Friday

3-4 PM

Doors Open for Drop-Offs and Set Up

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4-6 PM

• Public can enter and view silent auction items, exhibits, and vendor booths.

• West Monona High School - Doors Open at 4PM

• Food Truck - JUGGs BBQ, Silent Auction Bidding, Vendors, 500 Million Years of Life in Iowa Display

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6-8:30 PM

Children's Programs

• Who Am I? Animals of the Loess Hills – Amy McDermott, Onawa Public Library

• The Web of Life – Northwest Iowa Sierra Club
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6 PM

Welcome to this year's seminar! Thank you for joining us and for your continued support!

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6:10 PM

Loess Hills Organizations Updates

• The Nature Conservancy - Amy Crouch

• Iowa DNR Wildlife Update and G.R.A.S.S. - Megann Schmidt

• Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation – Kody Wohlers

• Iowa DNR Private Lands Forestry - Sarah Bell

• Golden Hills RC&D – Lance Brisbois

• Loess Hills Alliance – Rich Pope

7:15 PM

• Ending Announcements and Adjourn

• Visit Vendors, Ask Questions to Agencies, Bid on Silent Auction Items

8:00 PM

Head to the Campsite
Parents, please collect your children from our children’s programming at this time.

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8:30 - 10 PM

• Campfire Music - Kevin Harrington

• Nighttime Geocaching – Cheryl Bunstma

• Campfire and S’mores - Shayne Bennet

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11 PM

Campsite Quiet Hours Begin

LHPS offerings resume on Saturday morning at 6 AM.

Saturday

6-7 AM

• Birding Walk for All Ages - Mark, Ed, and Lee Brogie

• Meet at the campground parking lot for a short bird walk. Some binoculars are provided; personal binoculars are welcome.

7-8 AM

• Yoga - Melissa Beerman, Enjoy a morning yoga class in the heart of the Loess Hills.

• Breakfast

• Free Will Donation. Provided in part by Graceful Grind Coffeehouse.

8:15-10:10 AM

Breakout Session 1

• Bird Tour by Auto - Sessions 1 & 2 (with option to return to camp at 10:15 AM) - Ed, Mark, & Lee Brogie [short walk/driving, hands on, all ages]

• Prairie Photography - Don Poggensee [short walk, hands on, older students and adults]

• Loess Hills Bryophytes - Bill Zales [short walk, youth, older students and adults]

• Woody Plants for Beginners – Brian Hazelett [short walk, all ages]

• Sloping Towards Natives: A local Small-scale Pollinator Plot – Doug Chafa [drive, short walk, older students and adults]

• Organic Painting – Katherine Koskovich [campsite, hands on, all ages (young children accompanied by adult)]

• Conservation, Collages, and Creative Writing - Amie Adams [campsite, youth, older students, and adults]

• Who’s Your Neighbor? A Plant’s-Eye View of the Prairie – Deb Lewis and Rich Pope [short walk, youth, older students and adults]

• Building and Maintaining Sustainable Trails in the Loess Hills – Matt Moles [campsite, older students and adults]

• Bug Safari – Mariah Myers and Woodbury CCB Intern [short walk, hands on, all ages/kid friendly]

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10:15 AM - 12:10 PM

Breakout Session 2

• Bird Tour by Auto - Sessions 1 & 2 (with option to return to camp at 10:15 AM) - Ed, Mark, & Lee Brogie [short walk/driving, hands on, all ages]

• An Open Forum on Conservation Directions - Larry Grill [campsite, older students and adults]

• Soils of the Loess Hills – Rich Pope [drive/short walk/campsite, older students and adults]

• Digital Images - Don Poggensee [campsite, youth/older students and adults]

• Loess Hills Mammals - Bill Zales [campsite, hands on, kid friendly/all ages]

• Nature Scavenger Hunt - Dr. Tom Rosburg and Averie Miller [short walk, hands on, all ages/kid friendly]

• Writing Down the Outdoors - Matt Mason [short walk, hands on, older students and adults]

• Do You Believe in Fairies? – Katie Byerly [campsite, all ages/kid friendly]

• Mann Country School Day – Judy Ehlers (Please sign up ahead of time online) [drive/short walk, hands on, youth, older students and adults] Note: Presenter will lead caravan from seminar site.

