Seminar: Cheetah Conservation in Namibia
2018-06-24 15:00 - 16:00 (America/New_York) | Cranberry Mountain WMA, Patterson, NY, 12563, United States
The cheetah is well-known to all for its incredible speed and beauty. Like many of the world’s species of “big cats”, it is under significant threat of extinction. With fewer than 7,500 remaining in the wild, some estimates predict that cheetahs may be extinct within only a few decades. Come to Great Hollow on June 24th to hear cheetah conservation advocate, Paola Bari’s impassioned talk about the work of the Cheetah Conservation Foundation. Founded in Namibia in 1990, the Cheetah Conservation Fund is a global leader in the study and conservation of cheetahs. The vast majority of wild cheetahs live outside of protected areas, where they are losing habitat to an ever-growing human population. Saving this magnificent animal from extinction requires innovative conservation methods that address the welfare of both cheetah and human populations over large landscapes.
Free for members and non-members. No need to register. Please follow signs for the Lecture Room in the side entrance of the Merritt House.
About Paola Bari:
Italian-born Paola Bari is a local artist who draws inspiration from the “big cats”. With her ties to the artist community in the Hudson Valley, Bari co-founded a New York Chapter of the Cheetah Conservation Fund as a way for local artists and conservationists to join forces to help save endangered cheetahs and their habitats.

Full Moon Hike *CANCELED
2018-07-27 20:00 - 22:00 | Cranberry Mountain WMA, Patterson, NY, 12563, United States
**Canceled due to inclement weather**
Enjoy a moonlit, guided hike up to Great Hollow’s waterfall with our naturalist, John Foley. We’ll look and listen for owls and other creatures of the night while taking in the beauty of a forest that’s bathed in moonlight. Please wear sturdy footwear and bring a flashlight or headlamp (please check and make sure the batteries work beforehand!). The hike is weather-dependent and reservations are appreciated. Appropriate for children ages 8 and up. Please, no dogs. Sign up by emailing John at jfoley@greathollow.org. We’ll meet at 8pm in the visitor’s parking area by Great Hollow’s main entrance.

World Turtle Day®
2018-07-28 13:00 - 16:00 | Cranberry Mountain WMA, Patterson, NY, 12563, United States
(Please note Turtle Day will be held indoors at Great Hollow in the event of rain)

Join us for our second annual celebration of World Turtle Day! Come see and touch live 200 pound African tortoises and other exotic species from all over the world, in addition to several turtles that call Connecticut home. There will also be presentations about turtle conservation and captive breeding of endangered species, and lots of fun turtle-themed activities and games for kids. A suggested donation of $5/person or $10/family for this event is greatly appreciated.

Invasive Plant Walk & Talk
2018-08-11 09:00 - 11:30 | Cranberry Mountain WMA, Patterson, NY, 12563, United States
Non-native, invasive plants and animals are one of the leading threats to native biodiversity around the world. They can also negatively affect property values, agricultural productivity, fisheries, outdoor recreation, and ecosystem function, and are estimated to cost the U.S. $120 billion in economic damages and control each year. There are now more than 100 non-native species of plants that have become established and invasive in Connecticut! Can you identify them all? Come to Great Hollow on August 11th to learn how to identify many of these plants, hear about how and when they were introduced to our region, and find out what you can do to be a responsible property owner. Please email John Foley to register. A suggested donation of $5 per person for non-members is appreciated for this event.

