Hitchcock Center for the Environment

Nature Summer Camp: Mountains & Valleys
2018-08-15 08:30 - 15:00, 2018-08-14 08:30 - 15:00, 2018-08-13 08:30 - 15:00 (America/New_York) | Hitchcock Center for the Environment, 845 West Street, Amherst, MA, 01002
Discover the stories in the stones around us! We live in a geologically unique area, and the landscape provides intriguing clues to the past. We will find evidence of shifting plate tectonics, earthquakes, volcanoes, glaciers, and the power of water. We will hike up mountains, collect rocks, and explore the rivers that have cut through the land all in the midst of stories, songs, art and outdoor play. Join us for this fun filled educational week.

August 13-17 (one week)
Members $295/Non-members $330

Nature All Year Study Club: Explore Hawley Bog
2018-08-12 08:30 - 17:00
Hitchcock Center Naturalist Ted Watt will lead a trip to explore the botany and natural history of the Hawley Bog, a fine example of a northern sphagnum bog. The Sphagnum moss mat is made up of consolidated peat 30 feet thick that floats on the open water of a deep glacial depression and supports an unusual community of plants. We will look for orchids and for different species of insect-eating plants.
Register here.
For those who would like to carpool or caravan, we will meet at 8:30am at the Big Y parking lot in Greenfield at the intersection of Route 91 and Route 2; from there we will carpool west on Route 2 to Charlemont and then up into the hills of east Hawley to the bog.
For those who would like to meet at the bog, we will be starting there just after 9am.
We will be walking on solid ground and on a boardwalk, that is quite narrow in places, so everyday footwear is fine. Bring bug spray and sunscreen. The exposed bog mat can be very hot in the sun. Bring binoculars. We will aim to be back in Greenfield by noon.
This program is a part of an in-depth natural history course for naturalists and citizen scientists. Each month, in our series of nature explorations with different local naturalists, we explore a focused, seasonal, natural history topic. We’ll look at nature in new ways, from broad habitat perspectives to close details of individual species. Over the course of the year we’ll visit a variety of natural habitats in the greater Pioneer Valley area. Identification skills, ecological connections, adaptations, and life cycles of organisms will be the focus of our observations. Bring your curiosity and observation skills and be prepared to spend time outdoors. Dress for the weather as we rarely cancel due to inclement weather. Bring binoculars and a hand lens, water and snacks if you would like. Carpooling to more distant locations will be encouraged. Note: A change has been made to this program since it was originally published. The program will meet March-December, 2018.
Sundays once per month, 9am-12pm (some class times may vary depending on topics)
Members: $250/Non-members: $300 for the full course OR $30 per class
Register here

Nature Summer Camp: Biologists in Training
2018-08-10 08:30 - 15:00, 2018-08-09 08:30 - 15:00, 2018-08-08 08:30 - 15:00, 2018-08-06 08:30 - 15:00, 2018-08-03 08:30 - 15:00, 2018-08-02 08:30 - 15:00, 2018-08-01 08:30 - 15:00, 2018-07-31 08:30 - 15:00 and 1 more date | Hitchcock Center for the Environment, 845 West Street, Amherst, MA, 01002
In this newly evolved camp session, we will become science detectives, learning more about the life all around us. We will explore life in all sorts of ways – venturing into different of habitats and encountering creatures of different shapes and sizes. We will discover what is underfoot, in the water, or growing right before our eyes. With games, experiments, hikes and special visitors we will have close encounters with different types of living creatures and learn how they survive and thrive.

July 30-August 10 (two weeks)
Members $535/Non-members $595

Nature Summer Camp: Biologists in Training
2018-08-07 08:30 - 15:00

Nature Summer Camp: Ew, That's Gross!
2018-07-27 08:30 - 15:00, 2018-07-26 08:30 - 15:00, 2018-07-25 08:30 - 15:00, 2018-07-24 08:30 - 15:00, 2018-07-23 08:30 - 15:00 | Hitchcock Center for the Environment, 845 West Street, Amherst, MA, 01002
Do you love bugs, snakes and slugs? Do you love digging in the dirt? Then this is the session for you! During this week we’ll make slime, play in the mud and discover the insects and other creatures that live in the soil. We’ll find out who’s who in the creepy crawly world and learn about the important jobs these animals have in their environment as decomposers, predators and food for other animals. Hands-on animal observation, hikes and crafts are all part of the fun! There will be no field trips this week.

