Join us for the next installment of “Downstream Adventures” Hiking at Watchung Reservation. We will be exploring scenic gorges, visiting the remnants of the deserted village of Feltville, following alongside the Blue Brook and marveling at Lake Surprise. This will be a difficult hike over a few miles.
GSWA is looking for volunteers to help us to remove invasive species and replant a native buffer around Kitchell Pond. We'd love to have your help! This event is cosponsored by Morris County Park Commission.
Calling all would-be explorers, adventurers, and buccaneers! The Great Swamp Scavenger Hunt is back for another year of outdoor fun! Think you know a thing or two about New Jersey’s Great Swamp? Then it’s time to test your powers of navigation and observation to find out. Begin the Scavenger Hunt just after 10 a.m. by checking in at GSWA’s Home Base under the pavilion at the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge’s Helen C. Fenske Visitor Center. (The Visitor Center is located just inside the Lee’s Hill Road park entrance at 32 Pleasant Plains Road in Harding Township, NJ.) We will provide you with a route to travel, questions to answer, and a list of treasures to find throughout the 55-square-mile Great Swamp Watershed region. It’s your job to navigate to each treasure site, seek answers to the questions and riddles provided, and then return to Home Base with all your spoils. Remember to hurry back to 32 Pleasant Plains Road at 3 p.m. because your day of pilfering booty will earn you several chances to win some special prizes at our Scavenger’s Tricky Tray! A free cookout waits for all who participate, so don’t forget your barbecue enthusiasm. We love […]
If you are interested in becoming a stream monitoring volunteer or just learning more about stream health, this is the training for you! An indoor classroom session helps you learn how to conduct visual and biological stream assessments, and recognize environmental factors that may impact stream health. An outdoor session helps you practice your new-found skills, visually assessing streams and collecting and identifying macroinvertebrates at a local stream site. Afterwards, you will be a fully trained stream assessment volunteer and ready to conduct a new assessment this fall! This training will be conducted in conjunction with the AmeriCorps New Jersey Watershed Ambassador Program.
What makes a weed a weed? How can you tell your oriental bittersweet from your Japanese barberry and why should you care that you can? Invasive plants are spreading in our forests and open spaces, and harm the environment as they reduce biodiversity and resources for native wildlife. New Jersey spends millions in labor and resources to remove invasives each year. Join us for this informative, hands on session on how to identify New Jersey’s top ten least wanted, as we learn from the plants themselves to know both terrestrial and aquatic invasive plants and appropriate native replacements. You’ll never look at burning bush in the same way again! Registration required. Register below or by calling 973-538-3500. This program is being run in conjunction with Morris County Park System’s Great Swamp Outdoor Education Center and the Americorps Watershed Ambassador.
Hone your inner naturalist and practice your being-out-after-dark skills with Director of Education and Outreach, Hazel England. She’ll guide you through the forests of our Conservation Management Area, perfect for exploring the spring night sky. With the mating season in full swing, June is the perfect time to explore the forest in search of active wildlife. We’ll listen and look for owls, foxes, spring insects, and other nocturnal creatures. Registration required. Register below or by calling 973-538-3500.
**DUE TO WEATHER THIS EVENT HAS BEEN RESCHEDULED FROM MAY 6** Grab your kayak or canoe and join GSWA as we paddle upstream from the Fisherman’s Parking Lot at the Lord Stirling Environmental Education Center. We’ll traverse beaver dams and explore the river, with Somerset County Park land on one side, and the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge on the other. Our eyes will be peeled for turtles, snakes, migratory birds, and other creatures as we paddle through the peaceful waters. Please note that there are two times for this event, and each time is limited to eight boats (not individuals).9:00 AM – 11:00 AM OR 11:30 AM – 1:30 PM. You must bring your own boat, paddles, and personal flotation device (PFD). You will not be able to join the guided paddle without a PFD, which will be inspected before we leave. You should be dressed to get wet (including your shoes) and bring your own water. You will be asked to sign a waiver prior to participation. Registration required.
The cool forests and boardwalks of our 53 acre Conservation Management Area are the perfect place to escape to on warm late-spring evenings. With the forest in full bloom, Great Swamp Watershed Association Director of Education and Outreach, Hazel England will guide you in identifying spring ephemerals and lead you to explore the numerous vernal pools filled with frogs, tadpoles, and frog eggs. Hiking is on our flat mulch and boardwalk trails in Harding Township. Registration required. Register below or by calling 973-538-3500.
Find inspiration for your spring planting and decorating while supporting Great Swamp Watershed Association on June 21, 2017, during our 4th Annual Home & Garden Tour. The cornerstone of this year’s tour is the historic Glynallyn Castle, a 32,000 square foot mansion in Morris Township which has been carefully restored in recent years. Full of secret passageways and even a dungeon – this remarkable 66 room home will captivate your imagination. How to Prepare: A tour program and a map of the tour route will be supplied at check-in. All participants must check in between 10:00 a.m. and noon at the starting location (to be announced). All participants should be prepared to wear booties over their shoes or take their shoes off when entering a tour home. (Disposable booties will be available at each stop.) Conditions may be hot, cold, or wet, so please dress appropriately and bring along rain gear just in case of inclement weather. If you plan to have lunch on your own during the tour, please consider visiting a local business along the tour route. All tour homes close promptly at 3:00 p.m.
THIS EVENT IS SOLD OUT Our Downstream Adventures series continues with this glacial wetlands edition! Join us in visiting Great Swamp’s “sister-swamp” -- Troy Meadows is a 3,100 acre nature preserve in Parsippany-Troy Hills. Along with Great Swamp, it makes up a large remnant of Glacial Lake Passaic. Troy Meadows was once the largest freshwater marsh and highest quality inland wetland in New Jersey and but is now under threat of development. There is just so much abundant and unique plant and animal life here to explore! Your guide, GSWA Education Associate, Dan Ross, leads an adventure through the wetlands in search of the flora and fauna that call this treasure home! Your organizer will contact you with exact parking information. Also, please wear knee boots if you have them or otherwise long pants- some areas are overgrown with prickly vegetation. Registration required. Register here or call (973) 538-3500.