School Break Adventure Program
2018-09-06 21:45 | CT
Need something fun and educational for your child to do during the winter school break? Get them off their phones and sign them up for Great Hollow’s winter day camp program! Our program offers children ages 5 to 9 the opportunity to forge lasting connections with the natural world on our 825-acre preserve in New Fairfield. Days will be spent outdoors (with plenty of breaks inside to warm up) exploring Great Hollow’s creeks, forests, meadows, and trails, learning about the critters that make this special place their home. Each full-day session includes science-based environmental education activities, games, hikes, animal encounters, and time for self-directed nature play. Join us for one day, two days, or the entire week!
Members: $45/day for one day or $40/day for multiple days. Non-Members: $50/day for one day or $45/day for multiple days. Please contact our Camp Director, Sena, at sena@greathollow.org or (203) 546-7789 with any questions or to register your child.
Schedule:
Tuesday, December 26: Biomimicry—Nature Got There First!
What do airplanes, Velcro®, and wind turbines all have in common? They are three of the many human inventions that were inspired by nature. Through hands-on activities we’ll learn about biomimicry—an innovative method of problem solving that looks to the natural world for solutions to human challenges—and use that knowledge to inspire inventions of our very own.
Wednesday, December 28: Wild Winter
Join us as we explore the many adaptations that animals have for surviving the winter months. Through games, hand-on activities, and hikes in the woods, we will discover how interesting nature in winter can be.
Thursday, December 29: Winter Survival Challenge!
Could you survive being lost in the wintertime woods? Join us for the day to see if you have what it takes to make your own fire and shelter, read a map, and travel off-trail. Through hands-on activities and cooperative challenges, we’ll practice the art of staying found while learning the necessary steps to take in actual survival situations.
Friday, December 29: Reasons for the Seasons
What causes winter and the other seasons? Where does snow come from and how is it formed? How can snow keep animals (including you!) warm? We’ll spend the day learning the answers to these questions and more through games, hands-on activities and hikes in the woods.

Guided Hike to Cranberry Mountain Wildlife Management Area
2018-09-09 09:00 - 11:30 | Cranberry Mountain WMA, Patterson, NY, 12563, United States
Join Great Hollow’s naturalist, John Foley, for a guided hike to the Cranberry Mountain Wildlife Management Area in Patterson, NY. Cranberry Mountain was initially a 464-acre hunting cooperative and game species habitat management demonstration area, owned and managed by the New York Department of Environmental Conservation. In 2011, federal Highland Conservation Act funding was used to purchase and protect an additional 600 acres of land, enlarging the area to over 1,000 acres. Natural and managed habitats at Cranberry Mountain today include mature forest, fields, shrublands, human-made impoundments, and emergent wetlands. An important species at Cranberry Mountain is the New England cottontail rabbit, which is listed in New York as a Species of Special Concern. Cranberry Mountain falls within a New England Cottontail Focus Area and plans are in place to remove large tracts of mature forest to create the shrubland and young forest habitat that this species requires. We will discuss this controversial plan and the importance of habitat management for the conservation of wildlife.
We will meet directly at the Cranberry Mountain WMA main parking area on Stagecoach Road in Patterson (click here for Google map and directions). Please register by emailing John at jfoley@greathollow.org. A suggested donation of $5 per person for non-members is appreciated for this event. Suitable for children ages 10 and up. No dogs, please.

Challenges and Progress in Tick-borne Disease Prevention
2018-09-16 16:00 - 17:00 | Great Hollow Nature Preserve, 225 CT-37, New Fairfield, CT, 06812, United States
Come down to Great Hollow on September 16th to hear Dr. Rayda Krell, Assistant Professor at Western Connecticut State University, discuss current tick-borne disease prevention research and communication efforts in Fairfield County. She will highlight current trends in Lyme Disease and other tick-borne diseases, and how her work in the Tick-borne Disease Prevention Laboratory at WCSU explores a combination of prevention tactics that has never been tested before. Dr. Krell will also discuss the many challenges to preventing tick-borne diseases, including the importance of understanding human behavior.
The presentation will be held in our Lecture Room, in the rear entrance of the Merritt House. If you are not familiar with our campus, you can find a building directory here.

Wildlife and Landscape Photography of the Galapagos and Ecuadorian Andes
2018-09-22 15:00 - 16:00 | Great Hollow Nature Preserve, 225 CT-37, New Fairfield, CT, 06812, United States
Join us on September 22nd for a presentation by Great Hollow Photographers Club members Justin and Kelly Goodhart who will show spectacular photographs of, and discuss their recent trip to, the Galapagos Islands and Ecuadorian Andes. See images of the unique wildlife and stunning vistas of this beautiful South American region while learning about the technical and artistic aspects of wildlife and landscape photography. Free for Great Hollow members and non-members.
The presentation will be held in our Lecture Room, in the rear entrance of the Merritt House. If you are not familiar with our campus, you can find a building directory here.

