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Saturday Field Sessions & Events

Saturday, June 1, 2024 | 6 AM-10 PM

The address for our outdoor seminar site is:

Loess Hills Wildlife Management Area

178th St. & Oak Ave

Castana, IA

(On Google Maps, type in "Loess Hills Prairie Seminar Campsite")

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For our indoor events this evening, please come to:

West Monona High School

1314 15th Street

Onawa, IA 51040

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Please click the button below for more information about workshop facilitators/speakers and in-depth event descriptions.

Schedule

Please check back regularly, this schedule is still being edited, but is the most up to date available.

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 welcome.

7-8 AM

Yoga - Theresa Dehn

Enjoy a morning yoga class in the heart of the Loess Hills.

7-8 AM

Breakfast

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

8:15-10:10 AM

Breakout Session 1

  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]

  2. Woody Plants for Beginners - Brian Hazlett [short walk, all ages]

  3. Organic Painting - Katherine Koskovich [Camp, all ages (Young Children should be accompanied by an adult), Hands on]

  4. Nature Awareness & the Art of Mentoring - Chuck Hopp [campsite & short walk, all ages/kid-friendly, hands on]

  5. Prairie Photography - Don Poggensee [short walk, hands on, children over 12 & adults]

  6. Meditative Stitching on the Prairie - Karen Grimes - [Camp, adult and children over 12, hands on]

  7. Community Science in Iowa - Stephanie Shepard and Anita Westphal (Camp, Older Students and Adults)

  8. Loess Hills Habitats and Birds: How Does Management Impact Species Composition? - Anna Buckardt Thomas and Doug Chafa (Long walk, hands on, all ages)

  9. Private lands Protection and Management in the Loess Hills - Kody Wohlers and Megan Schmidt

  10. In the Woods - Matt Mason - (Older students and Adults, Camp)

  11. What is Rewilding and How Could It be Done in the Loess Hills? - David Hoferer - (Camp, Older Students and Adults)
     

10:15 AM - 12:10 PM

Breakout Session 2

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

  2.  Prairie reconstruction within Iowa’s corn and soybean fields: how to achieve positive outcomes for the environment & the economy - Tim Youngquist - (Camp, Adults and older students)

  3. Nature Scavenger Hunt for Kids - Dr. Tom Rosburg & Averie Miller [short walk, hands on, all ages]

  4. Who’s Your Neighbor? A Plant’s-Eye View of the Prairie - Deb Lewis [short walk, hands on, youth/older students & adults]

  5. Digital Images - Don Poggensee [campsite, youth/older students & adults]

  6. Primitive Hunting Tools: Atlatl - Shayne Bennett [campsite, hands on, youth/older students & adults]

  7. Mann Country School Experience - Judy Ehlers [drive/short walk, hands on] NOTE: Presenter will lead caravan from seminar site.

  8. Iowa Bumble Bee Atlas Field Training - Stephanie Shepard and Bee Miller (Camp, Older Students and Adults)

  9. Insect Expedition - Anita Westphal - (Short walk, All Ages, Hands On)

  10. Nature Explorers - Sunday Ford - (short walk, all ages, hands on) (Kid Friendly)

  11. Writing Down the Outdoors - Matt Mason - (short walk, adults and older students, hands on)

  12. Restorative Recreation: exploring intersections between Nature Deficit Disorder, Nature Prescription, Avocation, and Creation Care to Human and Ecosystem Health - Patrick Swanson - (Camp, Older students and Adults)

  13. Interrelationships in the Loess Hills - Anna Stoysich - (all ages, a short walk, hands on) 

12:10-1:10 PM

Lunch

Provided by Lidderdale Country Store Catering

1:15-4 PM

Breakout Session 3

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  1. ​Kayaking and Fishing in the Loess Hills (Madigan Pond) - Andrea Porter, Katie Hoeppner, IA DNR Seasonal Officer and/or Josh Schaben [all ages, drive and short walk, hands on]

  2. Introduction to Archery - Butch Bowman [camp, youth, older students and adults, hands on]

  3. Half Session 1:15PM-2:45PM Hog Confinements and Human Health - Larry Stone [Camp, Older students and Adults]

  4. Half Session 1:15PM-2:45PM Writing in the Spirit of Iowa’s Naturalists - Amie Adams - [short walk, adults and older students]

  5. Half Session 1:15PM-2:45PM Whooo’s There? - Connie Betts - [Camp, All Ages, Hands On, Kid Friendly)]

  6. Half Session 2:45PM-4PM Insect Safari - Kari Sandage and Intern [short walk, all ages, hands on, Kid Friendly)]

  7. Half Session 1:15PM-2:45PM Flintnapping - Mark Andersen [Camp, Older students and Adults (Demonstration only)]

  8. Half Session 2:45PM-4PM Atlatls - Mark Andersen [Camp, Older students and Adults, Hands on]

  9. The Hidden Past of the South Jordan Cemetery (Drive to cemetery) - Judy Ehlers and Seth Brooks [drive, short walk, older students and adults] Presenter will lead caravan from Seminar site

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

  11. Tracking of migratory birds using wireless and computer technology (MOTUS) - Anna Buckardt Thomas, and Glenn Pollock [drive to Blue Lake, all ages, hands on]

  12. We are the Buffalo and the Buffalo are Us! - Renee Sans Souci - (Camp, all ages, hands on)
     

4:15 PM

Travel for Dinner

Dinner at the West Monona High School

4:30-6 PM

Dinner & Doors Open for General Admittance 

Dinner provided by Lidderdale Country Store. Take time to view exhibits and vendor booths and to bid on items in our silent auction to support LHPS.

6-8:30 PM

Children's Programs

  • 6-6:45 PM: Children's Session - Cheryl Buntsma

  • 6:45-7:30 PM: Children's Session - Connie Betts

  • 7:30-8:20 PM: Animals of the Prairie - Chuck Hopp

  • 7:30-8:20 PM: Bee a Citizen Scientist - Northwest Iowa Group Sierra Club

6 PM

Welcome

6:05-6:45 PM

On Common Ground - Brian Hazlett and John Price

By convening artists, writers, and naturalists to share space and stories, “On Common Ground” intends to promote the stewardship of Iowa’s Loess Hills by fostering greater awareness of and appreciation for this exceptional natural landscape through print and digital media while exemplifying how place-based experience invigorates collaboration among the Arts, Humanities, and Sciences.

6:45-7:15 PM

Break

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

7:15-8:15 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 going forward. 

8:15 PM

Closing Remarks and Thank You

Parents, please collect your children from our children’s programming at this time.

9 PM

Campground Activities - Chuck Hopp and Shayne Bennet

Join us back at the LHPS campsite for nighttime activities, music, & s'mores!

9-10 PM

Geocaching - Cheryl Bunstma

9:30 PM

Star Gazing - Omaha Astronomical Society

Observe the night sky away from light pollution!

11 PM

Campsite Quiet Hours Begin

LHPS offerings will resume on Sunday at 6 AM.

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