Nature Activities

at Bays Mountain Park & Planetarium in Kingsport. Saturday and Sunday afternoons 3 - 3:30 p.m* March through November.

Safely view the surface of the Sun through specially filtered telescopes. With our instruments it is possible to view a wide variety of eruptive disturbances on the Sun including sunspots, prominences and solar flares.

Be sure to bring warm clothes for the Nighttime Observing. Though the day may be sunny and warm, the temperature can drop after the sun goes down. Having the proper clothing will make your experience much more enjoyable.

at Warriors' Path State Park. April 16-18, 2010 will be a weekend full of nature discovery. We will have a full slate of expert naturalists. Each will lead a mini-seminar on a selected topic in the natural world, followed by a short hike to experience that same nature topic. For example, the stream ecology talk will be followed by a creek discovery walk, the trees & wildflowers walk will be followed by a tree & wildflower hike, etc. This is a free event, and no registration is required. Just come an enjoy a weekend in our Great Tennessee Outdoors!
423-239-6786

Meet naturalist Don Holt at Sycamore Shoals State Historic Area for this day-long winged adventure across town. Come for all or part of the day. Sponsored by the North American Butterfly Association & Sycamore Shoals State Historic Area. Sunday, August 1 at 9:00 am & 1:00 pm. (Rain Date: Saturday, August 7).
www.state.tn.us/environment/parks/SycamoreShoals/
423-543-5808

at Sycamore Shoals State Historic Site. Meet other birders and naturalists at Sycamore Shoals for a morning of birding during the migratory season. Call for complete details and schedule.
www.state.tn.us/environment/parks/SycamoreShoals/
423-543-5808

at the Gray Fossil Site Museum. Dinosaur Revolution Traveling Exhibit in the Scott M. Niswonger Exhibit Hall. Created by Minotaur Mazes and sponsored locally by Dex, the exhibit includes fossils, informational displays, and a number of interactive activities, including the Mesozoic Missions that span 150 million years; a Climb Through Time on a wall of mysteries; the Make Tracks in the Triassic exercise that allows visitors to experience what it is like to crush the earth with gigantic feet; and a glide through the Jurassic.

at the Gray Fossil Site Museum. Predators traveling Exhibit in the Scott M. Niswonger Exhibit Hall. For more information on new programs or exhibits, visit www.grayfossilmuseum.com or call the museum toll free at (866) 202-6223. The ETSU and General Shale Brick Natural History Museum and Visitor Center is located 1.8 miles from Exit 13 off I-26 in Gray and is open seven days a week from 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. AC.

at Warriors' Path State Park. Hours: 10 AM-Noon. All area young people are invited to help bring re-leaf to Kingsport. We’ll be distributing free tree seedlings, to plant in the park and to plant at home. Help begin tomorrow’s forests! Free. Kingsport. Email: Marty.Silver@state.tn.us

at Warriors' Path State Park. Learn to use nearby, familiar environments as “natural classrooms” for your children and students. Try teaching techniques that bring conservation to life. Especially for teachers and youth leaders. Free, but pre-registration is required. Hours: 9am to 4 pm.

Explore Carter County in the Autumn. September and October are two beautiful months of the year in Carter County. Drop by the Chamber of Commerce and pick up a leaf tour sheet and explore the beauty of the mountains in transition from Summer to Fall.

at Bays Mountain Park & Plantarium in Kingsport. Each Saturday Evenings during March, April, October and November. Begins at dusk.

View the night sky with many large telescopes at our observatories. See fascinating celestial objects like planets, the moon, star clusters, nebulae & galaxies.