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Nyquist-Harcourt Wildlife Sanctuary
Located on Huguenot Street in the town and village of New Paltz, this 56-acre property has relatively open areas dominated by grasses and herbaceous plants. These provide rich and varied habitat opportunities for a wide range flora and fauna.
The Nyquist-Harcourt Wildlife Sanctuary includes an oxbow, a complex of ponds and wetlands remaining from a tightly-curved meander cut off when the Wallkill River straightened its course hundreds of years ago.
There is more information about the rich history of this property you can read below. Today the property is owned and managed by the Wallkill Valley Land Trust (WVLT). We rely entirely on donations for general maintenance needs and to address safety issues, and our volunteers help with habitat restoration.
The Sanctuary is within walking distance of the SUNY New Paltz campus, so many of the WVLT interns carry out research projects on the property which helps build data for the continued management of this special place.
If you would like to make a donation to support the Nyquist-Harcourt Wildlife Sanctuary, please click HERE and put “Nyquist” in the memo.
If you would like to be a part of our volunteer team, sign up HERE.
If you desire to hold an event, you must review our event policy and application process, which can be found HERE.
PROPERTY RULES
– Practice Leave No Trace principals when visiting- take only pictures, leave only footprints.
– Please remember to stay on the trails at all times.
– Do not cut down branches or trees, do not disturb wildlife.
– The Sanctuary is open dawn to dusk.
– Dogs must be on leash- 6 feet or less at all times. Dog waste must be picked up and removed from the property.
– No bicycles or horses allowed at any time.
If you see an issue like a downed tree or other matter, please complete a trail report, the link is below.
Accessibility Trail Assessment
If you wish to have an event at the Sanctuary, please contact Cara Gentry for application and details on use restrictions at Nyquist.
You Can Help the Sanctuary!
Thanks to your incredible support, we have raised $15,000 so far for the Nyquist-Harcourt Wildlife Sanctuary 2026 Campaign—and momentum is building!
DID YOU KNOW: Each careful mowing of the Nyquist-Harcourt Wildlife Sanctuary costs $1,250? We will have at least 10 to get through the year, with some additional mowings needed in the fall depending on what the weather brings. This means we will spend at minimum of $12,500 on this one important task this year.
And then we have culverts to replace ($2640 each) and bridges to repair (exact costs not yet determined), and entrance washout to fix ($5,000 to $7,000) and amenities to maintain.
Can you help us reach our $35,000 goal?
Please give if you can to help not only keep the trails open but support the storm repairs.
Donations can also be mailed to:
Wallkill Valley Land Trust
PO Box 208
New Paltz, NY 12561
Put in memo: Nyquist
Volunteer at the Sanctuary
We need YOU to help with the stewardship of this special place. Volunteer work includes clipping back brush, planting trees, and removing the invasive waterchestnut from the oxbow. WORK DAYS ARE UNDERWAY!
Sign up to volunteer, and you will get emails about volunteer days and other activities.
Volunteers removing invasive water chestnut.
WVLT began the removal of the invasive water chestnut from the oxbow at the Nyquist-Harcourt Wildlife Sanctuary in 2024. These fast-growing aquatic plants negatively impacts the ecosystem because it forms dense mats that block sunlight, reducing oxygen levels and harming native plant and animal life. Once removed, we take the plant material over to the New Paltz Gardens of Nutrition compost pile. To date, 10,000 pounds of water chestnut have been removed and composted.
The work continues- so please sign up as a volunteer and join a work day. We need help in the water and on the shore- so there is something for everyone!
History
The land that comprises the Nyquist-Harcourt Wildlife Sanctuary has been a vital part of the local ecosystem for centuries, providing a haven for wildlife and a place of natural beauty for the community.
The property is part of the original land acquired from the native inhabitants in 1677 by the Huguenot settlers who founded New Paltz. The rich land within the oxbow has been in agricultural production for almost 400 years by Huguenot settlers and subsequent farmers. It had probably been farmed by the Native Americans who lived in the immediate vicinity long before the European settlers replaced them. A map created by the Town of New Paltz Environmental Conservation Commission shows the location of the Huguenot Dam, which is said to have had a flood gate which could be closed to retain flood waters from the Wallkill River, trapping fish and allowing rich silt to drop on the fields and enrich them.
The property was dedicated as the Harcourt Wildlife Sanctuary by the Huguenot Historical Society in 1977 to provide a protective buffer against expansion by the Village of New Paltz sewer plant. In 1987, the Town of New Paltz Environmental Conservation Commission created the Huguenot Path, a nature trail which loops through the Sanctuary and the Village of New Paltz’s property to the south of it on the Wallkill River.
A family enjoying the wildlife viewing on the Oxbow.
In 2009, with the help of Open Space Institute, Historic Huguenot Street (HHS) donated a permanent conservation easement to the Wallkill Valley Land Trust and in 2010, the Nyquist family took over ownership of the Sanctuary, renaming it the Nyquist-Harcourt Wildlife Sanctuary. The Nyquist family, especially Tom Nyquist, worked hands on to maintain the trails for many years while the Wallkill Valley Land Trust (WVLT) stewarded the conservation easement.
In 2018, the Nyquist family began discussions with WVLT to accept ownership of the Sanctuary, as they wanted to ensure the property was not just protected via the conservation easement, but they wanted a conservation organization to manage the diverse habitats appropriately. Tom Nyquist passed suddenly in 2019, and the family continued to work with WVLT to transfer the property to ensure its preservation and to maintain its ecological integrity for future generations. The historic Huguenot Path remains in place today as “Tom’s Trail” ; all the paths at the Sanctuary were named after descendants of the Nyquist family before the transfer of the property was completed in 2023.
Since taking on ownership, WVLT has managed paid professional services on large tree removal when a silver maple split in half that first winter in 2024, and expanded mowing and weed whacking services in order to properly maintain the trails while also protecting wildlife habitat. In 2025 a local Girl Scout Troop helped with a Trees for Tribs planting, even returning to check on the sapplings, and a SUNY New Paltz Professor and his students studied the history of Ulster County by taking sediment samples from frozen ponds in the winter. The summer of 2026, a significant storm event resulted in several trees falling down, including one that crushed the small green bridge, creating a trail closure as temporary and long-time repairs are explored.
Our mission is to enhance the quality of life in Ulster County by conserving lands of scenic, agricultural, ecological, recreational, and cultural significance.