• Block Printing is Fun - Anna Stoysich [campsite, hands on, all ages]

• Turtles of Iowa Program – Terry VanDeWalle and Marlene Ehresman [campsite, youth, older students and adults]

12:10-1:10 PM

• Lunch

• Provided by Lidderdale Country Store Catering

1:15-4 PM

Breakout Session 3​

• Kayaking a Loess Hills Pond (Madigan Pond) – Andrea Porter [drive/short walk, hands on, all ages]

• Fishing Clinic (Madigan Pond) – Stacey Bragg, John McAndrews, Mike Sucik [drive/short walk, hands on, all ages]

• Archery – Butch Bowman [campsite, hands on, youth/older students and adults]

• Prairie Flora of the Loess Hills - Dr. Tom Rosburg [long walk, hands on, older students and adults]

• South Jordan Cemetery (Drive to Cemetery) – Judy Ehlers [drive/short walk, older students and adults] Note: Presenter will lead caravan from seminar site.

• Milkweed Seed Balls – Nancy Crews [campsite, all ages, hands on]

• Snakes of the Loess Hills – Marlene Ehresman, Terry VanDeWalle, Doug Chafa [campsite, all ages]

• Half Session 1: 1:15-2:45PM: Whoo’s There? - Connie Betts [campsite, hands on, kid friendly/all ages]

• Half Session 2: 2:45PM-4PM: Birds and Binoculars – Victoria Devos [short hike, hands on, kid friendly]

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4:00 PM

• Travel for Dinner

• Dinner at the West Monona High School

4:30-6 PM

• Dinner provided by Lidderdale Country Store. Take time to view exhibits, 500 Million Years of Life in Iowa Display, and vendor booths and to bid on items in our silent auction to support LHPS. Silent Auction Bidding ends at 6PM, be sure to pay and pick up items before leaving by 8PM.

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6-8:30 PM

• Children's Programs

• Children’s Programing – Commons Area

• 6PM-7PM: Children’s Session - Harrison County Naturalist Connie Betts

• 7PM-8PM: Monarchs and Milkweed - Cheryl and John Bunstma

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6 PM

• Welcome - Auditorium

6:05-6:45 PM

• Keynote Presentation: Bats of Iowa - Dr. Russ Benedict

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6:45-7:15 PM

• Break

• Final Bidding on Silent Auction Items (Auction Ends at 7:10PM), Visit Exhibits, Vendor Tables, and Restrooms

7:15-8:00 PM

• Keynote: This Land is their Land - Dr. Chris Jones Join Dr. Chris Jones for a presentation with a focus on water quality within the context of Iowa's historical agriculture production systems and how the state can get better outcomes in the future. 

8:00 PM

• 8PM - Depart for Mist Netting - Loess Hills Prairie Seminar Campsite

• Parents, please collect your children from our Children’s Programming at this time.

8:30 - 10 PM

• Mist Netting with Dr. Benedict
  Join Dr. Benedict for a follow up program to his Keynote Address as he demonstrates techniques for collecting bats for study. We will meet at the Loess Hills Prairie Seminar Campsite and then walk to the mist netting location.

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9:30 PM

• Campsite Activities - Campfire and Smore’s - Shayne Bennet

11 PM

Campsite Quiet Hours Begin
LHPS offerings will resume on Sunday at 6 AM.

Sunday

6-7 AM

• Birding Walk for All Ages - Mark, Ed, and Lee Brogie Meet at the campground parking lot for a short bird walk. Some binoculars are provided.

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7-8 AM

• Breakfast Free Will Donation. Provided in part by Graceful Grind Coffeehouse. Menu information available under the Meals tab

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8:15-10:10 AM

Breakout Session 4

• Prairie Ecology - Dr. Tom Rosburg [short walk, older students and adults]

• Dam Beavers! Ecology and Effects of the Beaver – Doug Chafa [campsite, all ages]

• Slope, Rise, Smoke, Wise: A Reading of New Work by Loess Hills Writers – Kelly Madigan, Kathy Timperley, Robert Bauer, Jane Daniel, Dani Johnson, Megan Renshaw, Bridget Lillethorup, Todd Robinson, Luke O’Reilly, Jeff Olson  [campsite, older students and adults]

• We Are the Buffalo, and the Buffalo are Us! – Renee Sans Souci [campsite, hands on, all ages]

• Tourin’ around Turin (Bike Ride) – Lance Brisbois [bike ride, hands on, older students and adults]

• Insect Safari – Andrea Porter [ short walk, all ages, kid friendly]

• Why would a farmer even care about prairie? Helpful tips for having hard conversations about conservation. - Tim Youngquist (campsite, older students and adults)

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10:30-11:30 AM

• SOAR Raptor Program – Kay Neumann
  Join Kay at this year's S.O.A.R. Raptor Program and meet her birds, learn about bird-of-prey behavior, and
  learn about some of the raptors that call the Loess Hills home. There is a possibility S.O.A.R. will bring a raptor to release at the seminar, but this is subject to the availability of a suitable raptor in good health needing release at the time.

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11:30-11:45AM

• End of Seminar Programming Final Thank you and Ending Announcement