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Park News
Narrows River Park Closed for the Winter Season
Narrows River Park in Council Bluffs is now closed for the winter season. The park will re-open in April of 2019. Please watch our website & Facebook page for more details as spring approaches.

Loess Hills Lodge at Hitchcock Nature Center Winter Hours Begin December 1st
Beginning December 1st, 2018 the Loess Hills Lodge Interpretive Gallery & Welcome Desk at Hitchcock Nature Center will begin observing their winter hours:

9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. - Friday & Saturday
1:00 to 5:00 p.m. - Sunday
Closed Monday through Thursday

Park hours remain 6:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. throughout the winter & the observation deck, tower, & lodge restrooms will be open for guest use during those hours.


 

 
September 22 Hitchcock Oak Inventory Project September Training Session
Noon - 4:00 p.m.
Ages 12 & Over Please
Free - Thank you for Volunteering
Pre-Registration Requested

The sprawling mighty oak tree remains a symbol of the American Midwest but a new, swift, and little understood disease has recently emerged in our area with the potential do eliminate these iconic trees from our landscape. Join us at Hitchcock Nature Center to be a part of a new volunteer project aimed at understanding and alleviating the effects of this new threat.

Please join us on Saturday, September 22nd for the third of three training sessions aimed at training those interested in joining this unique volunteer program. Training Session 3 will be held from 12:00 to 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, September 22nd and will cover the topics of preparing oak trees for prescribed fire as well as identifying and harvesting viable acorns and proper planting techniques. Portions of this training will occur out-of-doors and off-trail, so please dress accordingly.

Participants will need to provide their own smartphone for data collection and must be willing to download and install the project and data collection application for use. The app is available for both iPhone & Android users. Participants are also asked to dress for the weather including appropriate footwear for outdoor terrain. A notebook, water bottle and snack are also recommended.

Due to the paperwork needed to register new participants we are asking that interested parties register in advance. Register online for Training Session 1 in minutes by clicking the link below.

Click Here to Register for the September Training Session

Pottawattamie County Conservation's Hitchcock Oak Inventory Project is a truly original volunteer-led citizen science effort. The project aims to support researchers' effort to better understand the dramatic decline and morality of oaks observed throughout our region. Additionally the project helps ensure that current and future generations of oaks remain part of the Hitchcock Nature Center landscape through volunteer-led protection & planting.

During the spring and summer volunteers will be using a specially designed smartphone app as they walk the wilds of Hitchcock Nature Center documenting the health and condition of our bur & red oak trees. In the fall volunteers will learn what it takes to prepare oaks for annual prescribed fire, how to select viable acorns, as well as when and where to plant them.

Volunteers interested in joining this citizen science volunteer project are asked to attend three training sessions to learn the skills necessary to participate in the project before heading out in to the hills on their own to document and tag the park's oak trees.

Training sessions will be held on the following dates:

February Session: 8:00 a.m. to Noon, March 24th, 2018 RESCHEDULED FROM February 24th
Introduction to the project & field data collection app, oak ecology, and oak fire wounds

June Session: Noon to 4:00 p.m., June 23rd, 2018
Understanding and identifying the symptoms of oak decline in our region, review of the smartphone data collection app

September Session: Noon to 4:00 p.m., September 22nd, 2018
Preparing oaks for fire, oak/acorn propagation & planting

While the project will benefit most from dedicated participants project volunteers are not required to attend all three sessions, though it is recommended. Hitchcock Oak Inventory Project participants must register as volunteers of Pottawattamie County Conservation, including a background check.

Participants should note this project will require pedestrian travel over difficult terrain. Accordingly this project may be challenging for young children and those with restricted mobility.

Click Here for FAQ's & More Information

The Hitchcock Oak Inventory Project is proudly funded by the Resource Enhancement and Protection Conservation Education Program (REAP CEP).