Kids' Nature Night: The Wonderful World of Bats!
2018-09-22 17:00 - 20:00 | Great Hollow Nature Preserve, 225 CT-37, New Fairfield, CT, 06812, United States
Parents, take the night off while your kids have a fun-filled time at Great Hollow learning all about bats! We’ll start our evening off by cooking dinner and dessert over a campfire and then head inside to learn all about these fascinating but often misunderstood creatures of the night. We’ll make a replica bat house, complete with resident bats, learn about echolocation and other cool bat behaviors, and then as the sun dips down, go on a walk in search of some bats that make Great Hollow their home.
We will be outside about half of the evening, so please dress your child(ren) accordingly. Dinner will consist of hotdogs or veggie dogs with all the fixings, juice, and s’mores for dessert. Please feel free to send your child with an alternative dinner and/or dessert from home if you would prefer.
Open to children ages 5 to 10 years old
Members: $25 per child. Non-members: $30 per child. Please email our Education Coordinator, Sena at sena@greathollow.org with questions or to register your child(ren). Payment will be accepted by cash, check, or credit card upon drop-off.

Jazz Night on the Patio
2018-09-29 19:30 - 21:30 | Great Hollow Nature Preserve, 225 CT-37, New Fairfield, CT, 06812, United States
Enjoy an intimate night at Great Hollow with live jazz performed by the BnB Jazz Trio, along with complimentary wine and cheese, and s’mores roasted over the fire. The BnB Jazz Trio is a modern working jazz group based out of the Hudson Valley that covers standards by many greats, such as Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Duke Ellington, and Thelonious Monk.
Tickets are a suggested donation of $25 per person to cover our costs. Any additional proceeds go towards furthering Great Hollow’s mission to protect land and wildlife, conduct conservation-driven scientific research, and provide outdoor educational and recreational opportunities for our local communities. Scroll down to purchase your tickets online. Please purchase tickets in advance of the event, as a very limited number will be available at the door the day of. Maximum attendance is only 50 people.
If you have any difficulties with the payment system or have other questions, please contact us at info@greathollow.org.
*Rain date is October 6th.
*Travel Advisory: Due to the road closure on Route 37 near the Sherman/New Fairfield border, guests coming to us from Sherman or other nearby towns to the north should take Route 37 south, turn right on Chapel Hill Road, and then left on Tower Hill Road which turns into Hardscrabble Road and ends at Route 37, just north of Great Hollow’s entrance. Turn right onto Route 37 when you reach the end of Hardscrabble Road and Great Hollow will be on your right. Please note that these are narrow dirt roads in some sections, so please drive carefully. As an alternative, you can take Route 39 south from Sherman into the center of New Fairfield and then head north on Route 37 to Great Hollow.

Kids' Wilderness Adventure Challenge
2018-10-05 08:30 - 15:30 | Great Hollow Nature Preserve, 225 CT-37, New Fairfield, CT, 06812, United States
*Enrollment for this program is now full. Please check our event calendar for other upcoming programs that might be of interest.

Spend your day off from school honing your outdoor adventure skills, and see if you have what it takes to survive in the wild! We’ll learn how to build fires (and possibly cook snacks over them!), travel off-trail, build shelters, learn the basics of map and compass use, and practice the art of staying found. By the end of the day, you’ll be well on your way to being a skilled outdoor adventurer!
Open to children ages 7 to 13.
Please email our Education Coordinator, Sena, at sena@greathollow.org for more information or to sign up.
Non-members: $50. Members (individual level and up): $45. Payment will be accepted by cash or check upon drop-off, but you must register in advance.
Parents: this is a full day, drop-off program. Please provide a lunch, two snacks, plenty of water, and appropriate clothing and footwear for being outside most of the day.

Fall Foliage Hike
2018-10-13 10:00 - 12:00 | Great Hollow Nature Preserve, 225 CT-37, New Fairfield, CT, 06812, United States
Come explore the northern portions of Great Hollow and visit the scenic overlook at the neighboring Michael Ciaiola Conservation Area. Our hike will begin at the trail head for Great Hollow’s purple trail off of Hardscrabble Road and traverse through second-growth forest and thickets of mountain laurel. We’ll then finish at an overlook that provides beautiful views of Great Hollow in fall foliage.
We’ll meet at Great Hollow’s visitor parking area and then carpool up to Hardscrabble Road. The hike will last about an hour and a half and will be moderately difficult in some sections. Leashed dogs are permitted. Please register by emailing John at jfoley@greathollow.org. A suggested donation of $5 per person for non-members is greatly appreciated.

