NYS Fields and Forest with Stream Adjacent to the ADK Scenic RR:  This property has several remarkable attributes that would satisfy many outdoor enthusiasts for a very long time.  Rolling terrain, hard and softwood forests, streams, fields and pasture that invite a wide range of species to visit or live here.  Approximately 65 wooded acres adjacent to the Brown Tract Road was harvested for sawtimber this winter.  The intent of the harvest was to encourage the regeneration of valuable hardwoods including black cherry, soft and hard maple, and yellow birch, as well as new growth of hemlock, spruce and fir in areas more suitable for their development.  Roughly 25 acres of mixed wood forest remains uncut, which provides thick cover required by deer, turkey and other wildlife during the coldest parts of the winter.  Further south, ~60 acres of old pasture has reverted to hardwood forest with a range of tree sizes from seedlings and saplings to medium saw-timber.  Open and semi-open fields at early stages of succession occupy the remaining ~32 acres, desirable habitat for numerous mammals, grouse and feeding ground for birds of prey. 

One thousand feet of frontage with electric available along Dayton Road lends that portion of the property to lot subdivisions for single family homes.  This region of the Black River Valley is a wonderful place for people to both work and play.  Many residents commute south to the Utica-Rome area for work, but head east to the Adirondacks, west to the Tug Hill Plateau or north along the River to recreate.  An additional attraction of this property is the adjacent Adirondack Scenic Railroad track found in the northwest corner.  Restored for tourist travel in the mid 90's, this southernmost section of the rail runs from Utica to Thendara and Big Moose Stations.  The call of the trains whistle and the clatter of steel as the engine pulls it's load down the iron tracks is reminiscent of days when the woods were full of stocky men with horses and crosscut saws, witnessed only in pictures by the youth of our day.  This spring take a walk through these woods and along those tracks and see for yourself what is so special about this region of the Black River Valley.