Calendar of Events
Events
Homeschool Program: Wild at Home
Harris Center for Conservation Education 83 Kings Hwy, Hancock, NH, United StatesCalling all animal allies, nature noticers, and outdoor explorers! Join Harris Center naturalists Karen Rent and Susie Spikol to search for signs of spring — from birds and blooms to bugs and buds. What will you discover?
Easygoing Hike on the Jonathan Daniels Trail
Join naturalist Nikko Gagnon and woodland wanderer Mary Verrilli for a leisurely meander through Ashuelot River Park on the Jonathan Daniels Trail, where we’ll watch for spring birds, look for animal tracks and signs, and explore the river’s edge.
ESI Course: MicroExploring the SuperSanctuary — Mindful Meanders & Nature-based Practices
local field sitesJoin Phil Brown and Ignacio Oreamuno for a series of spring-season wanderings in tucked-away places close to the Harris Center. Each exploration will focus on a different natural history theme related to the conditions that present themselves that day.
Babies in Backpacks & Toddlers in Tow in Harrisville
Harrisville Harrisville, NHJoin Harris Center naturalists Susie Spikol and Nikko Gagnon to explore, wander, and discover the magic of nearby nature on a Rail Trail in Harrisville. These pint-sized adventures are perfect for little legs and for babies in front packs, backpacks, slings, or wraps.
The Kestrels Young Birders Club: Harris Center Big Day
Are you a teenager or tween with an interest in birds and birding? Join a growing movement of young adults who are honing their wildlife observation skills, learning to recognize birds and their calls, and spending time outside building community with other young birders.
Homeschool Program: Wild at Home
Harris Center for Conservation Education 83 Kings Hwy, Hancock, NH, United StatesCalling all animal allies, nature noticers, and outdoor explorers! Join Harris Center naturalists Karen Rent and Susie Spikol to search for signs of spring — from birds and blooms to bugs and buds. What will you discover?
Vernal Pool Hike at the Horatio Colony Nature Preserve
Join Harris Center ecologists Brett Amy Thelen and Nate Marchessault for a 1.2-mile roundtrip hike to a hilltop vernal pool, where we'll explore the exquisite, ephemeral world of spring-breeding amphibians.
Earth Day Hike for Families
Join Hooper Institute and Harris Center naturalists for a fun and informative Earth Day hike for families. The earth will be waking from the long winter, and we’ll see what flowers, plants, bugs, reptiles, birds, and more are waiting to be discovered.
ESI Course: Intro to Spring Wildflowers
Harris Center & local field sites 83 King's Highway, HancockThis four-session workshop with wildflower enthusiast Wendy Ward combines classroom instruction and field trips to build your skills in identifying spring ephemeral wildflowers and deepen your appreciation for the science, and joy, of botanizing.
Cousins in Conversation about Conservation and Place
Join cousins Susie Spikol and Deborah Lee Luskin — both educators and authors who found their way from city streets to the forests of northern New England — for a lively conversation about their different paths to a shared love of language, storytelling, and the Northern woods.
Spring Wildflowers at Distant Hill Gardens
Join spring wildflower enthusiasts Michael Nerrie and Nate Marchessault for a leisurely walk at Distant Hill to admire cultivated spring ephemerals and search nearby trails for early-season wild blooms and other signs of spring.
Exploring Vernal Pools at the Follansbee Preserve
Join vernal pool enthusiast Brett Amy Thelen for an exploration of a vernal pool complex at the Piscataquog Land Conservancy’s Follansbee Preserve, where we’ll search for salamander eggs and other springtime wonders.
Monadnock Region City Nature Challenge
Join iNaturalist enthusiasts Steven Lamonde and Nate Marchessault for the Monadnock Region’s first annual participation in the City Nature Challenge — a fun celebration of biodiversity that also contributes valuable observations to the iNaturalist database.
ESI Course: Intro to Spring Wildflowers
Harris Center & local field sites 83 King's Highway, HancockThis four-session workshop with wildflower enthusiast Wendy Ward combines classroom instruction and field trips to build your skills in identifying spring ephemeral wildflowers and deepen your appreciation for the science, and joy, of botanizing.
ESI Course: MicroExploring the SuperSanctuary — Mindful Meanders & Nature-based Practices
local field sitesJoin Phil Brown and Ignacio Oreamuno for a series of spring-season wanderings in tucked-away places close to the Harris Center. Each exploration will focus on a different natural history theme related to the conditions that present themselves that day.
Book Launch: MicroExploring the SuperSanctuary by Phil Brown and Ignacio Oreamuno
Celebrate the launch of MicroExploring the SuperSanctuary with Phil Brown and Ignacio Oreamuno, and discover how a simple shift in perspective can help you find adventure, awe, and connection in the wild places close to home.