Kids' Nature Night: Zombie Apocalypse!
2018-10-13 17:00 - 20:00 | Great Hollow Nature Preserve, 225 CT-37, New Fairfield, CT, 06812, United States
Did you know that a zombie apocalypse of sorts is underway in the natural world? “Mind controlling” parasites are the culprit and a wide variety of plant and animal species become their unwilling victims every day! After cooking our dinner and s’mores over the campfire, we’ll spend the evening investigating the diverse ways parasites infiltrate their hosts and the methods some species have developed to fight back. We’ll also play a round or two of the super cool game, Humans vs. Zombies!
Open to children ages 5 to 10.
Please email our Education Coordinator, Sena, at sena@greathollow.org for more information or to sign up.
Parents: this is an evening drop-off program and we will be outside about half of the time, so please dress your child(ren) accordingly. Dinner consists of hotdogs or veggie dogs with all the fixings, juice, and s’mores for dessert. Please feel free to send your child with an alternate dinner and/or dessert from home if you would prefer.
Non-members: $25/child. Members (individual level and up): $20/child.
Payment will be accepted by cash or check at the time of drop-off, but you must sign up in advance.

Haunting at the Hollow
2018-10-13 19:00 - 2018-10-27 23:00 | Great Hollow Nature Preserve, 225 CT-37, New Fairfield, CT, 06812, United States
Haunting at the Hollow is back! This year will feature three custom-built haunted houses to scare the pants off you! It officially opens Saturday, October 13th and then runs from 7-11pm every Friday and Saturday night through the 27th. Don’t wait to get your tickets for this haunting experience being run by By Night Productions, the New Fairfield Department of Parks & Recreation, and the New Fairfield Lions Club. Click here for more information and to get your tickets.

Hunter's Moon Hike
2018-10-24 19:30 - 21:00 | Great Hollow Nature Preserve, 225 CT-37, New Fairfield, CT, 06812, United States
Let the kids stay out late on a school night and enjoy a spooky moonlit guided hike up to Great Hollow’s waterfall with our naturalist, John Foley. We will learn the folklore of the Hunter’s Moon and listen for owls and other creatures of the night while taking in the beauty of a forest that’s bathed in full moonlight. Please wear sturdy footwear and bring a flashlight or headlamp (please check and make sure the batteries work beforehand!). The hike is weather-dependent and reservations are appreciated. Appropriate for children ages 8 and up. Please, no dogs. Sign up by emailing John at jfoley@greathollow.org. We’ll meet at 7:30pm in the visitor’s parking area by Great Hollow’s main entrance. A suggested donation of $5 per person for non-members is greatly appreciated.

School Break Adventures: The Hunters & the Hunted
2018-11-06 08:30 - 15:30 | Great Hollow Nature Preserve, 225 CT-37, New Fairfield, CT, 06812, United States
They say nature is red in tooth and claw… for good reason! Let your kids spend their day off from school at Great Hollow, learning all about nature’s awesome predators and their prey. Though hands-on activities and games, we’ll examine the adaptations that predators and prey use against one another and how they escalate over time in what’s known as an “arms race.” We’ll also talk about important plants and animals that make up the food webs within Great Hollow’s ecosystems.
Open to children ages 5 to 10.
Please email our Education Coordinator, Sena, at sena@greathollow.org with questions or to sign up.
Non-members: $45. Members (individual level and up): $40
Payment will be accepted by cash or check at the time of drop-off but you must register in advance.
Parents: This is a full day, drop-off program. Please provide a lunch, two snacks, plenty of water, and appropriate clothing and footwear for being outside most of the day.

Kids' Nature Night: Wildlife CSI
2018-11-17 17:00 - 20:00 | Great Hollow Nature Preserve, 225 CT-37, New Fairfield, CT, 06812, United States
Great Hollow has a mystery to be solved and we need your help to crack the case! We’ll become nature detectives as we learn how to read animal tracks and signs, interpret evidence, and search for hidden clues on our property. Our skills will then be put to the test as we try to solve the mystery! We’ll also have a campfire dinner and s’mores as we discuss the many secrets the forest holds if you just know how and where to look.
Open to children ages 7 to 13.
Please email our Education Coordinator, Sena, at sena@greathollow.org, with questions or to sign up.
Non-members: $25. Members (individual level and up): $20.
Payment will be accepted as cash or check at the time of drop-off, but you must register in advance.
Parents: We will be outside at least half of the evening, so please dress your child(ren) accordingly. Dinner consists of hotdogs or veggie dogs with all the fixings, juice, and s’mores for dessert. Feel free to send your child with an alternative dinner and/or dessert from home if you would prefer.

