2024 Spring and Summer Field Trips, Education Programs, and Speakers

We are excited for yet another field trip season in the Sax-Zim Bog! This summer we will continue our Friday Speaker Series in the Lois King Education Center, starting in June. Field Trips will meet at the Friends of Sax-Zim Bog Welcome Center in the Lois King Education Center unless otherwise noted. NOTE: There may be updates to the program schedule as field trips and workshops get confirmed and added to the list!

Field trip attendance is free for members (those who have donated $25 or more within the past year). If you are interested in membership, a donation of $25 covers membership and free attendance to any field trip or program in a 12 month period! You must register each member of your party separately for each field trip you wish to attend. If you have questions on membership status, please contact Head Naturalist Clinton at naturalist@saxzim.org.

Moving ahead, we will be working to address accessibility challenges and barriers on our field trips. To give everyone better expectations of what to expect on each field trip, we will be including relative activity levels for each field trip this season. The approximate ratings are as follows:

Field Trip Activity Level Ratings

1- Easy (travel over even terrain on roadways/boardwalks or limited hiking up to ½ mile total)

2- Moderate (travel over even or uneven terrain, dry to wet conditions, or hiking over ½ mile total)

3- Average (travel over even or uneven terrain, hiking off trail possible, or hiking up to 1 mile total)

4- Difficult (travel primarily over uneven terrain, wet conditions, or hiking over 1 mile total)

5-Strenuous (mostly off trail with travel primarily over uneven and wet terrain or hiking up to 2 miles)

If you have any questions about any of the field trips listed, field trip registration process, questions about the accessibility of a field trip, or feedback on our activity rating scale please contact Head Naturalist Clinton Dexter-Nienhaus via email at naturalist@saxzim.org.

Saturday, May 4

Things that go Buzz, Croak, Hoot, and Bump in the Night!

6:00-10:00 pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center

Activity Rating: 1 -2

As Spring makes itself known in the Sax-Zim Bog, we start our Spring and Summer Field Trip Season with the longest running field trip we offer! Though it still may approach 30 degrees during the night, spring in the Bog is full of life…and dusk is a great time to SEE and HEAR some of the unique critters. On this evening field trip, we will listen for early season frog species, American Bittern, Wilson’s Snipe, American Woodcock, search for Great Gray Owls, and more! Plan on bringing a head lamp or flashlight, as well as mud boots with you during this field trip.

Wednesday, May 8, 15, 22, and 29

Warbler Wednesdays

6:00 am-12:00 pm Meeting at the Welcome Center Parking Lot

Activity Rating: 2

Warblers! That is what the target of this weekly field trip will be! Of course, there are MANY other species of birds to see and hear in the bog during the end of spring migration and the start of nesting. Field trips will hope to see and hear flashy warblers, cryptic wetland species, and even prairie birds! Our trips are a good introduction to summer birding in the Sax-Zim Bog and routinely document 80-100 species during a morning of birding! Join us each Wednesday to see and learn about the diverse bird communities that make the greater Sax-Zim Bog area such an amazing and important collection of habitats. Registration for these trips will be split into two groups and each group will make an effort to see similar species, but will cover different areas of the Bog. Groups will meet at noon to share stories about what was (or wasn’t!) seen during the day!

Saturday, May 18

Waffles and Warblers Field Trip

6:00 am-12:00 pm Meeting at the Welcome Center Parking Lot

Activity Rating: 2

Who doesn’t like Warblers and better yet, who doesn’t like Waffles?! Join us for this one-of-a-kind field trip, where we will be searching for warblers in the morning and then enjoying waffles in the afternoon! Waffle will be served as a potluck-details to be announced .

Saturday, May 11 and 25

Songbird Saturdays

6:00 am-12:00 pm Meeting at Faith Lutheran Church 5697 Hwy 7, Culver, MN 55779

Activity Rating: 2

Warbler Wednesdays have become a very poplar and sought-after field trip for us, with enough attendance to warrant an expansion to Saturdays! While the targets of these field trips will still be the same as Warbler Wednesdays, this year, the locations will be all new! We will still hope to see and hear flashy warblers, cryptic wetland species, but we will be visiting the south end of the greater Sax-Zim Bog ecosystem to do so! This field trip will be a great way to see more of the region and perhaps discover a few new locations for your birding forays to the region during the summer months. NOTE: This field trip WILL NOT be meeting at the Welcome Center (though we will end up here at the end of the day).

