Loving the North Woods

Karin has dedicated much of her personal and professional life to protecting Maine’s gems, the places that make the state special and the places that are special to Mainers. In “Loving the North Woods,” Karin’s love of Maine, its people, its landscapes and its plants and animals, is contagious. From her first backpacking trip in the North Woods to canoe trips down its rivers to contentious meetings about the region’s future in auditoriums and legislative chambers, Karin takes us on her journey of discovery and stewardship. She aptly captures the fear, exhaustion and joy of navigating a historic time, the importance of which is perhaps only obvious in hindsight. Karin is an able, knowledgeable and personable guide on a journey through a landmark era of land sales and, ultimately, preservation, of many of Maine’s most special places.

Such a gift Karin Tilberg has made in this effort to chronicle a really important era in Maine conservation; sharing it from the inside out rather than as an outsider. Readers will love the constant intermingling of personal, story and facts. My favorites were the little sketches of each of the main characters- always right on.

This book is very thorough in its history of Maine forest conservation during a pivotal time and the importance to both environmental and economic development. Karin’s book is excellent for understanding the significance of the forests of Maine and how they impacted her life and the lives of the people around her. Karin is the best voice to speak about this subject and to be fair and balanced.

This is a love story,” author Karin Tilberg declares at the very outset, a tale of personal love for the Great North Woods of Maine. All who know the author know that her heart resides there and have made peace with the fact. Through this love and devotion, Tilberg carries on her life’s work to conserve as much as needed of the Great North Woods to assure that its many extraordinary values remain available to all, for all time. This chronicle of a noble and inspiring life’s calling will bring added joy to all who know and appreciate the Great North Woods of Maine or wish simply to do so more deeply and fully.

This will be an important new book. It is a love story of the North Woods of Maine, by one of the main activists in the thick of it. It explores why Maine remains wild in the face of selective pressures of logging, fires, insect outbreaks and politics over recent decades. It is an adventure along the way, of securing two million acres of conservation protection in forest management in the face of ever-more development pressures.

Karin Tilberg, President of the Forest Society of Maine, has a B.S. in Wildlife Biology from the University of Vermont and a J.D. from the University of Maine School of Law. Karin has worked in both the public and private sectors, focusing on conservation law and policy. In her free time, she enjoys fly fishing, hiking, canoeing, Nordic skiing, and artistic pursuits. She lives in Salsbury Cove, Maine.