Events
Summer/Early Autumn 2009 Calendar
Mysterious Giant Silk Moths
Date: Friday, July 10
Time: 10:00 AM
Place: Meet at The Nature Museum
Donation: Members free; Non-Members $5
Naturalist Bonnie Caruthers will discuss giant silk moths, describe raising them, and show live polyphemus and luna moth caterpillars, those future mysterious gentle giants.
The Incredible Journey!
Date: Saturday, July 11
Time: 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM
Place: Meet at The Fish Ladder, Bellows Falls
Donation: Free and open to the public
Learn about the amazing water cycle, its journey, stages, and states with fun activities and games for all ages. Make a water cycle bracelet to take home. Museum Intern Jenn Bowman will also discuss watersheds, pollution and water quality, and what every person can do to help conserve this essential resource for life.
Opening Reception for Water-color Flowers by Barbara Tarantino
Date: Sunday, July 12
Time: 4:00 PM - 5:30 PM
Place: Meet at The Nature Museum
Donation: Free and open to the public
The second exhibit in the Museum’s Art and Nature Series will feature the floral watercolors of Barbara Tarantino of Walpole, NH. The opening reception includes refreshments and time for people to meet with the artist to discuss technique and philosophy. The exhibit will run from July 9 through Labor Day.
Lost Mine Trail
Date: Saturday, July 18
Time: 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Place: Meet at the parking area by the old reservoir on Water Farm Road in Chester, VT; please carpool if possible
Donation: Free and open to the public
This moderately difficult hike — co-sponsored by the Museum and led by members of the Chester Conservation Committee [CCC] — will focus on local trees and plants, along with an introduction to wild edible and medicinal plants in this mixed forest habitat. Wear hiking shoes and long pants, and bring water. The CCC will have on hand copies of the new Green Mountain Club book, The Walker’s Guide to Vermont, for sale to raise funds for the trail. For more informa-tion, call 802-885-8958.
Women’s Hike
Date: Tuesday, July 21
Time: 9:30 AM - 11:00 AM
Place: Meet at Herrick's Cove, Rockingham, VT
Donation: Members $5; Non-Members $7
• Pre-registration preferred
Join Alma Beals of Ascutney Mountain Audubon for an easy walk near the Connecticut River that will focus on birds. Bring binoculars, if available. Bad weather may cancel, so call the Museum if in doubt. Wear waterproof shoes and bring water.
Discovery Walk at the Springfield Bog
Date: Saturday, July 25
Time: 9:30 AM - 10:30 AM
Place: Meet at BOG boulder at the large parking lot near the Springfield Town Garage on Fairground Road in North Springfield, VT
Donation: Members $5; Non-Members $7
Naturalist Educator Betsy Owen will lead the program on a short boardwalk system that allows people to look closely at unique bog plants — such as the carnivorous, Pitcher Plant, which should be in bloom. For additional questions, call Betsy Owen (802-885-9463).
Old Home Days Fish Ladder Open House
Date: Saturday, August 1
Time: 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Place: Meet at the Fish Ladder & Watershed Center in Bellows Falls
Donation: Free and open to the public
This program, offering special exhibits and activities for all ages, is part of the “Exploring Rockingham: Nature Out Our Backdoor” series, which is made possible by a grant from TransCanada Corporation.
Women’s Hike at Weston Moses Pond
Date: Tuesday, August 11
Time: 9:30 AM - 11:00 AM
Place: Call the Museum for directions on where to meet in Weston
Donation: Members $5; Non-Members $7
Shanti will lead this relatively easy hike on old logging road to beautiful Moses Pond. Wear hiking shoes; bring water.
Where Do the Fairies Live? - Ages 3 - 6
Date: Thursday, August 13
Time: 10:00 AM - Noon
Place: Meet at the Nature Museum
Donation: Members $8; Non-Members $12 (prices for participating children)
Celebrate the magic of fairies and the wonders of nature. In this fanciful program led by Meg Minehan, participants will explore the Museum’s forest, meadow, and gardens on an imaginative search for signs of the wee folk. They’ll make fairy houses and fairy paper dolls and consider tiny things in nature. Bring a snack and water.
Family Forestry Festival
Date: Saturday, August 15
Time: 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Place: Meet on Route 103 just south of Chester, adjacent to the Antiques Center on land of Mountain Man Jewelry. Park at Green Mountain High School.
Donation: $2 per person; $5 per family
This event for all ages highlights forest and land management. Features include activities for children, a chain-saw safety school, educational programs and displays, and live music. The Nature Museum will present a half-hour beaver pro-gram at 12:30 PM. The event is sponsored by Northeast Woodland Training.
Insider’s Tour of Organic Harlow Farm
Date: Saturday, August 15
Time: 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM
Place: Meet at the farmhouse driveway on Route 5 in Westminster, VT, off I-91 and Exit 5
Donation: Members $5; Non-Members $7
• Pre-registration requested
This rare behind-the-scenes tour led by Educator Lauren Potter will feature a very successful organic farm in the Connecticut River Valley. Meet the farmer and the animals, hoe the vegetables, explore a swamp, search for plant and insect biodiversity, and enjoy activities geared to adults and children ages 5 and up. Bring a picnic or buy lunch at the café at the farm stand. Bring a backpack with water, hat, and sunscreen.
