TIME to TAKE a HIKE… on NATIONAL TRAILS
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SPRING ISSUE Vol. 4, No. 2 “Every blade of grass has its spot on earth whence it draws its life, its strength; and so is man rooted to the land from which he draws his faith together with his life.” – Joseph Conrad Photos by Dee Frautschi TIME to TAKE a HIKE… On NATIONAL TRAILS DAY By Deanna Frautschi JOIN THE University of Illinois Master Naturalists and others who will be taking to the trails at Funks Grove on June 6 to celebrate National Trails Day. Illinois Grand Prairie Master Naturalists will host their third annual trails day from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. HEADQUARTERS FOR the event will again be at Sugar Grove Nature Center in Funks Grove. For a map and listing of events planned, check out www.sugargrovenaturecenter.org. If you want to volunteer and haven’t already signed up, contact Ann Baughan at [email protected]. GUIDED HIKES will take walkers along creeks and streams where birds and butterflies fly, toads hop, fish Continued → Spring 2015 Vol. 4, No. 2 swim, deer hide, and herons raise young and SO PACK a lunch to eat on the trail and enjoy hunt. Funks Grove has over seven miles of your hike with fellow Master Naturalists and hiking trails. Maps will be available for self- outdoor enthusiast friends. guided hikes. Nature Activities Planned for All Ages MANY nature-related activities are planned including hiking, geocaching, nature journaling and trail safety. There will be fun learning events for children and adults. THE NATURE center at Sugar Grove provides a great opportunity to watch and learn about amphibians and reptiles housed at the center. Birds feeding outside can be easily seen through the center’s special observation windows. Walking and Hiking Sticks By Jim Bortell something like morel mushrooms to a I ENJOY MAKING walking and hiking sticks. mushroom hunter. If you keep your eyes open, (A “walking” stick comes just above the waist, they are there. whereas a “hiking stick” comes just below the shoulder.) CUT THE BLANK to your wished-for length. I use a small Japanese pull saw. Then clean off MY PERSONAL preference is the hiking stick. the rough and dried bark – some or all. For this I can rest it on my chest and it will not fall I use the standard utility knife, followed by while using binoculars, making notes, etc. I some sandpaper. Then drill a ¼-inch hole in the think the hiking stick “just feels better,” and it is “hand end” and thread through it a 15-inch more helpful when climbing or descending an length of rawhide or rope. I use several finishes incline. If the stick is used consistently, it soon including polyurethane varnish, Tung or Teak becomes a cherished companion for out of oil, colored oil stain, and/or Johnson’s paste doors excursions. wax. THE FIRST TASK is to find a “blank.” The AND JUST A bit of history: “A collector of blank should be not too green and not too old walking sticks is termed a rabologist. Around and dried out. Of course, you don’t want to cut the 17th or 18th century, a stout rigid stick took something standing—although some over from the sword as an essential part of the exceptions apply. My sister, for example, has European gentleman's wardrobe, used a maple stump on her farm that produces nice primarily as a walking stick. In addition to its shoots of just the right thickness. Keep watch value as a decorative accessory, it also in your neighborhood for the pile of branches continued to fulfill some of the function of the at the curb after a wind storm. Blanks are sword as a weapon.”(Wikipedia) 2 Spring 2015 Vol. 4, No. 2 University of Illinois programs with at least five A TIMELY NOTE hours for continuing education. OUR NEXT quarterly meeting is coming up. From our President … Circle July 9 on your calendar and save the date. Stay tuned for Google group messages from me (reminding you of the date and time) ILLINOIS Grand and from the Membership Committee as they Prairie Master plan for our early evening gathering. Naturalists are busy as you read IN OTHER news, Jan Turner has resigned as this article. We are our Treasurer, so if there is someone out there volunteering at that would be interested, contact Reid Young at Parklands the Extension office (309-663-8306). Foundation, Sugar Grove Nature NATIONAL TRAILS DAY is the first Saturday in Center, Merwin June. June 6th will be filled with fun and trails to Nature Preserve, the ISU Horticulture Center, hike. Many members are helping Ann and and at Fugate Woods. We are creating radio Marge to have a successful day. Now if Mother pieces for WGLT, putting together this Nature will cooperate, it will be a great day