Families are invited to welcome spring by attending the seventh annual Family Nature Fest on Saturday, April 27 from 8:30 AM to 12:30 PM EDT at Ferdinand State Forest. The Fest is free. Participants should follow the signs to the Sycamore Shelters.
The Family Nature Fest includes fun crafts and activities for families, forest management tour, spring wildflower walk, beekeeping information, and free continental breakfast. Door prizes will be awarded, and local foresters will be available all morning to answer your tree and forest management questions. The Conservation Officers will also do an ATV safety demonstration, featuring the robotic Safety Sam.
Judi Brown with the Dubois County Soil and Water Conservation District says that Conservation Officers will also be there to demonstrate a canine rescue mission.
New in 2019 is the opportunity to build an Aldo Leopold bench! If you don’t know what a Leopold Bench is, Judi Brown is here to tell you.
Only 12 bench kits will be available, so call Ferdinand State Forest soon at 812-827-2857 to reserve one! The cost to build a bench is $25.00.
Registration and breakfast begin at 8:30 AM. All activities, including the Aldo Leopold bench building, begins at 9 AM. The wildflower walk begins at 9:15, and the forest management tour at 10:15. The canine rescue demonstration and ATV safety demonstration will wrap up the morning’s activities. For more information, contact Ferdinand State Forest at (812) 827-2857, or dbegle@dnr.IN.gov, or the Dubois County Soil and Water Conservation District office at (812) 482-1171 Ext. 3446.
Ferdinand State Forest is located six miles east of Ferdinand, at 6583 E State Road 264, Ferdinand, Indiana. The Family Nature Fest is sponsored by the Four Rivers Forestry Committee and IDNR Division of Forestry, with support from the Dubois County Soil and Water Conservation District and the Dubois County Solid Waste Management District.