A Preview Performance of Root Song
Be among the first to experience Root Song — an immersive collaboration with Grammy-winning Roomful of Teeth, Firelight Theatre Workshop, Tchin, Jazimina Creamer-MacNeil, and more — as music, science, and storytelling converge in a powerful preview performance that invites us to listen to the wisdom of trees and reimagine what it means to be human.
Yeti Club: Afterschool Wilderness Adventure for Middle Schoolers
Robin Hood Park Reservoir Street, Keene, NH, United StatesCome be a part of fun and adventure with Yeti Club at Robin Hood Park in Keene! We’ll practice wilderness skills like orienteering, fire building, outdoor survival skills, tracking, and more. Open to students in grade 6 and up. Free of charge, with snacks provided.
LAB GIRLS+ Experiments From the Wild & In the Field: Wildlife Painting
Harris Center for Conservation Education 83 Kings Hwy, Hancock, NH, United StatesMeet wildlife artist Rosemary Conroy for an afternoon of wildlife painting. See Rosemary’s art, hear her tips on painting wild animals, and practice your skills using the Harris Center’s taxidermied animals as models. For middle schoolers and up.
ESI Course: Intro to Spring Wildflowers
Harris Center & local field sites 83 King's Highway, HancockThis four-session workshop with wildflower enthusiast Wendy Ward combines classroom instruction and field trips to build your skills in identifying spring ephemeral wildflowers and deepen your appreciation for the science, and joy, of botanizing.
The Rat Poison Problem: How Rodenticides Are Harming Wildlife, Pets, and People
Join environmental writer and advocate Laura Kiesel to learn how rising rat populations and widespread rodenticide use are impacting wildlife, pets, and human health — and explore practical, safer solutions New Hampshire communities can use to address rodent problems without harmful poisons.
Family Ponding Safari at Robin Hood Park
Join the Harris Center, Cheshire 4-H, and The Caterpillar Lab for a free pond-life party, where families can get their hands wet discovering bullfrogs, dragonflies, caterpillars, mayflies, and other wild inhabitants in Robin Hood Pond.
Nature for All: Vernal Pooling at Distant Hill
Join Harris Center ecologist Brett Amy Thelen and Michael Nerrie of Distant Hill to search for salamander eggs, fairy shrimp, and other wonders in the beautiful vernal pools along the Distant Hill Nature Trail, an accessible trail with gentle slopes and a hard-packed gravel surface.
Babies in Backpacks & Toddlers in Tow at Beech Hill in Dublin
Beech Hill Beech Hill Road, Dublin, NH, United StatesJoin Harris Center naturalists Susie Spikol and Nikko Gagnon to explore, wander, and discover the magic of nearby nature at Beech Hill in Dublin. These pint-sized adventures are perfect for little legs and for babies in front packs, backpacks, slings, or wraps.
Yeti Club: Afterschool Wilderness Adventure for Middle Schoolers
Robin Hood Park Reservoir Street, Keene, NH, United StatesCome be a part of fun and adventure with Yeti Club at Robin Hood Park in Keene! We’ll practice wilderness skills like orienteering, fire building, outdoor survival skills, tracking, and more. Open to students in grade 6 and up. Free of charge, with snacks provided.
Making Your Turtle Sightings Count
Spot a turtle in the wild? Your encounter could help conservation efforts. Join NH Fish and Game turtle biologist Josh Megysey and Harris Center ecologist Nate Marchessault to learn how to turn your turtle sightings into valuable data.
ESI Course: Intro to Spring Wildflowers
Harris Center & local field sites 83 King's Highway, HancockThis four-session workshop with wildflower enthusiast Wendy Ward combines classroom instruction and field trips to build your skills in identifying spring ephemeral wildflowers and deepen your appreciation for the science, and joy, of botanizing.
Afterschool Club: LAB GIRLS+ Experiments from the Wild In Keene
Robin Hood Park Reservoir Street, Keene, NH, United StatesIf you like having hands-on experiences in nature, making observations and discoveries, and studying wild animals, then this afterschool club at Robin Hood Park in Keene is for you! From crayfish and turtles to squirrels and other small mammals, come explore the wild side of STEM. For 6th graders and up. Free of charge, with snacks provided.
ESI Course: MicroExploring the SuperSanctuary — Mindful Meanders & Nature-based Practices
local field sitesJoin Phil Brown and Ignacio Oreamuno for a series of spring-season wanderings in tucked-away places close to the Harris Center. Each exploration will focus on a different natural history theme related to the conditions that present themselves that day.
Spring Beauties of Partridge Woods
Join avid hikers Kathy Schillemat and Rick Church to hike the Town of Nelson’s Partridge Woods, where we’ll search for ephemeral wildflowers and other signs of spring along the Ridge Trail.
