San Juan Preservation Trust Completes ‘Sea-to-Summit’ Corridor with Protection of Mt. Ben West Preserve
Published 1:30 am Tuesday, May 19, 2026
The San Juan Preservation Trust is pleased to announce that the 30-acre Mt. Ben West Preserve on San Juan Island was permanently protected on March 31, when SJPT purchased the property. This milestone caps a decades-long conservation effort on the island’s west side and completes a “sea-to-summit” corridor connecting three preserves—the Conservation Land Bank’s Westside Preserve, the San Juan Preservation Trust’s Mt. Ben West Preserve, and the joint Preservation Trust-SJCCLB Mt. Ben Preserve—with future plans for public trail connections across the landscape. The project was made possible by a broad community of donors who raised $1.84 million in eight months.
The vision for the Mt. Ben West Preserve and its sea-to-summit connection traces back to 2004, when longtime San Juan Island residents Jean and Walter Walkinshaw and Martha and Lawrence Wheeler began planning the future of their land atop Mt. Ben. Having first fallen in love with the property in 1978, they chose to partner with the San Juan Preservation Trust and Conservation Land Bank to create the 21-acre Mt. Ben Preserve, which was later expanded to 35 acres. Reflecting on their decision to protect the land, Jean Walkinshaw noted, “We always thought that we had something special here, and that the public might also enjoy the same experience.”
Since then, the Preservation Trust, partners, and community supporters have worked steadily to protect nearby lands. Mt. Ben West Preserve represents the final, critical link in this sea-to-summit effort. With its protection, conserved lands now seamlessly connect shoreline tidepools to open grasslands, Garry oak habitat, rocky balds, mixed-age forest, and sweeping views of Haro Strait.