Saturday, June 1

Master Naturalist Advanced Training: Bog Specialists and Bog Ecology

Registration not open yet

Sunday, June 2

Sax-Zim Bog Early Season Butterflies Field Trip

12:00-5:00 pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center

Activity Rating: 1-2

The Sax-Zim Bog is home to a diverse set of plants, most of which have a particularly close relationship to butterflies or moths. This field trip will focus on exploring the diversity of butterflies in the Sax-Zim Bog flying very early in the season. These species usually have very short flight periods and have special relationships with bog specialist plant species, which will also be considered. The Sax-Zim Bog offers a lot for the casual butterfly watcher, as well as the seasoned butterfly enthusiast! All ages and ability levels are welcome!

Saturday, June 8

Moths and More Evening Field Trip

8:00-11:00 pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center

Activity Rating: 1

At almost 600 species, moths are the most species rich group documented in the greater Sax-Zim Bog! Moths often surpass their butterfly cousins in color, pattern, behavior, and specialized relationship to plants. This field trip will serve as a good introduction to the moth diversity in northeastern Minnesota. We will also use some of our time waiting for moths to arrive by listening for night singing insects, birds, mammals, and more! Because this field trip is at night, and mostly stationary, plan on bringing a head lamp or flashlight and folding chair.

Sunday, June 9

Lesser Visited Sites Series: Creek Road Bog

10:00-3:00 pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center

Activity Rating: 3-4

Join us for Part 1 of a 4 Part Field Trip series featuring lesser visited or sites not well known to most visitors to the greater Sax-Zim Bog! These field trips will feature bushwhacking, exploring little known landscapes, and will consider a wide range of species, especially those indicative of the sites. Our first trip features one a Head Naturalist Clinton’s favorite stretches of underexplored bog, the Creek Road Bog. This smaller section of bog is east of the Floodwood Bog and attached to the southern most reaches of the Toivola Swamp. What will we find? Join us to find out!

Saturday, June 15

Summer Boardwalk Tour!

9:00- 2:00pm Meeting in the Lois King Education Center at the Welcome Center

Activity Rating- 1-2

To date, there are four boardwalks found throughout the greater Sax-Zim Bog on Friends of Sax-Zim Bog properties! This winter, we offered a field trip to see all four boardwalks in one day. But as we know, the winter and summer seasons in the Sax-Zim Bog are very different seasons! Join us for a walk through the summer landscapes and habitats featured by our boardwalks. Expect to see a few birds, plants, and bugs, learn about trees and boardwalk construction, and explore the Sax-Zim Bog in a different way.

Sunday, June 16

Early Season Wildflowers Field Trip

9:00 am-2:00 pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center

Activity Rating: 2

The Sax-Zim Bog is a diverse network of habitats, which, in turn, allow for a large diversity of flowering plants! In fact, we have documented over 400 species of vascular plant in our area! In one day, you could find bog specialties, prairie plants, and boreal forest staples within a few miles of one another. This field trip will hope to give a good introduction to common (and not-so-common) wildflowers in our area, whether or not they are in bloom.

Saturday, June 22

Orchids of the Sax-Zim Bog Field Trip

9:00 am-4:00 pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center

Activity Rating: 1-2

The Sax-Zim Bog is home to at least 20 species of orchid, including healthy populations of Pink Ladyslipper, Purple-fringed Orchid, and Minnesota’s State Flower: Showy Ladyslipper! This trip will cover a lot of ground hoping to find orchids that represent the diversity of the Sax-Zim Bog. This trip will likely involve a little “bog stomping” so rubber boots are a must! Last year, this field trip found 8 species of orchid… Hopefully we can match that number this year as well!

Sunday, June 23

Lesser Visited Sites Series: Sax Road Wetland Restoration

10:00-3:00 pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center

Activity Rating: 3-4

Join us for Part 2 of a 4 Part Field Trip series featuring lesser visited or sites not well known to most visitors to the greater Sax-Zim Bog! These field trips will feature bushwhacking, exploring little observed landscapes, and will consider a wide range of species, especially those indicative of the sites. Our second trip in this series features a new-to-FOSZB location. As part of the large wetland bank purchase, Friends of Sax-Zim Bog was able to acquire a newly restored wetland complex, east of Sax Road. In the first couple of years following its completion uncommon wetland nesting birds like American Bittern and Marsh Wren have been utilizing this property, not to mention lots of waterfowl in migration. While there has been some investigation of this wetland, there is much more to discover! What will we find? Join us to find out!

