Join Education Associate Dan Ross for a fun filled DIY workshop at GSWA’s office. Learn how to make your very own holiday themed candles, and bring home this rustic keepsake that will be sure to light up your holiday gatherings, or to be given as a creative and unique gift.
Set off in hot pursuit of the region’s most-wanted wintertime wildlife on this nature detective discovery hike at Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge. Learn how to identify animals from their tracks, scats and other leave behind clues. Spy on secret hideouts used by birds, wintering insects, and other woodland creatures. Unmask the dining preferences of deer, raccoons, and even coyotes by putting the magnifying glass to some scat. All this detective work is easier than you think, plus its fun being outdoors in the winter! Recommended for all, but especially children 5 to 12 years old.
Curious to learn the health of the streams in the watershed? Join us for an informative breakfast briefing with GSWA Director of Water Quality, Sandra LaVigne, as she discusses the results of her 2015 stream sampling via the annual Great Swamp Water Quality Report Card. Sandra will also discuss the plans for moving downstream in 2017. After the completion of the Adopt a Stream Program with the three-year long assessment of Primrose Brook and Black Brook in 2016, we will be looking forward to new endeavors throughout the watershed.
White vinegar, baking soda, lemon juice…no, not the ingredients in a salad dressing, but the basis of many environmentally safe cleaning products! Learn more about what ingredients in daily personal and household cleaning products you need to be wary of, how not all environmental labeled products are created equally and why you should be concerned. Common ingredients in many household products can have detrimental environmental impacts on you, the local environment and our regional water supply. Leave with some DIY cleaning product recipes and some homemade cleaning products to start you off!
Don’t be left out in the cold this January, join GSWA education associate Dan Ross as he leads a winter hike through Buttermilk Falls Natural Area in Mendham. You will get a chance to check out the remnants of what was once the Mendham Water Company, and abandoned relics from the area’s iron ore mining past. Along the way we will also keep our eyes peeled for woodland creatures prepping for the long cold months ahead! Registration required. Register online or by calling 973-538-3500.
Join GSWA and retired Science teacher turned walking-stick-guru for a fun-filled DIY workshop at GSWA’s office. Learn how to make your very own walking stick to hit the trails with. You’ll be able to choose from a variety of rough sticks, including red cedar, maple, beech, and iron wood, and walk away with a finished product and the knowledge of how to create one on your own! All tools and safety equipment will be provided. Registration required. Register online or by calling 973-538-3500.
February’s full moon is known as the “Full Snow Moon”, due to February’s tendency to have the heaviest snowfall. Native American tribes in the area also called this moon the “Hunger Moon” because of difficulty to find food during this time of year. Join GSWA as we hike the moonlit trails of our Conservation Management Area (CMA), and listen for nighttime creatures. The open canopy cover and bright moonlight provide the perfect backdrop to hear and spot owls, as they become more active for the mating season. Warm clothing and waterproof footwear — especially hiking boots — are very strongly recommended for this hike. Registration Required. Register online or by calling 973-538-3500.
Come explore the Passaic River Park with your furry friend! We’ll see what we can sniff out in the woods. Leash required, and you will be asked to sign a waiver prior to participation. Walk will be over uneven and sometimes slippery terrain. Please dress according to the weather and bring your own waste bags. Registration required. Register online or by calling (973) 538-3500.
In this in-depth how-to breakfast briefing, GSWA Director of Education and Outreach, Hazel England, will discuss the benefits of managing stormwater by installing a rain garden in your home. Rain Gardens are shallow depressions, planted with shrubs and perennials that absorb stormwater runoff from roofs, driveways, and other impervious surfaces, helping to recharge groundwater, slow flooding, and reduce nonpoint source pollution in our waterways. Hazel will discuss everything from how to pick the right location for your rain garden, to how to create it, and what plants to include. You’ll leave armed with the knowledge needed to create your own rain garden this spring. Registration required. Register online or by calling 973-538-3500. filename.doc
Do you know your spring peepers from your wood frogs? What does a leopard frog sound like and can they be found in your neighborhood? Join GSWA and Tedor Whitman of Cora Hartshorn Arboretum for this hands-on training session to become an official FrogWatch volunteer. FrogWatch is a citizen science program that uses volunteer’s observations to create a database of frog and toad sightings, helping to establish long-term and large-scale data on amphibian populations. During the training, you’ll learn how to recognize different species of frogs and toads from their appearance and calls, and how to record your observations into the database. We will work with you to select places around the region to monitor and you will be frog counting in no time!
