers Gould Woods will become a “nature preserve,” according to NICHES Executive Director Gus Nyberg. He said it will not have the state designation as a “preserve” but it will be managed like one.

The mighty White Oak Indiana Master Naturalist and local resident Fred Bergner stands by an old White Oak tree found in the Moyers Gould Woods. Bergner serves as the Site Steward for the new NICHES Nature Preserve located north of the junction of US421 and SR18 west of Delphi. The preserve is expected to be open to the public next spring. Photo provided “The Moyers Gould Woods will be managed for its natural resources,” Nyberg said. “Our target goal for it to be ready for the public is next May. We began discussions with the owners in late 2007 about a purchase and closed on the property last July.”

“Most of the buildings on the property are being recycled,” he continued. “Half of the 77 acres, with one-half mile of Tippecanoe River frontage, was classified as a forest in the Department of Natural Resources timber management program in 1945. That program oversees the cutting of lumber and growth management on properties.”

Bergner explained that access to the property is down a quarter-mile black walnutlined drive between CR400N. and CR500N. on US421. Although the new public-use land is scheduled to open in May, volunteers are needed beginning in January to clear debris, removing hay and straw and removing designated buildings and fences. Phase 2 of the project includes controlling invasive species, the removal of electric poles, cutting and removal of downed trees, planting new trees, building hiking trails and a parking lot, and thinning the existing woods.

A volunteer call-out will begin every Saturday starting Jan. 9. Bergner said volunteers can call him for information at (765) 564-3434 or they can “just show up” on the first day. He advised anyone willing to work be dressed appropriately for the weather and bring a pair of pliers.

“We will be taking all the man-made things off the property,” Bergner said. “We need as many volunteers as possible.”

NICHES board member and local resident Lynn Corson said the group was excited to have purchased the land in Carroll County.

“It might be good to look at this property as a local park to attract people from outside of Carroll County to enhance our tourism efforts,” he said. “We have been trying to engage local groups to become involved with the project to help protect the land as well.”

“It’s a beautiful property in Carroll County,” Corson added.

Nyberg said NICHES has land holdings in 13 Indiana counties, which includes three parcels of land in Carroll County. In addition to the recent acquisition of the Moyer Gould farm, NICHES owns the Weaver Family Nature Reserve and the Mary I. Gerard Nature Reserve.

A map of the property and adjacent land can be viewed at the Comet office in Delphi. Questions about NICHES will be answered by Nyberg at (765) 423-1605 or by email at niches@nicheslandtrust. org.