Field Trips & Programs Winter 2018-2019
The Friends of Sax-Zim Bog is continuing to build and offer diverse programming for all of the seasons! The winter listings include a mix of public programs, field trips, naturalist hikes, and workshops! All of the field trips are FREE for members who have donated over $25 in the last year. Any non-field trip educational program is free to attend for all. If you are not a member, the $25 Field Trip fee includes a membership and 12-months of free field trips. If you have any questions about any of the programs, field trips, naturalist hikes, or workshops, and to RSVP, please contact Head Naturalist Clinton Nienhaus via email at naturalist@saxzim.org.
Public programs are free to attend, but donations are always welcome! All field trips are free for members who have donated $20 in the last year. Membership is $25 and includes free entry to any field trip in a 12 month period! If you have any questions about any of the programs, please contact Head Naturalist Clinton Nienhaus via email at naturalist@saxzim.org.
**RSVP is REQUIRED for attendance to programs or field trips**
Friday, December 14- March 8
Drop-in Naturalist Programs
12:00 pm- 1:00 pm
New this season, will be the addition of drop-in programming at the Welcome Center! Pop in for a quick hike around the Welcome Center or down Gray Jay Way or even just inside the Welcome Center. These on-going programs do not require an RSVP, nor any program fee, rather are just a good way to stretch your legs and learn a little more about the Sax-Zim Bog! Program topics will be varied and seasonal.
Saturday, December 22
Snowshoe Hike: Winterberry Bog
9:00- 12:30pm Meeting at the Welcome Center
Snowshoes are a great way to continue being active during the winter season and are a great way to explore hard to get to locations in the Bog. Join us for a leisurely hike through Winterberry Bog, and learn a little bit about boreal forests and animal sign present during the winter. Snowshoes are required and can be borrowed from the Welcome Center (Limited availability, please RSVP if snowshoes needed)!
Bog Lichen Hike
1:30- 3:00pm Meeting at the Welcome Center
For most plants and fungi, winter stops growth dead in its tracks, but lichens are not quite plants or fungi! Winter is a great time to see a wide variety of lichens in northern boreal forests. Come along for a hike into the bog to explore the wide variety of lichens!
Friday, January 11- Saturday, January 12
Boreal Birds Workshop
$295 per person [Refundable fully until December 28, 2018]
Limited to 10
4 SPACES OPEN!
Description:
Multi-day intensive birding experience and workshop, featuring presentations by Executive Director Sparky and Head Naturalist Clinton. Each day will feature birding through northern Minnesota in search of those special species that make the boreal forest home.
Days will be long, and probably cold, but we will be in and out of the van. We will not be snowshoeing or doing any major bushwhacking. Most birding will be from roadsides, trails, boardwalk.
There are no guarantees when it comes to seeking birds, but we will be searching for boreal specialists including Great Gray Owl, Northern Hawk Owl, Black-backed Woodpecker, Boreal Chickadee, White-winged Crossbill, Sharp-tailed Grouse, Common and Hoary Redpoll, Bohemian Waxwing and many more.
We will be spending the majority of one day in Sax-Zim. The other day will likely be a morning in Lake County’s Superior National Forest and possibly the North Shore or Duluth depending on location of birds at the time.
Clinton and Sparky will share natural history about each species and info on the boreal forest.
Days will likely begin an hour before sunrise and we probably won’t get back until an hour after sunset. Evening presentations.
Likely we will have departure times around 6am and won’t get back to hotel until after dark (6pm?).
We will likely be booking a block of rooms in either Duluth or Cloquet. Stay tuned.
(Registration includes 2 free North Woods Naturalist field guides, a 12-month membership to FOSZB, two days of field birding in Sax-Zim and Lake County Minnesota, evening programs on both Friday and Saturday evenings, travel during the day). Lodging, meals, travel to and from your home are not included in the price).
We will be traveling in two mini-vans; one driven by Clinton and one by Sparky.
Questions? email Sparky at sparky@saxzim.org
To register, select Boreal Birds Workshop in our Shop!
Saturday, February 2
Snowshoe Hike: Indian Pipe Bog
9:00- 12:30pm Meeting at the Welcome Center
Snowshoes are a great way to continue being active during the winter season and are a great way to explore hard to get to locations in the Bog. Join us for a leisurely hike through Indian Pipe Bog, and learn a little bit about boreal forests and animal sign present during the winter. Snowshoes are required and can be borrowed from the Welcome Center (Limited availability, please RSVP if snowshoes needed)!
Winter Tree ID
1:30- 3:00 pm Meeting at the Welcome Center
Tree Identification can be important in understanding forest type and age, but can all trees be identified in the winter without their leaves? You bet! Join us for a short hike through the trees, learning a little about forest ecology and winter tree identification.
