Center Holiday Hours and Information

Hours:

We're open Monday - Saturday

9 a.m. - 5 p.m. Closed Sundays.

We'll be closed Thanksgiving day and open the following Friday and Saturday. 

We will be closed on Christmas day and New Year's day as well.  

The Platte River Prairie Nature Trail is open every day during daylight hours and can be accessed through the gate at the east end of our parking lot. 

For the most current information from the Center go to our web-site  www.nebraskanature.org  and our Facebook fan page.

Remember you can sign up for this news letter on the front page of our web-site on the left hand column. If you wish to receive a hard copy of this newsletter, you can request one by emailing info@nebraskanature.org.  

We also keep our blog "Green Shoe Diaries" updated most every week. There is a lot of information about the Center and wildlife information hidden in the blog so be sure to look around in the archives. 

We are hosting a number of private family and corporate Holiday events at the Center. If you are interested in using the Center for your Church, business, school, family or club event just give us a call or look at our rental page. 

Activities and Events

The Camera Club meets at the Nature Center the second Thursday of each month. Thursday, December 9, we will be traveling to Hastings Nebraska for supper at a local watering hole called Murphy's Wagon Wheel in the downtown area and then a short photo walk to the Jorn Olsen Gallery where he will be hosting an open house. It will be a good chance to look at his photography and meet one of the mid-west's finest landscape photographers. In September the club traveled to Dannebrog and you can read about that in our blog post.

Murphy's Wagon Wheel is located at 107 N Lincoln Avenue.  We will meet there at 5:30 and then to Jorn's place at 6:30. They are just a few blocks away so if the weather is good we will photo walk our way to the gallery.  There is no cost to participate and new people are always welcome to attend. People will need to pay for their meal at the Wagon Wheel. 

 The Nature Center will also be participating in the Photograph Nebraska Symposium held in Hastings, Nebraska  this coming February. The symposium will feature author and photographer Thom Hogan and Sports Illustrated photographer Bill Frakes  as key-note speakers. This is a great opportunity to meet people from across the state and learn from both local and national experts in the field of Photography. Both Dan and Brad from the NNVC staff will be presenting and participating on the symposium. 

If you're a bird watcher, you may want to participate in the Hall County Christmas Bird Count held Saturday, December 18.  If you are interested, contact Connie McCartney at 308-384-0129. Connie will get you a map and partner people up to cover the county. It's a lot of fun and you do not need to be an expert birder to participate. 

Another great club that meets at the Center is the Platte Valley Astronomical Observers. The Platte Valley Astronomical Observers meet at 7:30 PM on the 4th Thursday of every month.  They will not meet in December but will resume again in January. Their meetings are not bogged down with lots of club business, rather they welcome novices and concentrate on hands on observing or sharing entertaining programs. If you would like to join or simply attend a meeting to see what it's all about, check out the "Club News" page on their website for activities and information. You can contact Dan Glomski from our NNVC staff to find out more.  dan@nebraskanature.org

Check out the Crimson Crown Gift Shop for Unique Holiday Gifts

We offer great gift giving ideas for the holidays! Shirley has been working hard to find unique items made right here in Nebraska. We have Christmas ornaments that include a sandhill crane, Nebraska astronaut Clayton Anderson and a Husker theme. These beautiful ornaments feature 24k gold plating on solid brass and are priced from $21.95 to $29.95. Hand crafted by Nebraska artist Gene Roncka, these ornaments are sold only here within the Grand Island area!  

We also offer mind challenging games by a Nebraska toy company called Fat Brain Toys! We have a lot of games that challenge the mind for all ages to play. 

You may also want to choose the gift shop to get your greeting cards with that special Nebraska Nature theme. We have lot's of cards from local artists and photographers including Tina Simeon, Jorn Olsen, Rick Rassmusen,  and Wayne Hathaway. 

Remember, everything you buy from the gift shop help to financially support the programs at the Nebraska Nature & Visitor Center. 

Sandhill Crane Tours are set for 2011

Before we know it, sandhill cranes will begin their famed stopover along the banks of the Platte River. The nature center is ready! We are pleased to open reservations for 2011 guided crane tours. Readers of this newsletter get the first shot at early registration (as we've not released this to the general public yet, but plan to do so shortly).

Guided tours begin the afternoon of March 4. We offer the choice of a viewing blind tour – where visitors view the birds from within an enclosed blind along the Platte River – and the footbridge tour, during which visitors watch cranes from our footbridge spanning the Platte's north channel. Both tours begin with a 15-minute introduction to the sandhill cranes and their migratory journey. Cost for the viewing blind tour is $25/person; while the footbridge tour costs $10 per person. (Tax is charged for crane tours.)

Crane season at the nature center wraps up April 6. Tours can fill quickly, particularly during the peak of the season (late March), so early registration is strongly recommended. You can register online at nebraskanature.org, call us at 308-382-1820, or e-mail us at info@nebraskanature.org for further information.

Chicken and Stars set for April

The bird show in Nebraska does not end with the departure of the cranes! April is the peak of the dancing season for two grassland grouse species: the greater prairie chicken and sharptail grouse. The males of these species put on a real show as they try to impress their female counterparts into mating.

Last year, the nature center conducted a tour into the Nebraska Sandhills to watch the chickens and stargaze from some of the darkest skies anywhere. The stars shone brilliantly and the birds put on a great show. So we're heading into the Sandhills again next year.

The 2011 “Chicken and Stars” tour runs from April 22-24. Friday afternoon we'll meet at Sandhills Motel in Mullen, NE. That evening we'll be treated to a presentation by Dr. Paul Johnsgard, author of over forty books, including Grassland Grouse and Their Conservation. If weather is conducive, we'll stargaze later that evening, then arise early Saturday morning to view the prairie chickens on their lek. Optional field trips Saturday afternoon, stargazing later that evening, and an additional opportunity to watch chickens – or see the display of sharptail grouse, another grassland grouse – are all possibilities as we make final arrangements for the trip.

If you are interested in participating in “Chicken and Stars”, please drop us a line at info@nebraskanature.org. You'll get first chance at registering before openings are offered to the general public. Space is limited, and this trip sold out very quickly last year, so you're encouraged to contact us as soon as possible.

This email was sent to [email address suppressed] on behalf of the Nebraska Nature and Visitor Center, 9325 S. Alda Rd. Wood River, Nebraska 68883.

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