Saturday, June 29

Native Plants and Pollinators Field Trip

9:00 am-2:00 pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center

Activity Rating: 1-2

Gardening with native plants one of the most important thing you can do to attract birds, butterflies, and more to your yard. Including and implementing best practices for your yard and local plant community can be important and this field trip will hope to introduce a few important plant species for our region. We will also consider the wide range of insects that offer food for birds, but also act as pollinators to the plants you might consider adding to your gardens! Plan on short hikes to explore a number of different ecosystem types to give you a good idea of what plants might be best for your yard.

Sunday, June 30

Lesser Visited Sites Series: Admiral Road Cedar Swamp

10:00-3:00 pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center

Activity Rating: 3-4

Join us for Part 3 of a 4 Part Field Trip series featuring lesser visited or sites not well known to most visitors to the greater Sax-Zim Bog! These field trips will feature bushwhacking, exploring little observed landscapes, and will consider a wide range of species, especially those indicative of the sites. Our third trip in this series features a lovely stand of Eastern White-cedar that most visitors see along Admiral Road, but very few step foot into. Eastern White-cedar ecosystems are much more common along the North Shore of Lake Superior than they are in our area, so while this habitat is not that uncommon in Northeastern Minnesota, it is not very common (or accessible!) in the greater Sax-Zim Bog. What will we find? Join us to find out!

Saturday, July 6

Lichens in the Sax-Zim Bog Field Trip

10:00-3:00 pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center

Activity Rating: 2-3

Northern Minnesota is home to a diverse lichen community. These species cover nearly 8% of the terrestrial surface of the earth, yet are relatively unknown to most of us. Join us on this trip to get firsthand experience in lichen identification, as well as to learn a few of the more common lichens in our area. Unlike winter lichen field trips, we will be able to cover increased habitat diversity, with rock and ground based lichens now exposed!

Sunday, July 7

Lesser Visited Sites Series: Tremblay Road Fen

10:00-3:00 pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center

Activity Rating: 3-4

The final site in our 4 Part Field Trip series featuring lesser visited, is a site only recently accessed. The Tremblay Road Fen is a really unique site in our area, as it is really truly is a fen on a landscape primarily featuring bog habitats. So far, this site has offered up some really exceptional species for our area including Bog Copper, Intermediate Sundew, Meager Sedge, Rose Pogonia, and Zigzag Darner! Like the other trips in this series, this field trip will feature bushwhacking, exploring little observed landscapes, and will consider a wide range of species, especially those indicative of the sites. What will we find? Join us to find out!

Saturday, July 13

Dragonflies and Damselflies Field Trip

12:00- 6:00 pm Meeting at the Welcome Center

Activity Rating: 1-2 Dragonflies and damselflies are an easily seen group of bugs and recently have become popular targets of cameras and nets! “Dragonflying” is becoming a popular hobby across the US and northern Minnesota has incredible odonate diversity. In the Sax-Zim Bog alone, we have documented 88 species of dragonfly and damselfly! This field trip will focus on seeing and catching adult dragonflies and damselflies. All ages and ability levels are welcome! Extra nets and hand lenses are available for use to those who would like to use them.

Sunday, July 14

Master Naturalist Advanced Training: Aquatic Ecology and Biodiversity

Registration not open yet

Saturday, July 27

Sax-Zim Bog Butterflies Field Trip

12:00-5:00 pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center

Activity Rating: 1-2

The Sax-Zim Bog is home to a diverse set of plants, most of which have a particularly close relationship to butterflies or moths. Through the seasons butterfly communities can greatly, with July being one of the most diverse months to see butterflies. This field trip will hope to encounter uncommon (to our area!) southern species like Black Swallowtail and Silver-spotted Skipper, wetland specialists like Baltimore Checkerspot, all the while sorting through fast moving Skippers and Blues! The Sax-Zim Bog offers a lot for the casual butterfly watcher, as well as the seasoned butterfly enthusiast! All ages and ability levels are welcome!

