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We are the Greenough and North Bruce Wilderness Alliance

Our mission is to conserve and restore the natural wild environment of lands along the western shore of the Northern Bruce Peninsula for everyone and forever.

For the protection of natural habitat, the Greenough and North Bruce Wilderness Alliance ("Wilderness Alliance") plans to acquire and maintain wilderness lands for long-term habitat protection and restore contiguous lands to enhance wildlife corridors. We plan to educate and promote the public’s appreciation of the natural wilderness, and align with other charities, organizations, institutions, events or activities that support our mission.

Memberships and donations for land acquisitions can be made through our link to Canada Helps - Greenough and North Bruce Wilderness Alliance Memberships and Donations. Our CRA Charity Number is #792947012 RR0001. More donation information is provided at the end of the webpage.

We are an Associate Member of the Ontario Land Trust Association (“OLTA”) as an Emerging Land Trust. As part of our association with the OLTA, we have agreed to support the 2019 Canadian Land Trust Standards and Practices and have accepted these as the technical and ethical guidelines for our organization’s land securement and stewardship operations.

Photo Credits: Morning fog over Gauley Bay. Courtesy Mike Warkentin.

We are building a protected and biodiverse forest along the western shore of the Northern Bruce Peninsula.

Framing the western shore of the Northern Bruce Peninsula is a stretch of land over fifty kilometres long, from Cape Hurd to Stokes Bay, that is rich in natural beauty and biodiversity. It’s home to rare ecosystems—called alvars—and plant species such as the Ram's Head Lady's Slipper and the Dwarf Lake Iris.

Its coniferous forest houses ancient cedars, lichens, mosses, and orchids and forms part of the largest remaining intact forest in Southwestern Ontario. The Threatened Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake and a genetically distinct Black Bear call it home, while bald eagles and osprey nest alongside the shores of its many bays, drawn by an abundance of fish in coastal marshes. The bedrock on which these species have created habitat is ancient. It’s between 425 and 445 million years old.

Simon Bay Nature Preserve - "Kirchmann-Lederer Tract"

The Simon Bay Nature Preserve is the Wilderness Alliances' first acquisition. The Nature Preserve is jointly held by the Wilderness Alliance and the Escarpment Biosphere Conservancy. The Wilderness Alliance recognizes this Nature Preserve as the "Kirchmann-Lederer Tract" in acknowledgement of the commitment made by the Kirchmann and Lederer families to work with us on land preservation.

Located on the west shore of the Saugeen Bruce Peninsula, 35 km northwest of Wiarton, the 8 ha Simon Bay Property is rich in natural beauty and biodiversity. The Simon Bay Property is part of a Provincially Designated Area of Natural and Scientific Interest (ANSI) with significant natural heritage value in both a regional and provincial context.

The Property is home to a variety of ecosystems including Great Lakes rocky shoreline, open sand dunes, coastal fen, limestone alvars and mature cedar forest. Ecological studies to date have recorded 16 species at risk (SAR) and species of conservation interest on the Property. Rare vascular plant species include the Dwarf Lake Iris (special concern) and the Ram’s Head Lady’s Slipper (Provincially Rare). The coniferous forest hosts ancient cedars, lichens, mosses, and orchids and forms part of the largest remaining intact forest in Southwestern Ontario and part of a Stratum II Deer Wintering area. The Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake (threatened) and Eastern Ribbonsnake (special concern) inhabit the Property.

A Simon Bay Property is a significant habitat link between the waters of Simon Bay, Lake Huron and contiguous forest lands of the 276 ha Gauley's Bay property owned by Nature Conservancy of Canada to the east and municipal lands zoned open space to the north. These contiguous properties increase the value of the Simon Bay Property for habitat and species protection. The vision of the Wilderness Alliance is to conserve the shoreline and forest habitat linkage along the west shore of the Saugeen Bruce Peninsula and preserve it from the threats of shoreline cottage development in perpetuity.

Simon Bay shoreline. Wilderness Alliance photo, 2024.

Why create another organization to protect the environment?

The Northern Bruce Peninsula is recognized as a UNESCO Heritage site, a dark sky community, and is home to Threatened and Endangered species. However, its west shore is under threat by development.

Much of the east coast of the Northern Bruce Peninsula, the Georgian Bay side, is preserved by Parks Canada and the Bruce Trail Conservancy. By contrast, the west coast does not receive the same environmental protection. Shoreline forests have been removed to create waterfront views, and landscaped properties stretch to the water’s edge.

The Greenough and North Bruce Wilderness Alliance has been formed to conserve and restore the natural wild lands along the west shore of the Northern Bruce Peninsula. Its Board will seek to acquire further lands to fulfill that mission.

Join us

Please join us by donating to protect the natural wild environment along the west shore of the Bruce Peninsula. All donations are greatly appreciated.

A $250 donation purchases an annual non-voting membership. Membership will entitle you to attend annual meetings plus receive email updates and newsletters as we progress on our conservation mandate. Annual memberships will receive a charitable tax receipt.

Memberships and donations for land acquisitions can be made through our link to Canada Helps - Greenough and North Bruce Wilderness Alliance Memberships and Donations.

A donation of securities or mutual funds may be the most efficient way to give charitably. Donation of securities may allow you to give more and get more. Please contact us at admin@wildernessalliance.ca for a security donation form.

If you prefer to send a cheque directly, please make cheques payable to "Greenough and North Bruce Wilderness Alliance". Cheques can be mailed to: Greenough and North Bruce Wilderness Alliance, Attn: President, 130 Foxridge Drive, Ancaster, Ontario, L9G 5B9.

All donations and memberships will receive a charitable tax receipt. Our CRA Charity Number is #792947012 RR0001.

For Land Acquisition donations or for information on Advisory Council Membership, please contact us at admin@wildernessalliance.ca

Thank you for helping to preserve the west shore of the Bruce Peninsula.

The Greenough and North Bruce Wilderness Alliance Inc. is an Ontario Not-for-Profit Corporation. We are designated as a Private Foundation and are a registered charity with the Canada Revenue Agency.

The Greenough and North Bruce Wilderness Alliance adheres to the Canadian Land Trust Standards and Practices (2019), published by the Centre for Land Conservation (CLC). We are an Associate Member of the Ontario Land Trust Alliance (OLTA) as an Emerging Land Trust.

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