ATHOL – Bearsden Conservation Area will play host to hundreds of visitors from around Massachusetts and the northeast this summer, according to Conservation Commission member Dave Small, who handles reservations for Bearsden.

The conservation area is owned and operated by the commission and was established as a camping area in the 1960s.

“We’re up to about 102 reservation requests,” said Small. “They range from usually a minimum of two to four people; that’s pretty average for each one of those.

Small said Paige Cabin is currently booked almost through November.

“I’m already taking reservations for next summer,” he said. “The shelters, there’s still quite a bit of flexibility in openings for the shelters for the rest of the summer. Now, it does require a hike of about a mile and a half to get to them; they’re quite a ways from where you have to park your car.

“So, it truly is a wild place to be,” Small added. “It’s quiet and beautiful and the rivers are there. It’s a great place to spend a few days.”

Paige Cabin is available for four nights a week, Thursday through Monday, Small said. The shelters are available seven days a week and they’re mostly reserved for one or two-night stays.

The shelters, Small explained, are three-sided Adirondack modes that can accommodate up to four people.

“We’ve had bigger family groups,” he said. “Particularly the Buckman Brook shelter has a really nice area nearby where people can put up an extra pup tent, or other tents that can be used for larger family groups.”

The nearly 1,800-acre conservation area, Small explained, is comprised of six or seven different parcels. Some were donated, while others were purchased and later donated.

“A lot of the same people who were involved in the Millers River Watershed Council back in the days when the Millers River was polluted were the same people behind the whole Bearsden effort,” Small said. “Bob Gray and Bob Laughton from Laughton Tree Farm, those guys were all very much involved with cleaning up the Millers River, as well preserving a lot of land.”

There is no cost to use either the cabin or the shelters. To make a reservation go to the Town of Athol website (www.athol-ma.gov), click “play” at the top of the page and look for “conservation areas.” Or go directly to www.athol-ma.gov/parks-trails/pages/conservation-areas.

Greg Vine can be reached at gvineadn@gmail.com.