News and Notes from the LaGrange County Department of Parks and Recreation Spring 2019

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1 Thirteen Lines News and Notes from the LaGrange County Department of Parks and Recreation Spring 2019 John Muir, a great Naturalist and writer, passionately encouraged people to discover nature. In Our National Parks, he expressed that if you choose to wander in parks, then: The time will not be taken from the sum of your life. Instead of shortening, it will indefinitely lengthen it and make you truly immortal. Nevermore will time seem short or long, and cares will never again fall heavily on you, but gently and kindly as gifts from heaven. (17,19) Inside Make - n - Take Crafts... 2 Breakfast with the Birds... 2 Maple Syrup Days... 3 Sap Run & Syrup Stroll... 3 Feb & March Programs... 4 April Programs... 5 Quilt Class... 5 This spring, I cordially invite you to Maple Wood Nature Center. We have something for everyone. Enjoy a craft with your children, stretch your legs and listen for bird songs, get scrappy at quilt class, or devour all the maple syrup and pancakes you can eat! Maple Wood Nature Center will be closed April 21, Easter Sunday. LaGrange County Offices will be closed April 19, Good Friday. Indiana s Free Fishing Days are April 20, May 18, and June 1-2. Rogers is June 29. I promise that if you explore your LaGrange County Parks, you ll find that John Muir was right. The time you spend with nature will only add to your life. I look forward to meeting each of you. Cheers, Leslie A. Arnold, Naturalist larnold@lagrangecounty.org 0505W 700S, Wolcottville, IN * (260) *

2 Make - n - Take at Maple Wood Second Saturdays, 10:00am and 2:00pm February 9: Pinecone birdfeeders March 9: Handprint Birds April 13: Homemade Suet Feeders Easy nature crafts for the entire family! Free of charge (donations appreciated). These crafts are peanut free! Donations needed for Maple Wood Bird Viewing: Shepherd s Hooks Bird Feed and Suet Cakes Large Dry Erase Board to record feeder visitors Thank you! Monthly Programs Breakfast with the Birds at Maple Wood 8:30-10:00am Doughnuts, Naturalist Talk, & Birding! February 20: Glacier in a Jug We ll share the results of our Maple Wood Backyard Bird Count, then go back in time to see how glaciers shaped Northern Indiana. The Naturalist will have two different miniature glacier experiments to enjoy. March 20: Maple Syrup Recipes Do you have a favorite recipe that uses maple syrup? Bring it to share! Come and enjoy fresh treats and take home some recipes! The Naturalist will be baking for guests during the program. April 17: Frog Call Orchestra Using everyday objects from around the house, we ll create a frog call orchestra. This is fun for all ages and a great way to learn Indiana frog calls. Folk Jams 1:30-5:00pm Folk Jam music sessions are hosted the 4th Sunday of each month. Jams are mostly folk, country, and bluegrass music, with other styles occasionally added. February 24 March 24 April 28 For more information, Contact Erv Troyer, at , reo43@aol.com, or Maple Wood at

3 Maple Syrup Days, March 16 & 17, 7:00-3:00 South Milford Lions all you can eat pancakes and sausage 7:00-2:30 Sugar Shack tours run from 8:00-3:00 The Roz Puppets and Guy Thompson Puppet Shows return! Maple syrup themed children s stories will alternate with shows. 8:00-3:00 Horse drawn wagon rides into the Sugar Bush, 8:00-3:00 Maple kettle corn, maple cotton candy, games, backyard sugar making demonstrations Maple syrup and maple syrup candies for sale Dress warmly to enjoy all that Maple Syrup Days offers! Special Events Caption describing picture or graphic Sap Run & Syrup Stroll 5K Fun Run and 1 Mile Stroll Saturday, March 9, 2019 Start Time: 10:00 a.m. Where: Maple Wood Nature Center Walkers and runners of all skill levels are welcome! The course is a limestone park trail and paved road. Printable registration forms and links to online registration can be found on the Facebook page: Friends of LaGrange County Parks Goody bags include an event stocking cap, syrup, and a ticket to the all-you-can eat pancake and sausage meal at Maple Syrup Days, March 16 & 17! $30 for full goody bag. $15 for run and meal ticket only. 3 Proceeds will go to LaGrange County Parks Department. Thank you generous community members.

4 Talks & Walks February Sunday, 10th: Skull Detectives Touch the skulls and teeth of different Indiana mammals and learn what s for dinner! We ll discover the differences between an herbivore, omnivore, and carnivore. This is hands-on fun for the whole family. Children can make a food web to take home. Free Saturday, 16th: Great Backyard Bird Count 10:00am and 2:00pm Join bird lovers of all ages across the world for an easy, fun bird count. We ll keep track of the numbers and kinds of birds that visit the feeders at Maple Wood, and contribute our list to the national database. This is a great way to learn the names of common backyard birds while staying warm and dry. Meet fellow birders and help scientists study bird populations. Each count must last 15 minutes. We ll count for no longer than one hour each time. Free March Saturday, 2nd: Dr. Seuss Birthday Origami Fish Celebrate Dr. Seuss Birthday! We ll read One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish and make colorful origami fish to take home. This craft is easy for even the smallest of hands. There is no fee. Sunday, 10th: Maple Tree Cookies We ll make a cross-section of a Maple Tree using paper plates. This is a great way to learn the basic parts of a tree and how sap is made. We ll take a short walk outside to look at the bark of a Maple Tree and hopefully see some sap water. Free 4 Please inform us if you have difficulty accessing any facilities or programs. We are glad to accommodate you and want to enhance your experience in the parks.

5 Talks & Walks April Saturday, 6th: Garlic Mustard Hunt 10:00am, 1 hour We ll hit the trails to look for invasive garlic mustard to pull! If we don t see any, then we ll enjoy a walk in the woods to look for flowers and birds. Saturday, 20th: Spring Wildflower Walk Let s see what s blooming! Join the Naturalist to look at wildflowers! Saturday, 27th: Spring Wildflower Walk 10:00am, 1 hour Let s see what s blooming! Join the Naturalist for an easy stroll to look at wildflowers! Spring Quilt Classes at Maple Wood, 9:00am - 3:00pm February 16 & April 13 Please bring a dish to share for the potluck lunch. February Quilt Class: The project is called Prairie Grass. It can be done in one color or it is a great scrappy quilt. Instructions for several sizes are available. April Quilt Class: The project is called Lucky Stars. This can be done scrappy or with a jelly roll. You can make it traditional or with a few colors. Registration is required. Instructions are provided upon registration. To register, call the Park Office, , or lagrangecountyparks@yahoo.com. Fee is $25 ($5 is given back to Parks) For more information, contact the instructors Julia Wolheter, or Ira Johnson,

6 LaGrange County Parks 0505 W 700 S Wolcottville, IN (260) lagrangecountyparks@yahoo.com Park Hours: 8:00am Sunset Park Office Hours: Monday-Friday 8:00am-Noon, 12:30-3:30pm Like us on Facebook! Maple Wood Nature Center 4550 E 100 S, LaGrange, IN, (260) Hours: Wednesday Saturday Sunday (Closed Sundays in July) 8:00a 4:00p 9:00a 5:00p 1:00p 5:00p To Receive Thirteen Lines Newsletter as an . Send us an with Thirteen Lines or e-news in the subject. It is also available for download at lagrangecountyparks.org. LaGrange County Board of Parks and Recreation Dr. John Egli, President Robert Arnold, Vice President Ardala Hepler, Secretary Mark Thompson Julia Wolheter Paul Yoder PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID LAGRANGE, IN PERMIT NO W 700 S Wolcottville, IN 46795