The Connecticut River Valley is one of the East Coast natural jewels. Groups like the Nature Conservancy and others have been working tirelessly over the years to protect this amazing natural resource of woods, water, inlets, coves and marshes. I spent a lot of time photographing this area around Old Lyme, Essex, Old Saybrook, Madison and Deep River. Now it appears to be under threat by a proposed route of Amtrak.
The plan would route the new tracks straight through estuaries at the Connecticut River that are home to bald eagles and osprey. The Nature Conservancy and local land trusts have worked for decades to preserve this part of the river. These are the same marshes that were a primary subject of American Impressionism 120 years ago by the Old Lyme Art Colony. The rail plan would further destroy the continuing legacy of the colony, by routing the tracks through the current campus and historic buildings at the Lyme Art Academy. Recently, the New York Times named the academy as the leading home of American Realism. All this, and the historic downtown of Old Lyme would be lost.
Alternative A would be a disaster. The plan would route the new tracks straight through estuaries at the Connecticut River that are home to bald eagles and osprey. The Nature Conservancy and local land trusts have worked for decades to preserve this part of the river. These are the same marshes that were a primary subject of American Impressionism 120 years ago by the Old Lyme Art Colony. The rail plan would further destroy the continuing legacy of the movement, by routing the tracks through the current campus and historic buildings at the Lyme Art Academy. Lastly, Alternative A would physically destroy the historic downtown of Old Lyme, the key gateway for tourists to New London County. No wonder they tried to slip this through without comment.
More on the story:
http://yaledailynews.com/blog/2016/01/20/ct-residents-debate-amtrak-plans/