Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Monarch Display 2009

The annual favorite is back! Our summer Monarch Butterfly Display is up and running with several monarch caterpillars, an egg or two and even a near completion chrysalis!

Swing by the Nature Center today and check out this fun display. Be sure to check back often, as the time from egg until adult butterfly is only 30 days of which only 18 are spent as a caterpillar. During those 18 days, each caterpillar increases its mass by 2,000 times!

We'll try to post a picture of our first monarch soon!

Monday, August 17, 2009

Chris Rowlands Summer Concert

Check out the photos from the last Summer Concert of 2009! Children of all ages had a blast during the Nature Rocks! concert by Chris Rowlands. Check Chris out at www.chrisrowlands.org

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Nature Rocks!


On Saturday, August 15, at 7:00 PM, Darke County Parks is pleased to announce nationally recognized singer/songwriter Chris Rowlands! Chris has delighted crowds in years past and will join us once again for our summer concert series. Chris is an Aullwood Audubon Naturalist who enjoys teaching children about nature through innovative programs. Chris creatively blends music, art, comedy, and education to create high energy, fast paced shows, which teach and inspire young and old alike.

Remember to bring a blanket or chair and bug repellant. If the weather or mosquitoes do not cooperate, the concerts will be held inside the Nature Center. For more information contact Darke County Parks at 548-0165 or info@darkecountyparks.org.

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

We're on Facebook

Darke County Parks is now on Facebook! Pop on over and become a Fan to make sure you stay up to date with all of the upcoming events. See you there!

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

An Evening on the Lake

Starting at 6:30pm, DCParks and friends headed to Lake Loramie State Park with kayaks and canoes in tow! We got on the water around 7:30 and paddled for an hour and a half returning to the docks just after sunset. Everyone had a great time and saw some wildlife as we paddled softly through the narrow channels. Many Great Blue Herons were seen; also a group of baby ducks, one colorful Prothonotary Warbler and several trees that had beaver chew marks! It was a great night! If you were, post a comment below!

Thanks to sreineke for taking these photos of all of those on the water! Be sure to check out the Flickr Group page to see the rest of sreineke's photos!

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Darke County Parks hosted an Extreme Adventure Summer Camp for 13-15 year olds. The week consisted of Team Building and Leadership Development, Rock Climbing, River Float, and an overnight at John Bryan State Park.

The Team Building and Leadership Development activities took place at Camp Yale, which included several different challenging courses such as:

^Building a bridge across the “grand canyon”

^And use an arch to walk along two cables spread 10 feet apart! ^

The campers also were able to experience the 450 foot long, 50 foot high zip line at Camp Yale.


Rock Climbing took place at Vandalia’s Rec Center where the 12 individuals had competition of who could complete the hardest climb and several raced one another to see who could climb the quickest to the top.

Our River Float on the Stillwater was also a challenge due to the constant rainfall and the low amounts of water in some places along the river. However, the campers enjoyed the rapids and the others tasks which we were faced with on the float. Even though it rained the ENTIRE time, we had a great float!

The Extreme Adventure Camp wrapped up the week by pitching tents at John Bryan State Park. While at John Bryan we enjoyed cooking over the campfire.

We also enjoyed several hikes through Glen Helen and Clifton Gorge, both of which offer amazing scenery and feel as though you’ve left Ohio.

Exploring a cave

The last adventure of the week was to “survive” the raccoon invasion of the camp site! Up to 10 raccoons were spotted, with up to 5 spotted at the campfire at one time! Talk about Up Close and Personal wildlife experiences!

Two campers enjoy their comfy "home-away-from-home" tent

Be sure to mark your summer for 2010’s summer camps!