Sunday, July 28

Moths and More Evening Field Trip

8:00-11:00 pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center

Activity Rating: 1

Saturday, August 3

Master Naturalist Advanced Training: Nighttime Neighbors

Registration not open yet

Sunday, August 4

Plant Ecology and Morphology: An Introduction

9:00 am-2:00 pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center

Activity Rating: 1-2

While field trips allow us to explore and experience an ecosystem and the species found within that ecosystem, there is often not time to delve into the nuance of specific groups. Last winter, we enjoyed a deep dive into Corvids and this summer, we will take advantage of the increased biodiversity to explore two different groups of organisms. Our first deep dive will be into the wide world of plants! We will be considering evolution, pollination, and get an introduction to plant taxonomy through this program. Surely, there is not enough time to consider all the plants, so we will investigate the most frequently observed plant families in our region.

Saturday, August 10

Sounds of Summer: Day-singing Insects Investigation

9:00 am-2:00 pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center

Activity Rating: 1-2

If you close your eyes and imagine the “sounds” of summer, perhaps some of you will recall the sounds of American Robins, Black-capped Chickadees, or Eastern Meadowlarks. Likely, there are also a number of buzzes, snaps, and clicks made by insects sneaking into the background of those soundscapes! This field trip will introduce the insect sounds of summer, who makes those sounds, and how those bugs make those sounds.

Sunday, August 11

Carnivorous and Odd-ball Plants Field Trip

9:00 am-2:00 pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center

Activity Rating: 3

As we know, the Sax-Zim Bog is a network of habitats, which, in turn, allow for a large diversity of flowering plants! Some species are especially odd, especially considering the ways that they have adapt to thrive in less-than-ideal ecosystems. This field trip will place a special focus on the “plant weirdos” found within the Sax-Zim Bog, including pitcher plants, sundews, ghost pipe, pinesaps, coralroots, bladderworts, and more!

Saturday, August 24

Sax-Zim Bog BioBlitz 12

9:00 am-2:00 pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center

More Details to come about the 12th Annual Sax-Zim Bog BioBlitz! If you are interested in leading a field trip this year, please contact Head Naturalist Clinton at naturalist@saxzim.org.

Saturday, August 31

Galls and Leaf Miner Exploration Field Trip

10:00 am-2:00 pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center

Activity Rating: 1-2

Over the course of the our Bioblitzes, we have begun to understand the diversity in galls, leaf miners, plant diseases, and fungi through a couple of expert-led field trips. Those trips added over 100 new species of commonly seen species that no one takes time to notice! Join us for a new field trip offering an initial look into the weird world of flies, moths, mites, and the sign that they make on leaves, stems, and branches all around you. Hand lens will be helpful on this field trip, with extra hand lenses available for use during the field trip.

Sunday, September 1

Lichens in the Sax-Zim Bog Field Trip

10:00-3:00 pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center

Activity Rating: 2-3

Saturday, September 7

Tiger Beetles Field Trip

12:00-5:00 pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center

Activity Rating: 2

Tiger beetles are a colorful, yet overlooked group of beetles that are becoming quite popular to amateur entomologists and naturalists. Often, you find these species very commonly in gravel pits or open sandy areas. Their large eyes, bright colors, and tenacious attitudes are something to experience! Come out to learn a little more about these colorful and fast predators. This field trip will likely encounter all 8 species of tiger beetle in our region, with a chance to document the final species present in our region!

Sunday, September 8

Late Season Dragonfly and Damselfly Field Trip

12:00-6:00 pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center

Activity Rating: 2 Dragonflies and damselflies are an easily seen group of bugs and recently have become targets of cameras and nets! “Dragonflying” is becoming a popular hobby across the US and northern Minnesota has incredible odonate diversity. In the Sax-Zim Bog alone, we have documented 87 species of dragonfly and damselfly! This field trip will focus on seeing and catching adult dragonflies and damselflies. The late season offers diversity in darners, meadowhawks, and spreadwings, groups we don’t find during the early part of the summer. All ages and ability levels are welcome! Extra nets will be available for use to those who would like to use them.

Saturday, September 14

Fishes of the greater Sax-Zim Bog Ecosystem

10:00 am- 3:00 pm Meeting at the Welcome Center

Activity Rating: 2-3

While field trips allow us to explore and experience an ecosystem and the species found within that ecosystem, there is often not time to delve into the nuance of specific groups. Last winter, we enjoyed a deep dive into Corvids and this summer, we will take advantage of the increased biodiversity to explore two different groups of organisms. No pun intended, our second deep dive of the summer will consider fish! While fish diversity is not particularly high in the greater Sax-Zim Bog ecosystem, there are some really cool species to be seen and observed! This field trip will be part introduction to fishes, part how to view/sample/survey fishes, and a great way to see some of the aquatic biodiversity in the region.

