Join the Madison Nature Journal Club and Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance at Lussier Family Heritage Center, which has a beautiful prairie with trails throughout. It also has a smaller "sensory garden" of plants selected for their bold scents and unique textures, plus some ~300 year old oak trees along the parking lot.
The club will kick off with some quick tips on how to nature journal. Then people can split up to find what’s interesting to them to journal about. At the end of the event everyone will meet back up and optionally share what they nature journaled about. Note that this is not a class, more of a casual meet up–but nature journaling is very easy to jump into and Amy is happy to give extra tips to anyone who wants them. This event is cohosted by Amy Schleser and the Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance.
Scroll down to register!
DETAILS:
- MEETING SPOT: We'll meet near the entrance--look for a large white board outside. Depending on the weather, we may set up right in front of the doors or more off to the side on the grass.
- PARKING/CYCLING: Park in the Lussier Family Heritage Center parking lot. Or ride your bike there via the Lower Yahara River/Capital City Trail.
- WHAT TO BRING: drawing supplies. A pencil and paper works, or anything fancier. There are few or no benches here, so you may want to bring a sketching stool or lawn chair.
- WHO SHOULD COME? Anyone–no drawing experience needed. Nature journaling is great for beginners. Kids are more than welcome. They should be accompanied by an adult.
- BATHROOMS: there are NO bathrooms at the Center. (Across from the Center's parking lot there are Dane County camping facilities that usually have open bathrooms.)
- ACCESSIBILITY NOTES: There is handicap parking in the lot, near the building entrance/prairie trailhead/pollinator gardens. The trails through the prairie are mowed grass. The sensory garden is a longer distance from the parking lot.
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WHAT IS NATURE JOURNALING?
Nature journaling includes drawing pictures of nature but also writing questions and notes about what we’re observing. Our goal is to look closer and wonder more deeply about nature. We think about drawing as a tool to help us notice–you don’t need to draw beautifully to be a nature journaler. At the club we’ll talk briefly about ideas of what to write about, using prompts such as "I notice... I wonder... It reminds me of..." You'll also get some nature journaling tips about ways you could document what you’re seeing and sensing on your pages.
Register here!
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Event photo: nature journal page made by Jaime, 2024