July 23-27 (one week)
Members $295/Non-members $330

Repair Public: Fixery through Community
2018-07-22 12:00 - 15:30 | Hitchcock Center for the Environment, 845 West Street, Amherst, MA, 01002
Repair Public is an exercise in community resourcefulness. The basic idea is to encourage people to learn how and/or where to fix broken items instead of tossing them into a landfill and buying replacements. The participants and facilitators are local community members just like you. You bring a broken item that you want help repairing as well as a willingness to try to fix it. There will be repair facilitators on-hand to help you figure out how to fix your treasure, each with one or more areas of specialty. We’ll have various tools available for use, as well as some basic supplies like screws, tape, glue, wire nuts, needles, threads, and probably appliance cord with some plug-ends. With all these ingredients, we intend to repair whatever you decide to bring in – To learn more https://repairpublic.org/.
Sunday, April 22, 12-3:30pm
Sunday, July 22, 12-3:30pm
Donations and registration appreciated

Nature All Year Study Club: Turtles
2018-07-22 09:00 - 12:00 | Fieldtrip Location
Join us for our fifth year of offering an in-depth natural history course for naturalists and citizen scientists. Each month, in our series of nature explorations with different local naturalists, we explore a focused, seasonal, natural history topic. We’ll look at nature in new ways, from broad habitat perspectives to close details of individual species. Over the course of the year we’ll visit a variety of natural habitats in the greater Pioneer Valley area. Identification skills, ecological connections, adaptations, and life cycles of organisms will be the focus of our observations. Bring your curiosity and observation skills and be prepared to spend time outdoors. Dress for the weather as we rarely cancel due to inclement weather. Bring binoculars and a hand lens, water and snacks if you would like. Carpooling to more distant locations will be encouraged. Note: A change has been made to this program since it was originally published. The program will meet March-December, 2018.
Sundays once per month, 9am-12pm (some class times may vary depending on topics)
Members: $250/Non-members: $300 for the full course OR $30 per class
Register here

Nature Summer Camp: Leadership Training
2018-07-20 08:30 - 15:00, 2018-07-19 08:30 - 15:00, 2018-07-18 08:30 - 15:00, 2018-07-17 08:30 - 15:00, 2018-07-16 08:30 - 15:00 | Hitchcock Center for the Environment, 845 West Street, Amherst, MA, 01002
Leadership Training Camp (LTC) has been evolving over the years to continue to meet the growing needs of older and returning campers. Think of LTC as the next step in Hitchcock Camps, where new leaders are developing their skills as naturalists, activity leaders, outdoorspeople, and community members. LTC is designed both for those who want to be a Counselor-in-Training or Junior Counselor at Hitchcock or other camps, and those who just want a chance to develop leadership skills that can apply to school and in life. We will continue to incorporate favorite games, challenges, and activities from years past, and to add in new ones. LTC will involve a number of field trips, such as rock climbing, a ropes course, and hiking, as well as an overnight camping experience. While LTC is designed to be active, we also take time to talk about our experiences and how they help us to become better leaders. We’ll practice what we learn with each other and younger campers. New this year will be what we’re calling “spirals.” The spirals represent how often you have been an LTC camper (spiral 1 for 1st year campers, spiral 2, for 2nd year campers, etc.) and will hold slightly different expectations/skills at each spiral. LTC is designed for all Hitchcock campers aged 12-14 (entering 7th, 8th, and 9th grades) looking to learn what it takes to lead others in the outdoors, and we’ll have lots of fun in the process!
July 9-20 (two weeks)
Members $635/Non-members$695

Nature Summer Camp: Patterns in Nature
2018-07-20 08:30 - 15:00, 2018-07-19 08:30 - 15:00, 2018-07-18 08:30 - 15:00, 2018-07-17 08:30 - 15:00 | Hitchcock Center for the Environment, 845 West Street, Amherst, MA, 01002
From chipmunk stripes to ladybug spots, spiral seashells to sunflowers, patterns are everywhere you look in nature. In this camp session we will discover what makes a pattern and find out how these designs can help animals, plants and people. We’ll explore animal patterns such as stripes, spots, camouflage and more subtle designs such as branching, waves, wrinkles and packing. Each day will include outdoor adventures and creating art projects and campers will become expert pattern pioneers and savvy design detectives.

July 9-20 (two weeks)
Members $535/Non-members $595