Weaving & Wine
2018-12-01 18:00 - 21:00 | Great Hollow Nature Preserve, 225 CT-37, New Fairfield, CT, 06812, United States
Adults, join us for a relaxing evening of good conversation and wine while you learn to weave bird feeders and shelters for our feathered friends! There will be several different feeder and shelter projects to choose from, and as the techniques we’ll use are surprisingly simple to learn, no prior weaving experience is necessary.
Bring your own wine, beer, or whatever you like to enjoy while crafting. Glasses will be provided. Light refreshments, snacks, and all weaving supplies will also be provided.
Please contact Sena at sena@greathollow.org with any questions or to register. $15 per person for non-members; $10 per person for members. Space is limited.

Kids' Nature Night: Surviving Winter!
2018-12-08 17:00 - 20:00 | Great Hollow Nature Preserve, 225 CT-37, New Fairfield, CT, 06812, United States
This night is all about how to survive the winter. After cooking our dinner and s’mores over the campfire, we’ll head inside for activities and games that will teach us how local plants and animals have adapted to survive the cold winter months in Connecticut. We’ll also make biodegradable bird feeders that you can hang in your yard to help out the birds that stick around and try to tough out the cold.
Open to children ages 5 to 10.
Please email our Education Coordinator, Sena, with questions or to sign up.
Non-members: $25. Members (individual level and up): $20.
Payment will be accepted by cash or check at the time of drop-off, but you must register in advance.
Parents: This is a drop-off program and we will be outside for at least half of the evening, so please dress your child(ren) accordingly. Dinner consists of hotdogs or veggie dogs with all the fixings, juice, and s’mores for dessert. Please feel free to send your child with an alternative dinner and/or dessert from home if you would prefer.
**Please note that nuts and peanut butter will be used in the making of bird feeders.**

Handmade for the Holidays
2018-12-15 13:00 - 16:00 | Great Hollow Nature Preserve, 225 CT-37, New Fairfield, CT, 06812, United States
Join us on Saturday, December 15th for our second annual Handmade for the Holidays event. Children will be provided with supplies and instruction to make nature-themed holiday gifts for their family and friends. There will be a variety of age-appropriate projects for children to choose from, and each child will leave the event with 2-3 wrapped gifts of their own creation. Hot chocolate will be provided.
Open to children ages 5 to 12.
Parents: This is a drop-off program.
$15 per child (for members and non-members) to help cover the cost of supplies. Please email our Education Coordinator, Sena, at sena@greathollow.org for more information or to register.

Winter Break Adventures Program
2018-12-26 08:30 - 2018-12-28 15:30 | Great Hollow Nature Preserve, 225 CT-37, New Fairfield, CT, 06812, United States
Looking for something fun and educational for your child to do during the winter school break? Sign them up for Great Hollow’s Winter Break Adventures program! In this full-day, drop-off program, we will spend our days learning about the natural world through fun, science-based environmental education activities, games, hikes, and animal encounters. Each day has a special theme intended to teach your child a range of related topics in natural science. You can sign up for one, two, or all three!
Open to children ages 5 to 10. Members: $45/day for one day or $40/day for multiple days. Non-Members: $50/day for one day or $45/day for multiple days. Drop-off is at 8:30 am and pick-up is at 3:30 pm. Please contact our Education Coordinator, Sena, at sena@greathollow.org or (203) 546-7789 with any questions or to register your child.
Schedule:
Wednesday, 12/26 — Nature Myth-busters
Do porcupines launch their quills? Does moss only grow on the north side of trees? Do owl eyes glow in the dark? We’ll separate fact from fiction through a variety of hands-on activities and games, and discover that in the natural world, truth is often far stranger than fiction.
Thursday, 12/27 — Crafty Critters
Join us as we spend the day creating nature art masterpieces of our very own. We’ll let our creative juices flow while exploring Great Hollow’s trails for inspiration, then use a mix of natural materials and items salvaged from the recycling bin to create our works of art.
Friday, 12/28 — Skulls, Skin, and Scat
A great deal can be learned about animals by studying their skulls, skin, and scat. Using these tools, we’ll determine what some of the animals that inhabit Great Hollow eat, how they get their food, how they protect themselves from predators, and how they survive the winter. We’ll even make our own animal track and scat plaster molds to take home!

