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Category: Nature

  • Cure Cabin Fever with Crossroads at Big Creek Hike Nov. 25

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    The trails at Crossroads at Big Creek will be open on Thanksgiving Day and throughout the hunting season, but the Collins Learning Center will be closed on Thanksgiving. The Friday Film on Nov. 24, 2 pm is Wisconsin Hometown Stories-Door County. This is a repeat screening of the Wisconsin Public Television production so locals can […]

  • Hike the Reindeer Trail at Peninsula State Park

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    Strange tracks have appeared at Peninsula State Park. “I heard the jingle of bells and then felt a whoosh,” said Peninsula State Park Naturalist Kathleen Harris. Come see the tracks for yourself by hiking the Reindeer Trail. The Reindeer Trail, a half-mile woodsy walk, will be ready for young trail trampers on Nov. 25, from […]

  • Hans Feld: A Deer Hunter for 66 Years, With A Record of Every Hunt

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    By Door County standards, Hans Feld got a late start as a deer hunter. He was 18 in 1951 when he shot his first buck – an eight-pointer – on his grandfather’s farm near Matchwood, in Ontonagon County, Michigan. But he remembers the day vividly, as well as the 65 hunting seasons since then. “There […]

  • Crossroads Hosts Beech Drop Hike, Astronomy Viewing Night Nov. 18

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    In the dark forest of Crossroads at Big Creek’s Ida Bay Preserve, flowers are blooming near Zenith Street. When these flowers called beech drops bloom, most people overlook them. These wildflowers tend to blend in with fallen leaves and the people who do notice them assume they are pinkish-brown twigs on the forest floor. Beech […]

  • Weather Wizard: Perfect Days of Late Autumn

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    Two cranes, soft and grey, eat together, tiptoeing through the wet, yellow grasses. They eat in silence, gingerly stepping around each other in small circles, heads down, softly grabbing at marshy treats, just the trills of birds and chitter of red squirrels for dinner music. The pond is shallow and settled, clear as can be […]

  • Crossroads Joins ‘Messy Garden Movement’

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    Crossroads at Big Creek is part of the “messy garden movement.” Messiness supports their 2017 educational theme, “Location, Location, Location,” which focuses on wildlife habitats. Crossroads never cleans up the landscaping at Collins Learning Center until true spring. In “The Native Plant Herald,” the blog of Prairie Nursery, Neil Diboll, who will be the guest […]

  • Crossroads Hosts Fall Hike, ‘Hometown Stories’ Screening

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    It’s fall at Crossroads at Big Creek. Leaves are finally changing color and the geese are flying south. Enjoy the fall splendor Oct. 28, 11 am – 12 pm during a nature hike to the dock at The Cove. Join the naturalist for a gentle ramble from the Little Bridge on Utah Street to the […]

  • Wisconsin Nature Notes: Top Five Fun Fall Migrations in Wisconsin

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    by Caleb Klima, Wisconsin Conservation Practitioner Many of us consider home to be just one location, a place where we share precious memories with those we love. For many animals however, one location will not do. Instead, some need two homes, one for the summer and one for the winter. Many species are following their […]

  • Getting In Tune at Ephraim Wetlands Preserve

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    The plan was to go on Charlotte Lukes’ mushroom hike at Three Springs the morning of the last Saturday in September, but I had forgotten about the lengthy Highway 57 detour, and not having planned for the extra time that would take, I arrived at the filled Three Springs parking area at 9:12 am, with […]

  • County Parks Director Presents on History, Future of Park System

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    The Door County Historical Society will host its Saturday afternoon yesteryear program “Door County Parks,” presented by Erik Aleson on Sept. 30 at 2 pm in the Collins Learning Center adjacent to the Heritage Village at 2041 Michigan Street in Sturgeon Bay. What has 992 acres, 12 miles of state trail that was a railroad, […]

  • Autumnfest, Comedian Will Durst & More Weekend Plans

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    Autumn officially arrives on Friday! Celebrate the season of apples, pumpkins and cooler weather with any one of the following festivals and events. Friday, September 22 Washington Island Literary Festival It’s a literary lover’s retreat this weekend on Washington Island, as the peninsula’s top hat welcomes a host of writers, authors and readers to fifth […]

  • ‘Dark Ranger’ Night Sky Advocate Returns to Crossroads Sept. 16

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    Kevin Poe, the “Dark Ranger,” will return to Door County thanks to the collaborative efforts of the Door County Environmental Council, the Door Peninsula Astronomical Society, and the Boys and Girls Club of Door County. He will hold a family night at Crossroads at Big Creek in Sturgeon Bay, Sept. 16. Poe is a park […]

  • AleFest, Dark Knight & More Weekend Plans

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    It’s your last weekend to soak up summertime in Door County, as the autumnal equinox arrives next Friday! Enjoy an evening of laughter with a 1940s-inspired murder-mystery, celebrate the upcoming grape harvest with a winey celebration at von Stiehl, or tip back a cold one at Egg Harbor AleFest. Friday, September 15 …And Then There […]

  • Door County Kayak Begins Fall Foliage Tours

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    Door County Kayak Tours welcome autumn with their 2017 seasonal kayak tour: “Fall Foliage,” located on Moonlight Bay on Highway 57 from September to October. White cedar, white spruce and white pines are some of the few natural amusements that surround Moonlight Bay in Baileys Harbor. Guided tours are offered from 10 am to 2 […]

  • Master Gardeners Host Final Summer Demos Sept. 12

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    The Door County Master Gardeners Association announces the final program in a series of summertime educational events celebrating their free public display garden, The Garden Door. The garden is located on Highway 42 just north of Sturgeon Bay, on the grounds of the UW Peninsular Agricultural Research Station. Join the Master Gardeners in the Garden […]

  • Crossroads at Big Creek Hosts Monarch Tagging Workshop

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    Sept. 10 is Grandparents Day and Crossroads at Big Creek is celebrating the day with their annual monarch tagging event. This is a wonderful learning adventure for multigenerational families (though interested individuals of all ages are welcome). Guest naturalist Karen Newbern will present a lively program for learners of all ages in the lecture hall […]

  • Keep the Autumnal Fire Burning!

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    Autumn has moved souls since the beginning of time. “Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns.” — George Eliot It is the most romantic of seasons, which explains why so many people outside of Door County wonder, […]

  • In the Quiet North Woods: Michelle Hefty’s 28 Years at Newport State Park

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    If a career in natural resources didn’t work out, Michelle Hefty had her viola to fall back on. While everyone thought she would go on to a career in music, “I had this little love in the back of my mind.” After 28 years as superintendent of Newport State Park, few people have asked about […]

  • Where’s the Nude Beach at Newport Park?

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    At the end of my conversation with Newport State Park superintendent Michelle Hefty in her office for the fall issue of our sister publication Door County Living magazine, I asked her the standard final question for interviews as a journalist: Is there anything I’m missing? After her universal response that she had just been blathering […]

  • Crossroads Hosts Documentary Screening Aug 29

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    Forget about the heat of summer in the air-conditioned lecture hall at Crossroads at Big Creek Aug. 29 for a screening of Chasing Ice at 2 pm. This award-winning documentary gathered evidence of the Earth’s changing climate in the far north. The film shows exquisite photography with a message. The screening is free and open […]