Laurie Lawson trails are temporarily closed to the public due to fallen trees
Location: 8000 Telephone Road, Cobourg
Donor: Dr. Mary Bedford – Jones
Open to Public: Temporarily closed – Please note: no dogs are allowed as of 2023
Acreage: 100 acres
Year Donated: 2005
Description: This 100 acre woodlot is home to the Laurie Lawson Outdoor Education Centre, a special classroom for the Kawartha District School Board that has been visited by thousands of students over the years. Being the only wooded area for some distance, it provides shelter and habitat for many species of flora and fauna . It is a wonderfully diverse area with a coldwater creek, vernal pools, riparian zone forest, mature forest, and early successional forest. Hundreds of wildflowers have been transplanted into the understory of the forest from areas that are being developed or cleared for agriculture, and new populations of native wildflowers have become established there. This was the first nature reserve under the care of the Northumberland Land Trust. It was donated to support the outdoor education programs being offered by Audrey Wilson, with the conditions that it always be used for outdoor education and native plantings.