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Warriors Path State Park: 42nd Annual Spring Nature Festival

April 16, 2021 - April 18, 2021

42nd Annual Spring Nature Festival

WARRIORS PATH STATE PARK

APRIL 16 — APRIL 18

Friday Evening through Mid-Day Sunday

Come enjoy a weekend full of outdoor discovery, with “mini-seminars” and guided hikes on a wide range of nature discovery topics, led by expert naturalists from across our region.

Here is the detailed schedule for the weekend:

FRIDAY, APRIL 16

6:30 PM          ANIMAL TRACKING AND SIGNS – Our fellow creatures leave a variety of living stories. Learn to read tracks and other signs of wildlife activity. Join Ranger Marty Silver at the Open Air Chapel, or Swimming Pool Porch if it’s raining.

8:00 PM          NIGHT HABITATS WALK – Rangers Marty Silver and Dr. Kevin Hamed of Virginia Tech. will guide us on a night discovery walk. Meet at the Pool Parking lot and we’ll caravan.

SATURDAY, APRIL 17

7:30 AM         BIRDING 101 – Enjoy an introduction to the art of birdwatching. Bill Grigsby of Birding Kingsport will share his deep understanding of spring birds. Meet at the Open Air Chapel, or Swimming Pool Porch if it’s raining.

8:00 AM         BIRD WALK – Bill Grigsby of Birding Kingsport will help us understand and identify spring birds and bird behavior. Meet at the Swimming Pool Porch.

9:00 AM         NATURE PHOTOGRAPHY TALK – Richard Siggins and Jeff Sturgill, expert nature photographers, will give us tips for better photography outdoors. This talk will be held at the Open Air Chapel, or Swimming Pool Porch if it’s raining.

10:00 AM        PHOTOGRAPHY WALK – Try the skills you learned at the photo seminar, or just enjoy the spring scenery. Richard Siggins will be our guide on this ridgeline hike. Meet at the Swimming Pool parking lot.

12 NOON      PLANTS & POLLINATORS TALK – Don Holt and Larry McDaniel, Naturalists from Steele Creek Park, will acquaint us with spring plants and the butterflies and other creatures that pollinate them. Meet at the Open Air Chapel, or Swimming Pool Porch if it’s raining.

12:30 PM        PLANTS & POLLINATORS WALK – Our guides, Larry McDaniel and Don Holt, will bring us to a bright display of spring wildflowers and their amazing insect pollinators. Meet at the Swimming Pool parking lot, and we’ll caravan.

1:30 PM          STREAM ECOLOGY SEMINAR – Gary Barrigar of Boone Watershed Partnership will help us discover the incredible life of flowing waters. Meet at the Open Air Chapel, or Swimming Pool Porch if it’s raining.

2:00 PM          CREEK WALK – Walk through the clear cool waters of Fall Creek, to experience a living community. Wear old clothes and sneakers, and meet Gary Barrigar at the Swimming Pool parking lot. We’ll caravan to the creek.

3:30 PM          GEOLOGY SEMINAR – Jeremy Stout , TN registered professional Geologist will offer special insights into the importance of those rocks beneath the spring landscape. Meet at the Open Air Chapel, or Swimming Pool Porch if it’s raining.

4:30 PM          GEOLOGY WALK – Take a walk along a stony river bank, and learn the dynamic stories of a changing land. Start our hike with Jeremy Stout at the Pool Parking Lot.

5:30 PM          HIDDEN WONDERS WALK – Join naturalist Cade Campbell to explore the fascinating worlds of mosses, ants, snails, frog calls and more, focusing on some of the wildest and most overlooked wildlife. Instead of just looking at wildlife, we’ll seek out these hidden stories in nature using all five of our senses and catch a glimpse of ecology as it helps keep the forest working. Meet at the Pool Parking Lot.

7:00 PM         SUNSET WALK – There’s no better place to observe the land than in these old fields and forested ridges. Come watch the evening darken the spring landscape in one of the richest wildlife habitats in the park. Our leader will be Connie Deegan of Johnson City Parks. Meet at the Pool Parking Lot, and we’ll caravan.

9:00 PM          SPRING NIGHT SKIES – Gather beneath the dark sky and learn the lore of the spring stars. Jason Dorfman of Bays Mountain Park will share his knowledge and his astronomical tools. Meet at the Pool Parking Lot. (in case of rain or thick clouds, meet at the Swimming Pool Porch.)

SUNDAY, APRIL 18

9:30 AM         WORSHIP SERVICE – Share uplifting music and an inspiring message with Eric Fields and the Worship Team from Grace Bible Church. Meet at the Open Air Chapel, or Swimming Pool Porch if it’s raining.

10:30 AM        SPRING LANDSCAPES WALK – Reflect on the land’s rich gifts as we hike the high places. Enjoy Sunday morning in the woods with Ranger Marty Silver. Meet at the Swimming Pool parking lot, and we’ll caravan.

 

IMPORTANT NOTE:

For health and safety reasons, all events will be held OUTDOORS, at or near the park’s pool. Talks will meet at the Open Air Chapel (just downhill from the pool parking lot), or the front porch of the pool building in case of rain. Walks will meet at the pool parking lot.

Venue

Warrior’s Path State Park
490 Hemlock Rd
Kingsport, TN 37663 United States
+ Google Map
Phone
(423) 239-8531