Kids Day in the Watershed!

On July 17th, 10 kids, along with myself and Jillian who work with TREC, gathered at the Trout River Community Park for Kids Day in the Watershed.  Since this was the first event of its kind, I was apprehensive but really excited about the possibilities.  It turned out that my apprehension was for nothing because it was a fantastic time!
We started by sitting on the look-out and talking a bit about the anoxia in the river.  It is really at its peak this time of year and although we had been hoping to check out some fish during the day, we discussed why that wouldn't be possible and the causes.  The kids were really quick to understand and really interested in solutions.
Then, as an intro to the park (although the kids knew the ins and outs better than I did!) we did some geocaching.  There were nine caches throughout the park and using a GPS, the kids found each and every one! (Well, except the one that the crows ate, and the one that the tide took away!)  Each cache was another element to their trail mix snack, which they hoed into after geocaching was over.  I overheard one kid say, "Trail mix is a snack of the gods."  Who knew!!

One of the teams looking for a scavenger hunt item.

Anyway, after snack, we had an intense nature based scavenger hunt in which they were divided into two teams and whoever completed the list first, got first pick of the prize bag.  It was VERY close, but the winners came through when they found a squirrel tail, which appeared to be the highlight of the entire day for some kids. haha.

Finally, we made a bird feeder with pine cones, peanut butter and bird seed.  It was messy and really made for winter birds, but after seeing how the crows demolished one of my caches, I'm pretty sure some feathered friend will thoroughly enjoy them!

Overall, the day was a great success, and I think it bodes well for the future of another kids day in the watershed!

-Sally

Education Day at MacPhail Woods!

After a couple weeks of sweltering heat, we decided that the crew needed a well-deserved education day away from the watershed.  In my work with the Devil's Punchbowl, I've been looking for examples and ideas of signs in natural areas that are suitable and also durable.  Knowing that MacPhail Woods and homestead have put a lot of energy into information and trail-side signs, I was interested to see some examples currently in use.
So we loaded up my mini-van and headed east.

We started walking the trails and although there was a bit of drizzle now and then, it couldn't dampen the spirits of the crew.  The trails were so well maintained, but allowed to change and grow as nature required, it was a great day for a hike.  There was a lovely mist rising off the stream and it felt a bit like being in a movie from time to time.

Of course it was useful having Mike with us to point out important plants and share the wealth of information he has from a lifetime of working with and in the woods.

Mike even shared his owl-call!

We came across a number of small red-backed salamanders and this little toad who didn't seem to mind our intrusion at all.

On one trail there was a large clay deposit, which I thought was really interesting.

MacPhail woods has created a pamphlet that walks you through the trails, pointing out significant natural elements, like the largest hemlock on the property (it was HUGE). Jake really LOVED the BIG trees.  :)

Here is an example of just one of the signs that are displayed along one of the trails.  The mosquitoes were fierce with the warm rain, so we snapped the pictures and read the signs later!

Here is a blue bead lily, which are a native species and quite common along the trails.  They really caught my eye since they look like large blueberries, but believe me, they're not!

There is an information centre as well, with some really interesting animals to look it (taxidermy form of course).  A wide variety of owls and waterfowl, as well as a coyote and then this HUGE slice of an old tree, where the rings have been counted to determine it's age.  The innermost ring is marked 1679.  Wow.

Overall, it was a hugely successful day, with everyone learning and loving nature.  It was a well-deserved break, but it was also a great opportunity to expand our knowledge a bit too.

-Sally