Join us as we immerse ourselves in the natural splendor of the Hempstead Harbor Woods, a 200-acre key biodiversity area located on the Port Washington Peninsula. Here we will explore a fascinating mosaic of diverse habitats including forests, hardwood swamp, meadow, wet meadow, freshwater marsh, intermittent streams, and pond fed by groundwater springs and seeps each with their own characteristic flora and fauna.
Very few people are aware of the fact that an astonishingly large and abundant wild habitat exists on the Port Washington Peninsula (see the map below for the geographic area). Formerly known as the “Hemptstead Harbor Sand Pits” and henceforth referred to as the Hempstead Harbor Nature Sanctuary (HHNS), the propsed HHNS is the ecological core of Port Washington's largest undeveloped habitat area. The area contains Port Washington’s largest freshwater wetland and is an important part of Port Washington’s groundwater system. It supports the greatest diversity of flora, fauna, and habitat types on the peninsula including over 350 species of plants and animals, and rare habitat types such as wet meadows, second-growth red maple forests, and pin oak forests, that are not found elsewhere on our peninsula.
Jakim has been studying the Hempstead Harbor Woods since 2012. He is the founder of the committee to create and preserve the Hempstead Harbor nature sanctuary. His work has been instrumental to protecting this key habitat area. His feature publication, Biodiversity Assessment and Environmental Study of the Hempstead Harbor Nature Sanctuary, is provided below.
Note that there is a $20 fee for adults and a $10 fee for children.
