EAST DIXFIELD – Nathan Winters remembers that every time he came home to Lancaster County, Pa., he saw new housing developments built on prime farmland.

Now, a few years later, he is trying to do something about it.

On Mother’s Day, the 29-year-old left Belfast for a cross-country, 4,000-mile bicycle tour to raise awareness of the importance of agriculture and the environment, and to raise money for the Nature Conservancy. His goal is to reach Washington state, then create a “webumentary,” which he described as a documentary produced and offered through the Internet.

On Friday, he was at the Countryfolk Music Theater in East Dixfield. He had just chatted with Richard Hall, whose farm just a mile or so east has been in the family for eight generations.

“My goal is to meet with people from all walks of life in the agricultural and environmental community,” he said as he prepared to interview representatives from the Maine Farmland Trust and the Lots to Gardens urban gardening project based in Lewiston.

During the Hall interview he learned of the 18-hour days often required in farm life and of the impact of a difficult economic climate.

Since he left Belfast on Sunday, he has also interviewed an Amish family in Unity and owners of the Grassland Farm in Skowhegan, among others.

“Maine is beautiful. There’s nothing but great experiences and a lot of warmth and giving,” he said.

Winters is a self-employed online product manager/entrepreneur, he said.

In an interview with Jo Josephson, Franklin County agent for the Maine Farmland Trust, he learned of the statewide movement to save farms, which would result in local people eating locally grown foods.

From Ari Rosenburg, he learned of St. Mary’s Healthcare System’s effort to provide space in Lewiston for 60 low-income people to grow some of their own food. Classes are also offered in the preservation of food, among other community or youth activities.

And everyone he interviews is caught on video/audio camera for possible inclusion in his webumentary.

In addition to meeting and talking with area people involved in some way with agriculture and the natural world, Winters is also the first cross-country bicyclist to camp at Larry Bisbee’s Countryfolk Music Theater.

Bisbee said the rural site is now listed nationally as a host site for touring international and U.S. bicyclists. Soon, Bisbee said his rustic complex will also be offered to automobile drivers who bring their bikes along and have plans to cycle in the area.

Winters, as he heads west on the next leg of his journey, has raised $339. Just $49,661 to go.