to be newsletter, getting ready for our third National outdoors! Trails Day event, and so much more. I LOOK FORWARD to seeing you at NTD and THE NEW training class will be here before you at our quarterly meeting. know it. Make sure you contact your friends who may be interested in taking the class and Naturally yours, convince them to get an application in to the Karen Lowery Extension office as soon as possible. The best ambassadors for the program are our current members. Master Naturalists Share AS THE cover quote for this issue of the Favorite VOLUNTEER newsletter states: Experiences “Every blade of grass has its spot on earth whence it draws its life, its strength; and so is TWENTY-FIVE lively second graders crowded man rooted to the land from which he draws his into the “bird room” at Sugar Grove Nature faith together with his life.” Center. It was a beautiful spring day, the kind – Joseph Conrad that beckons kids to be outdoors, but there we were, trapped inside the building seeing nothing So, too, are we IGPMNs rooted to the land from but sparrows at the which we draw our energy for promoting and feeders. “This isn’t good,” I practicing environmentalism. thought as I launched my CONTINUE TO fulfill your commitments to 30 presentation for the hours of volunteerism and 10 hours of annual students. Then a very continuing education. We have so many rich skillful teacher began opportunities to find our “special spot on earth” asking questions, with Wild Ones Programs, Audubon Programs, integrating my “bird talk” into the Metcalf curriculum. ISU programs, IWU programs and Extension Laura Baue Voila! The students were programs. There are several upcoming full day Class of 2012 3 Spring 2015 Vol. 4, No. 2 engaged. I was learning fast so I could lead getting ready, with a long the next two groups of students. Thanks to explanation of the corral this wonderful teacher, all three groups and where the bison would this volunteer had an especially worthwhile unload. He went on and learning adventure that day. This is now one on and the sky opened of my favorite MN volunteer memories. up and torrents of rain came down. The rest of the group was already safely in the car. Rick Tindall ONE OF my favorite volunteer gigs (there are Naturally, I could not find Class of 2011 several) is collecting pumpkins for the fall the car without using my festival at Sugar Grove. It seems the weather cell phone. This is a day I will always remember! must make a mental note to rain that day, which makes for great IN APRIL, a small group fun slipping, sliding and of Master Naturalists balancing yourself while joined volunteers and staff carrying pumpkins. of Parklands Foundation Picking out special pumpkins and looking to start work in the forward to seeing the southwest corner of Marge Ehlers Parklands’ Letcher Class of 2013 different varieties planted each year is a treat! Basin. This area is Douglas Kaufman- currently overgrown I LEARNED to come prepared – lots of large Dickson, Class of 2010 with autumn olive and trash bags (makes a great raincoat, sack for teasel but is being dirty boots, clothes, etc., or to cover your car cleared in preparation for being replanted as an mats), boots, head covering, maybe could oak and hickory woodland. even use newspaper plastic bags for your arms, rubber gloves, small plastic bag for IN THE MIDST of cutting through the very large head cover or shower cap and, of course, old autumn olive, we found a den of coyote pups warm clothes. Even though the experience is (see photo below). This was an unexpected and probably not one most people would enjoy in exciting highlight of the day. Naturally, we left this the rain, it was a fun time, great camaraderie, area right after we took some pictures, and with nary a complaint to be heard. Best of all hoped the mother would find a better place for is seeing the smiles from the kids so proud of her den as we had removed the cover she their decorating! expected to protect the den. I LED a carload of Master Naturalists to the Nachusa Grasslands near Dixon, IL, one Saturday in the fall. They have a large event called "Autumn on the Prairie.” The weather was cloudy. Our group split up and some took truck tours or wagon trips. I chose to go on the Bison tour because Nachusa was in the process of reintroducing bison to the prairie. The guide was rather excited about all the preparations and hard work they had done 4 Spring 2015 Vol. 4, No. 2 THE OL’ ICE HARVEST POND AT FUNKS GROVE Mysteries Unlocked By Orlyn Edge A ROUGHLY 30-minute walk on mostly main trails from the Sugar Grove Nature Center takes one to a narrow tributary (ask for directions at SGNC) that eventually flows into Timber Creek.