Restoring a Rare Natural Community

The dolomite bluffs of Thompson’s Point support a rare upland natural community that has been treasured and revered since the Abenaki people called this area home. Tucked between Converse Bay and Town Farm Bay in Charlotte, the limestone bluff cedar-pine forests have historically been a home for one of Vermont’s most diverse and unique communities of plants and animals. 

Northern white cedars, which can tolerate the harsh conditions posed by the bedrock, soil, and wind, line the lakefront cliffs. The temperature-moderating and cloud-generating effects of Lake Champlain, along with the wind cover provided by the cedars along the shore, extend the growing season and allow some traditionally “southern” tree species to thrive. As a result, this area supports many healthy shagbark hickories and white oaks alongside the sugar maples, cedars, hemlocks, butternuts, red and bur oaks. 

The tip of the point marks the deepest part of the lake, but the bays on either side are relatively shallow. Town Farm Bay is particularly productive, and is noted for its confluence of different habitats, including swamps, marshes, rivers, shoal and rock outcrops. These factors make the area around Thompson’s Point ideal for supporting many different life stages of various fish species, and give the area its reputation as one of the most important fishing grounds in Lake Champlain. 

Like most of Vermont, much of Thompson’s Point has been cleared at some point for pasture and agriculture, leaving behind only patches of its former glory. However, a dedicated group of individuals who form the point’s summer community have been hard at work restoring the ecosystem. Natural regeneration has done wonders for the forests, but invasive plants threaten to overtake the understory and crowd out the native plants that once dominated. Common buckthorn has proven to be particularly aggressive here, like many Champlain Valley sites. The Thompson’s Point Association, with the help of Riverscape Ecology, has performed some impressive feats of buckthorn control, and they plan to continue the work well into the future. With responsible and well-informed land stewardship pushing the natural community in the right direction, we have high hopes for the future of Thompson’s Point.