Nassawango Creek Preserve: Fire Management Field Tour

Explore The Nature Conservancy’s Nassawango Creek Preserve to learn about restoration successes achieved through prescribed fire management.
About this Event

Hosted by The Nature Conservancy in partnership with the Maryland Prescribed Fire Council as part of the 2026 NE-MW Prescribed Fire Science and Management Workshop.

This field trip will explore The Nature Conservancy’s Nassawango Creek Preserve to learn about restoration successes achieved through an ecologically driven active management approach. This preserve protects nearly 10,000 acres of habitat along Nassawango Creek, one of the Eastern Shore’s most pristine and intact waterways. The preserve hosts a significant amount of biodiversity and is home to several fire adapted upland and wetland plant communities. We will explore how prescribed fire, in combination with timber management and other restoration practices, have transformed and enhanced the landscape of the preserve over the years. Since 2008, TNC has been using prescribed fire at this site and burns on average around 1,200 acres of uplands and wetlands there each year. On this tour we will visit restoration sites across the preserve to learn about fire history, fire ecology, fire effects, flora and fauna response, timber management, and how fire and timber management work together to deliver strong ecological restoration results.

This is an all outdoor event where we will be driving through the preserve, stopping at several locations along the way, and hiking off trail into burn units. Transportation while on the tour will be provided. Be prepared to spend the duration of the event outside. Please wear closed toed shoes, long pants, and appropriate clothing for the expected weather. It can be quite hot and humid this time of year. Sunscreen and bug spray are recommended.