Discover
Nature Nearby! Since
1992, Nearby Nature has been hosting nature walks, school programs,
ecological restoration work parties, and summer daycamps in
local parks.
Nearby Nature
also serves as Park Host of Alton Baker Park, a 350-acre natural
reserve on the Willamette River, easily accessible from downtown
Eugene and Springfield.
This natural "museum" features
heron rookeries, nesting osprey, resident beavers, towering cottonwoods,
and splendid wildflowers.
Alton
Baker Park Walks Program
Join our trained volunteer guides on weekdays in the fall or spring for morning
nature walks in Alton Baker Park. Walk groups are always small (six to nine
kids) and each student who participates in a walk takes home a copy of EXPLORE,
our youth newsletter highlighting nearby natural areas, nature activities,
and more.
Seasonal
Events
The group's "Egg Walk" in April and "Haunted Hike" in October draw hundreds
of folks of all ages. At these events, people go on special guided nature walks
and meet all sorts of costumed naturalists—from Frannie Frog to Rico
Raccoon to Bella Butterfly! Call or check our web site for dates and times
as well as information about other upcoming events.
Monthly
Nature Quests!
When was the last time you got up close and personal with nature? Hands-dirty,
seeds-in-your-hair, maybe even eye-to-eye intimate? If it has been awhile,
then it’s time you joined us for a Nature Quest! Designed with families
in mind, but open to “kids” of all ages, each Quest includes a
family-paced hike with lots of fun trail activities, a craft, snacks, and a
visit from one of our famous Kinder Critters!
Summer
Day Camps
Our summer daycamps in local parks
provide week-long opportunities to explore in depth various themes in the natural
sciences. Rather than spending lots of time talking about nature, we help kids discover nature.
We take hikes, play games, and use nature study tools. We also celebrate the
imagination. We tell stories, do nature crafts, act out plays, and write in
journals. Finally, we emphasize respect: of ourselves, each other, and the
Earth.
Kinder
Critters
Invite a "wild" animal to visit
your childcare center or K-2nd grade classroom! Listen to yarns spun by a spider
or sing songs with a butterfly. Hop with a frog or talk bugs with a bat. During
each Kinder Critters program, a Nearby Nature volunteer costumed as a wild
creature from a nearby pond, meadow, or forest will visit your classroom or
child care center. This "critter" will share a fascinating combination of facts,
stories, games, crafts, or songs with your students.
In-School
Programs
Nearby Nature also offers in-school
and after school programming for grades K-5 with flexible programming schedules
to meet your class's needs.
Oregon
Bird Discovery Kits
Want to take a Peek at Beaks? Looking for a Bird's Eye View of the world? Then
you and your students will love the Oregon Bird Discovery Kits. Presented by
the UO Museum of Natural History and Nearby Nature, these ten discovery boxes
cover everything there is to know about birds-from bills to feet, nests to
flight. Each kit includes real specimens, hands-on learning, information cards,
and a list of pre- and post-kit activities.
Alton
Baker Park Action Project
Nearby Nature hosts volunteer work
parties in Alton Baker Park throughout the year. At these gatherings, participants
work on invasive plant removal and native plant restoration, erosion control,
trail crew, and litter patrol.
Directions
to the Alton Baker Park Host Residence/Yurt:
Turn into the main Alton Baker Park entrance, follow the road through
the park, past parking lots and Cuthbert Amphitheater. The PHR and
Yurt are on the right, after the Community Gardens, before bollards
close the road. Park in the gravel lot by the Gardens.
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Discovering seed propagation.
Turtle Pond attracts canoes and waterfowl.
In costume at the Eugene Celebration.
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