Conserving a Legacy: NVCT Expands Protections on Bull Run Mountains

The slender, untrammeled profile of the Bull Run Mountains is a treasure of Northern Virginia that draws the eye from miles around. The Northern Virginia Conservation Trust (NVCT) is proud to announce a new conservation easement with the Currier family, expanding protections on the ridgetops of these iconic mountains. This 62-acre property, rich with native biodiversity and ecological significance, is now permanently conserved, supporting the spirit of the broader Bull Run Mountains Natural Area Preserve.

Since 1960, the Currier family has quietly and steadfastly stewarded these mountains, protecting the land for the future.

NVCT’s new conservation easement overlays and complements an existing easement held by the Virginia Outdoors Foundation (VOF) and the Piedmont Environmental Council (PEC), two longtime conservation allies in the region. Together, these organizations have helped create a protected landscape that supports thriving ecosystems, scientific study, and educational opportunities for the public.

The newest protected 62-acre property is covered with mixed hardwood forests, featuring small patches of evergreen trees and mountain laurel scattered throughout. Lichens populate the boulders and crags of the ridges, home to common Virginia mammals like black bear, deer, fox, raccoon, but also providing habitat for a variety of endangered and threatened species like the Northern Long-eared bat, Northern Saw-whet owl, and the Eastern timber rattlesnake.

This conserved property extends a wildlife corridor in perpetuity, which is essential to the health and preservation of wildlife. This latest conservation protection reflects a quiet but powerful legacy of patience, observation and care. As NVCT works to preserve Virginia’s landscape of natural and cultural heritage, we are honored to participate in extending the vision of the Currier family – connecting people to the land, and the land to the future.

“As the adage goes- 'they aren't making more land', so, it is incumbent on us to protect what land we can; for ourselves, and for the natural life that undergirds our existence." - Andrea B. Currier