The Palmer Brook property (also known as the Berkshire Fishing Club) in the Town of Becket offers a rare opportunity to protect a large, pristine, unfragmented parcel that sits adjacent to the largest, protected block of forestland in the Commonwealth—the 26,000-acre October Mountain State Forest.
Why Protect this Land
Classified as BioMap Critical Natural Landscape, Palmer Brook features 725 acres of forest surrounding a 125-acre lake. It provides habitat for wide-ranging species such as moose, beaver, and porcupine and is home to almost a dozen different tree species including eastern hemlock, American beech, balsam fir, and sugar maple, among others.
Its size, natural beauty, and existing infrastructure position it well to become a new publicly accessible Mass Audubon wildlife sanctuary.
A small lodge could serve as a visitor center, and there’s potential for a broad range of nature education, recreation, and other program access opportunities that would benefit the residents of Becket and neighboring communities.
What’s Next
In August 2025, Mass Audubon signed an option agreement to purchase the 850-acre Palmer Brook land for $5 million.
Mass Audubon has been awarded a $1.25 million Landscape Partnership Program grant by the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs to support the acquisition of the property. Additionally, the MA Department of Conservation and Recreation has committed $1.25 million to the project.
Mass Audubon is working to raise an additional $2.5 million to acquire the land, and an additional $3 million to establish it as a wildlife sanctuary open to visitors.
Help Protect Palmer Brook
You can help protect 850 acres in the Berkshires by making a gift in support of the Palmer Brook project—moving us closer to achieving the state goal of protecting 30% of Massachusetts’ natural landscape by 2030.
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