Sunday, February 3
Tracking and Animal Sign
9:00- 12:00pm Meeting at the Welcome Center
Often, when traversing the Sax-Zim Bog, tracks are encountered. But how do you know if you are looking at dog vs wolf tracks? What is the difference between a hole made by a Downy Woodpecker and a Black-backed Woodpecker? We will investigate the activity by critters in the Sax-Zim Bog through an investigation of the area around the Welcome Center.
Bog Ecology Hike
1:00- 3:00 pm Meeting at the Welcome Center
A bog is very particular ecosystem, with water systems being important to many of the species that inhabit a bog. However, during the winter, much of that liquid water is locked up! Join us for a program investigating a bog through the seasons: determining summer characteristics and observing winter characteristics of a bog.
Saturday, January 26th
Minnesota Master Naturalist Advanced Training: Interpreting Tracks and Animal Sign
Registration FULL!
With questions about future Advanced Training Courses, contact Head Naturalist Clinton at naturalist@saxzim.org.
Saturday, February 9
Winter Finches Field Trip
9:00- 2:00 pm Meet at the Welcome Center
Many visitors to the Sax-Zim Bog in the winter season come to find the elusive Great Gray Owl. Others, come for the more readily seen, bright, and vocal finches. Join us on a this field trip looking for some of the bright winter visitors, such as Pine Grosbeak, Evening Grosbeak, Common Redpoll, and Crossbills. We will also introduce the natural history of these boreal wanderers.
Sunday, February 10
Snowshoe Hike: Fermoy Bog
12:00- 2:00pm Meeting at the Welcome Center
Snowshoes are a great way to continue being active during the winter season and are a great way to explore hard to get to locations in the Bog. Join us for a leisurely hike through Fermoy Bog, and learn a little bit about boreal forests and animal sign present during the winter. Snowshoes are required and can be borrowed from the Welcome Center (Limited availability, please RSVP if snowshoes needed)!
Saturday, February 23
Minnesota Master Naturalist Advanced Training: Winter Bog Ecology
Registration FULL!
With questions about future Advanced Training Courses, contact Head Naturalist Clinton at naturalist@saxzim.org.
Sunday, February 24
Tracking and Animal Sign
9:00- 12:00pm Meeting at the Welcome Center
Often, when traversing the Sax-Zim Bog, tracks are encountered. But how do you know if you are looking at dog vs wolf tracks? What is the difference between a hole made by a Downy Woodpecker and a Black-backed Woodpecker? We will investigate the activity by critters in the Sax-Zim Bog through an investigation of the area around the Welcome Center.
Bog Lichen Hike
1:00- 3:00pm Meeting at the Welcome Center
For most plants and fungi, winter stops growth dead in its tracks, but lichens are not quite plants or fungi! Winter is a great time to see a wide variety of lichens in northern boreal forests. Come along for a hike into the bog to explore the wide variety of lichens!
Saturday, March 2
Campfire Program
12:00- 2:00pm Meeting at the Welcome Center
People hold a special relationship to fire, whether it happens to be a reminder of a northern cabin or of Christmas time. Fire has been an important fixture to humanity… but why? Come investigate the reasons fire is important to people, both personally and ecologically. Come early to learn about a new method to build your own fire!
Northern Owls Evening Program
4:00- 5:00pm Meeting at the Welcome Center with Owl trip following until 8:00 pm.
Most often, visitors to the Sax-Zim Bog are looking for owls, but do you really know “hoo” owls are? Come and learn a little about some of the owls that can sometimes be found in the Sax-Zim Bog and the surrounding area. Following a short talk, we will caravan looking for some owls at dusk! Please RSVP, as space at the program will be limited to 25! RSVP to naturalist@saxzim.org.
Sunday, March 3
Lichens Field Trip
9:00- 2:00 pm Meet at the Welcome Center
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. During the trip, we will be making small collections of lichens for the Welcome Center or personal use! We MAY utilize snowshoes for this Field Trip. (Limited availability, please RSVP if snowshoes needed)!
Saturday, March 9
Snowshoe Field Trip
9:00- 1:00 pm Meeting at the Welcome Center
Snowshoeing is a great way to explore the frozen landscapes of northern Minnesota and is a great way to stay active during the winter months. This field trip will explore snowshoeing history and investigate tracks found along the trail. We will be snowshoeing on the South Logging Road off of McDavitt Road, an often underexplored area! Plan for a full afternoon out in the Bog! If you do not have snowshoes, there a limited number available at the Welcome Center, please RSVP to reserve a pair if you need.
Directions to Welcome Center on Owl Avenue
**Open mid December to mid March from 10am-3pm daily
**Also marked on our birding map
Directions from Cotton, MN on US53…
*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 West 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
Naturalist programs are new for the FOSZB, funded in part by grants by the Lloyd K. Johnson Foundation and the Carl and Verna Schmidt Foundation. Public programs are free to attend, but donations are always welcome! All field trips are free for members who have donated $20 in the last year. Membership is $25 and includes free entry to any field trip in a 12 month period! If you have any questions about any of the programs, please contact Head Naturalist Clinton Nienhaus via email at naturalist@saxzim.org.