photo credit: Carol Kaliff

First Day Hike
2019-01-01 10:00 - 11:30 | Great Hollow Nature Preserve, 225 CT-37, New Fairfield, CT, 06812, United States
Start off your year with a hike in the great outdoors! Get outside and enjoy the winter beauty of Great Hollow with our naturalist, John Foley while burning off some of those holiday calories. We will trek along our Red Trail, talking about some of the behavioral adaptations of animals that help them survive the winter, and if snow is present, we’ll look for tracks. We’ll also check out the new bridge above Tuckers Run waterfall that Great Hollow recently had constructed. Don’t forget to bring your binoculars to look for some of our resident winter birds! The hike is open to all ages and is generally easy. Please make sure to dress for the cold and wear appropriate footwear. A suggested donation of $5 per person for non-members is greatly appreciated. No dogs, please. To sign up, email John at jfoley@greathollow.org.

*POSTPONED* Kids' Nature Night: Starry Skies and the Wolf Moon
2019-01-19 17:00 - 20:00 | Great Hollow Nature Preserve, 225 CT-37, New Fairfield, CT, 06812, United States
**This event has been POSTPONED due to weather until Saturday, January 26th, 5-8 pm. **

This latest installment in our Kids’ Nature Night series is all about the night sky! After cooking ourselves some campfire dinner, we’ll turn our attention to the stars above us to learn some of the common constellations of winter. We’ll also learn about this month’s Wolf Moon and the lunar eclipse that will give it the extra distinction of what’s known as a blood moon. We’ll even get to take some of the night sky home with us by making a “constellation jar” craft.
This is a drop-off program. Open to children ages 5-10. We will be outside about half of the evening, so please dress your child(ren) accordingly. Dinner consists of hotdogs or veggie dogs with all the fixings, juice, and a constellation treat (graham crackers, frosting, and M&Ms) for dessert. Please feel free to send your child with an alternative dinner and/or dessert from home if you prefer.
Members: $25 per child. Non-members: $30 per child.
Please contact our Education Coordinator, Sena at sena@greathollow.org with questions or to register.

*CANCELED*Snowshoe Hike
2019-01-26 11:00 - 13:00 | Deer Pond Farm, 57 Wakeman Hill Road, Sherman, CT, 06784, United States
**Unfortunately, this event has been canceled due to poor trail conditions following this week’s heavy rains and snow-melt.**

Great Hollow is teaming up with the Naromi Land Trust and Connecticut Audubon Society to lead a snowshoeing exploration of Deer Pond Farm in Sherman. If we get skunked and there’s no snow, we’ll simply turn the program into a guided hike! This is a family-friendly event that is open to all levels, including beginners. Come learn about each of these conservation organizations and how to enjoy the outdoors in winter. Registration with Connecticut Audubon is required in advance of the event. Please click here or call them at (860) 799-4074 to sign up. Free for members of Connecticut Audubon; $5 per person for non-members. All children under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.
Allow for an average of two hours and 1.5 -2 miles of hiking. What to bring: snowshoes, water bottle, walking stick/poles, and a warm hat, gloves, and socks.

Travelogue Author Talk and Book Signing: Robert McWilliams
2019-01-26 14:30 - 16:30 | Great Hollow Nature Preserve, 225 CT-37, New Fairfield, CT, 06812, United States