Fairy House Workshop with Tracy Kane
Date: Sunday, August 16
Time: 1:00 PM - 2:30 PM
Place: Meet at the Museum
Donation: Members $5; Non-Members $7
• Pre-registration requested
To prepare for the first official Fairy House Tour in Vermont on the last weekend in September, Tracy Kane is coming to walk the trail and lead a workshop. She’ll give a PowerPoint presentation that will show different fairy and gnome houses and villages that have been made in the past, discuss what goes into a fairy house, and read from one of her books. Then participants will be divided into small groups and go outside where she’ll help them create one house from each group that will be kept on the grounds of the Museum to enchant visitors and to inspire people to come to the tour and create their own structures.
Enter the Fairy World - Ages 6 - 10
Date: Monday, August 17
Time: 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM
Place: Meet at the Museum
Donation: Members $15; Non-Members $20
Celebrate the magical world of fairies with an imaginative hike through the wood-land to search for signs of fairies and explore the mysteries of nature and the beautiful places wee folk might live. Participants will then make their own fairy house or garden that they may take home. Bring a snack, lunch, and water.
Cold River Exploration
Date: Saturday, August 22
Time: 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Place: Meet in Walpole, NH, at the dirt parking area across from the Citgo Station/Jiffy Mart near the inter-section of Routes 123A and 12
Donation: Free and open to the public
Visit the mouth of the Cold River where it joins the Connecticut with Program Leader David Deen — Steward for the Connecticut River Watershed Council, fly-fishing guide, and member of the Advisory Board of The Nature Museum — and other members of the co-sponsoring Cold River Local Advisory Committee. The program will focus on fish habitat and give an introduction to local geology and water quality, and is partially funded by TransCanada Corporation.
Herbal Healing with Vermont's Wild Plants
Date: Tuesday, August 25
Time: 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM
Place: Meet at the Museum
Donation: Members $10; Non-Members $15
• Pre-registration required
This evening workshop with Sage Maurer of the Gaia School of Healing in Westminster, VT, will teach herbal basics (plant identification and preparation) and ancient practices of folk herbal healing for home and family using common, local plants. Herbal preparations will be demonstrated and then sampled by the class. Partici-pants will take away recipes and herbal healing mixtures they can use to support the body daily.
Mushroom Search
Date: Saturday, August 29
Time:1:00 PM - 3:00 PM
Place: Meet at the Museum to carpool to nearby site
Donation: Members $5; Non-Members $7
• Pre-registration required
Join Dick McCarrick, one of three generations of family members who hunt and eat wood-land mushrooms. Along the way, McCarrick will introduce safe mushroom-hunting techniques; show specimens of poisonous and non-poisonous mushrooms; and reveal other helpful information about this popular foraging activity that is so weather and habitat dependent.
Night at the Museum
Date: Friday, September 11 - For Girls, Ages 9 - 13
Date: Saturday, September 12 - For Boys, Ages 9 - 13
Time: Arrive at 5:00 PM - depart at 10:00 AM the next morning, after breakfast
Place: At the Museum
Donation: Members $40; Non-Members $50
• Pre-registration required; minimum 4, maximum 10
Experience a night of adventure inside and outside The Museum. Start by cooking dinner outside and setting up tents. Then explore “hidden treasures” on a special insider tour in the private depths of the Museum. Go for a night hike, discover nocturnal wildlife, learn constellations, and hear some good fireside tales while making s’mores at the campfire.
Mighty Acorns Preschool Explorers Club - Ages 3 - 5
Date: Wednesday, September 16
Time: 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM
Place: Meet at the Museum
Donation: Members $5; Non-Members $7 (prices are for all participating children)
• Pre-registration requested
This monthly fun-filled program for preschoolers and their caregivers offers hands-on activities to foster creativity and connect children more closely to the natural world. Participants will explore the outdoors, visit different habitats, and enjoy the many resources that the museum has to offer through exhibits, puppet shows, and dramatic play.
The Soapstone Story
Date: Wednesday, September 16
Time: 7:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Place: Meet at the Rockingham Library
Donation: Free and open to the public
Sue Hadden, Director of the co-sponsoring Museum of Mining and Minerals in Grafton, VT, will present slides that explain the soapstone formation and mining process. The program is partially funded by a grant from TransCanada Corporation.
Soapstone Exhibits and Quarry Hike
Date: Saturday, September 19
Time: 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Place: Meet at the Museum
Donation: Members $5; Non-Members $7
• Pre-registration requested
This day of soapstone investigation and exploration in Grafton is co-sponsored by three different local museums: Mining and Minerals, History, and Nature, and features progressive museum visits in the morning (10-12) to view soapstone art and objects, a break for lunch (12-1), and an afternoon hike to the quarry sites on Bear Mountain (1-4). Participants will carpool to the start to avoid the steeper parts of Kidder Hill. Sue Hadden of the mineral museum will give an introduction to the soapstone mining process in the morning. Later Bill Brown will lead the way to the quarry sites. Hikers should wear long pants and hiking shoes and bring a snack and water for this moderately strenuous hike.
First Fairy Open House Tour in Vermont!
Date: Saturday, September 26
Time: 11:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Date: Sunday, September 27
Time: 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM
Place: Meet at the Museum
Donation: See details below
Advance tickets in each category feature a discount: children (ages 3-18) $4/$5; adults $10/$12; Seniors (age 62+) $8/$10. Tickets are good for both tour days. Funds earned will help support the Museum’s programming and exhibits.
Bring the whole family for a woodland tour of amazing fairy houses made by a host of professional experts and ardent enthusiasts. Meet author Tracy Kane, who will have books to autograph, and enjoy her readings, pictures, and discussions of nifty previous houses. Make a fairy house out of provided natural materials to take home or to leave for the weekend for others’ admiration and inspi-ration. People are encouraged to bring natural materials they want to use and to share with others. See separate notices about this first-time event for Vermont.