Sunday, September 15

Introduction to Mosses Field Trip

9:00 am- 1:00 pm Meeting at the Welcome Center

Activity Rating: 2-3

Mosses are all around us in the Sax-Zim Bog and make up an incredibly part in the creation and support of bog ecosystems. However, mosses and their bryophyte relatives can be incredibly hard to identify. With a group of species that is hard to identify, it is always important to start by learning the familiar and common species, which is what we will be doing on this field trip! Come and begin your journey into the wonderful world of mosses on this introductory field trip focusing on both natural history and identification of this diverse and difficult to identify group.

Saturday, September 28

Fall Migration Field Trip

8:00- 2:00 pm Meeting at the Welcome Center

Activity Rating: 1-2

Migration season offers some difficult bird watching in northern Minnesota, as many of the breeding species rush out of our area on their way south! The last bird-based field trip of the season will hope to experience a little of what migration has to offer in the Sax-Zim Bog! Because of the amount of habitat, it can be quite difficult to find birds in the Sax-Zim Bog and this field trip will hope to show you how to best navigate the Sax-Zim Bog during migration.

Sunday, September 29

Tracking and Animal Sign Field Trip

9:00 am-1:00pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center

Activity Rating: 2 Winter might be the best time to observe tracks and sign in our area, but that doesn’t mean you cannot find tracks and animal sign during the warmer seasons! This field trip will spend quality time in and near muddy stream banks, river crossings, and sandy roadsides to get a different season’s perspective on finding and identifying animal tracks and sign. If you have ventured out on snowshoes during the winter to look for tracks and sign, think about joining us for this “off-season” tracking field trip!

Saturday, October 12

Fall Colors Field Trip

9:00 am-1:00pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center

Activity Rating: 1-2

Mid-October seems to be the prime time to experience peak tamarack colors in the Sax-Zim Bog! This field trip will have a special focus on the biology behind the change of color we see by trees in Minnesota as the seasons change. We will also spend some time in the field, looking at a wide range of non-tree species that change from green to brilliant reds, oranges, or yellows in the fall. Depending on the timing of color change, the exact date of this field trip may be pushed back one week and all registrants will be apprised of any changes to the field trip date!

Directions to the Friends of Sax-Zim Bog Welcome Center

ADDRESS: The address is Sax-Zim Bog Welcome Center 8793 Owl Avenue, Toivola, MN 55765

[NOTE: THIS IS NOT A MAILING ADDRESS…but put this address into Google Maps or Apple Maps.]

Directions from Cotton, MN on US HWY 53:

*Go West from Cotton on CR52/Arkola for 11 miles

*Turn South (left) on Owl Avenue

*Go 1.75 miles (second curve) to Welcome Center

Directions from Meadowlands, on CR133…

*Go East on CR133 to CR229/29

*Turn North (left) on CR229/29

*Go North to T at Correction Line Rd

*Turn West (left) on Correction Line Rd

*Road curves North and becomes Owl Ave

*Go North on Owl Avenue for 2.5 miles to Welcome Center

Field Trips and Events

2024 Spring and Summer Field Trips, Education Programs, and Speakers

Saturday, May 4

Wednesday, May 8, 15, 22, and 29

Saturday, May 18

Saturday, May 11 and 25

Saturday, June 1

Sunday, June 2

Saturday, June 8

Sunday, June 9

Saturday, June 15

Sunday, June 16

Saturday, June 22

Sunday, June 23

Saturday, June 29

Sunday, June 30

Saturday, July 6

Sunday, July 7

Saturday, July 13

Sunday, July 14

Saturday, July 27

Sunday, July 28

Saturday, August 3

Sunday, August 4

Saturday, August 10

Sunday, August 11

Saturday, August 24

Saturday, August 31

Sunday, September 1

Saturday, September 7

Sunday, September 8

Saturday, September 14

Sunday, September 15

Saturday, September 28

Sunday, September 29

Saturday, October 12

Directions to the Friends of Sax-Zim Bog Welcome Center

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