Nature Up Close: Macro-photography Made Easy
2019-01-27 14:00 - 15:00 | Great Hollow Nature Preserve, 225 CT-37, New Fairfield, CT, 06812, United States
Join us for this introduction to macro-photography workshop by professional nature photographer and writer, Jeremy Wolff. Mr. Wolff creates stunning macro images of nature with a point-and-shoot camera and standard iPhoto software. In this workshop he will share his methods for using the camera to see beyond what the naked eye can see. The workshop will begin in the field, looking for subjects and taking pictures. Then we will spend some time indoors reviewing these images on a computer and demonstrating simple cropping and enhancing techniques. Bring your camera and macro lens if you have one, but you can really use any kind of camera.
Almost everything in nature can be fascinating if we attend to it closely. The tools of digital photography allow us to move farther in and discover a world that is barely visible. You don’t have to roam far to find sights of magic and beauty. Seeing comes before shooting: photography is a reason for being in beautiful places at beautiful times, for looking closely and carefully.
Jeremy Wolff’s writing and photography have appeared in Time, Travel & Leisure, The New York Times Magazine, and The New Yorker. He has created photo-collage art for the Spin Doctors, Soul Asylum, They Might Be Giants, and the Knitting Factory, covers for Newsweek and Fortune, and TV commercials for Coca-Cola and Weber Grills. He is currently the owner of the Front Street Gallery in Patterson, New York.
Open to total beginners on up to experts. Free for members; a suggested donation of $5 per person for non-members is greatly appreciated. No advanced registration is required.

Recycled Jewelry-making for Teens & Tweens
2019-02-02 13:00 - 16:00 | Great Hollow Nature Preserve, 225 CT-37, New Fairfield, CT, 06812, United States
Come down to Great Hollow to learn how to make beautiful pieces of jewelry out of materials right from the recycling bin! We’ll learn how to turn cans, bottles, magazines, cardboard, containers, and other recycled materials into cool pieces of wearable art. Jewelry-making supplies (clasps, beads, hooks, tools, etc.) will be provided, along with the contents of our recycling bin. Parents, this is a drop-off program, open to children ages 8-16.
$10/child for members; $15/child for non-members. Please email our Education Coordinator, Sena at sena@greathollow.org to register.

Winter Tree ID Workshop
2019-02-09 11:00 - 12:00 | Great Hollow Nature Preserve, 225 CT-37, New Fairfield, CT, 06812, United States
Identifying trees by their leaves can be easy, but how do you tell one species from another during the 6 months that trees in Connecticut have no leaves? Come down to Great Hollow on Sunday, February 9th when our naturalist, John Foley, will teach some basic skills for identifying trees during the winter by looking at subtle details in their bark and branch structure. There will also be a discussion of the many emerging diseases that trees in our region now face. We will be hiking some of Great Hollow’s trails, so please wear appropriate footwear and dress warmly. Meet in the visitor’s parking area by the main entrance. A suggested donation of $5 per person for non-members is appreciated. Please sign up in advance by emailing John at jfoley@greathollow.org.

Kids' Nature Club
2019-02-09 13:00 - 2019-03-23 16:00 | Great Hollow Nature Preserve, 225 CT-37, New Fairfield, CT, 06812, United States
Do you love being outside, having adventures, and learning about nature? Do you want to hang out with other kids who love those things too? If so, Great Hollow’s Kids’ Nature Club is for you! Our first meeting will be spent getting to know each other, decorating our nature journals and making pouches for them, learning the basics of nature journaling, coming up with a club name, and discussing the things we want to do as a club. The activities for future meetings will be determined by member interest, though each meeting will have time for self-directed outdoor play.
Parents, please send your child with a snack and water bottle, clothes and shoes that can get wet and dirty, and weather-appropriate outerwear. This is a drop-off program, open to children ages 8-12.
$10/child/session for members, $15 for non-members.
Schedule: February 9 and 23, March 9 and 23. 1-4pm.
Please email our Education Coordinator, Sena, at sena@greathollow.org for more information or to register. You can sign up for however many sessions you like.

Kids' Nature Night: Solve it with STEM!
2019-02-16 17:00 - 20:00 | Great Hollow Nature Preserve, 225 CT-37, New Fairfield, CT, 06812, United States
Calling all scientists! Spend the evening completing increasingly complex STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) challenges related to the natural world. We’ll learn and then practice the scientific method and engineering design process as we tackle challenges such as building a bird nest that can protect a falling egg; designing and building a stick tower that can hold a fist-sized rock on top; or designing a shelter to protect a UV-sensitive animal from light.
We will be outside about a third of the evening, so please dress your child(ren) accordingly. Campfire dinner before the activities consists of hotdogs or veggie dogs with all the fixings, juice, and s’mores. Please feel free to send your child with a dinner and/or dessert from home if you prefer.
This is a drop-off program, open to children ages 5-10.
$25/child for members; $30/child for non-members.
Please email our Education Coordinator, Sena, at sena@greathollow.org for more information or to register.