Yeti Club: Afterschool Wilderness Adventure for Middle Schoolers
Robin Hood Park Reservoir Street, Keene, NH, United StatesCome be a part of fun and adventure with Yeti Club at Robin Hood Park in Keene! We’ll practice wilderness skills like orienteering, fire building, outdoor survival skills, tracking, and more. Open to students in grade 6 and up. Free of charge, with snacks provided.
Lunch & Learn: The True Life and Times of New Hampshire’s Fisher
Join fisher fan Susie Spikol to learn about the fascinating natural history of this notorious member of the weasel family.
Exploring Stream Restoration at Great Brook
Join Michael Nerrie to learn how Strategic Wood Addition is helping restore two miles of Great Brook in Walpole — improving habitat for native fish, enhancing stream health, and reducing flood impacts — and hike to the site for a firsthand look at this innovative restoration project.
Easygoing Hike in Francestown
Join avid hikers Ben Haubrich and Mary Verrilli for a gentle 2.5-mile roundtrip walk on conserved land in Francestown, where you’ll follow a meandering brook, visit beaver ponds, and climb a short, steep esker formed by ancient glacial deposits.
Afterschool Club: LAB GIRLS+ Experiments from the Wild In Keene
Robin Hood Park Reservoir Street, Keene, NH, United StatesIf you like having hands-on experiences in nature, making observations and discoveries, and studying wild animals, then this afterschool club at Robin Hood Park in Keene is for you! From crayfish and turtles to squirrels and other small mammals, come explore the wild side of STEM. For 6th graders and up. Free of charge, with snacks provided.
Nature for All: An Accessible, Inclusive Outing at MacDowell Lake
Join naturalists Phil Brown and Susie Spikol for a leisurely, less-than-two-mile exploration of MacDowell Lake’s flat, hard-packed trails, where we’ll look and listen for birds and other wetland wildlife during this inclusive Nature for All outing designed to welcome participants of all abilities.
Yeti Club: Afterschool Wilderness Adventure for Middle Schoolers
Robin Hood Park Reservoir Street, Keene, NH, United StatesCome be a part of fun and adventure with Yeti Club at Robin Hood Park in Keene! We’ll practice wilderness skills like orienteering, fire building, outdoor survival skills, tracking, and more. Open to students in grade 6 and up. Free of charge, with snacks provided.
Small Mammals of Field & Forest
Join naturalist Susie Spikol for an afternoon meander through the Harris Center’s fields and forest edges in search of small mammals and the signs they leave behind. You’ll leave with a whole new appreciation for these tiny, but ecologically important creatures!
Afterschool Club: LAB GIRLS+ Experiments from the Wild In Keene
Robin Hood Park Reservoir Street, Keene, NH, United StatesIf you like having hands-on experiences in nature, making observations and discoveries, and studying wild animals, then this afterschool club at Robin Hood Park in Keene is for you! From crayfish and turtles to squirrels and other small mammals, come explore the wild side of STEM. For 6th graders and up. Free of charge, with snacks provided.
ESI Course: Introduction to Herbal Energetics
Join Vermont herbalist Erica Marie Coston for an immersive exploration of herbal energetics — an invitation to tune into the living language of plants and your own inner landscape. Through taste, observation, and reflection, you’ll learn to recognize your own energetic tendencies and what helps bring you back into balance.
Herbalism for Families
Join Vermont herbalist Erica Marie Coston for a hands-on exploration of common New Hampshire herbs, where you’ll taste a range of flavors and explore how these wild plants can help support our bodies. For families with children ages 6 and up.
LAB GIRLS+ Experiments From the Wild & In the Field: Salamander Coverboard Survey
Harris Center for Conservation Education 83 Kings Hwy, Hancock, NH, United StatesJoin ecologist and salamander lover Brett Amy Thelen for a hands-on survey of red-backed salamanders and other amphibians at the Harris Center’s long-term monitoring plots.
Afterschool Club: LAB GIRLS+ Experiments from the Wild In Keene
Robin Hood Park Reservoir Street, Keene, NH, United StatesIf you like having hands-on experiences in nature, making observations and discoveries, and studying wild animals, then this afterschool club at Robin Hood Park in Keene is for you! From crayfish and turtles to squirrels and other small mammals, come explore the wild side of STEM. For 6th graders and up. Free of charge, with snacks provided.
A Monadnock Gardening Day: Dinner with the Presenters
Hancock NH, United StatesMeet the presenters for Saturday’s Monadnock Gardening Day: Gardening for Sanity workshop — Fergus Garrett, Matt Mattus, Katia Lysy, and Taylor Johnston — and fellow garden lovers for a special dinner hosted by Eleanor Briggs in Hancock, featuring cocktails in the garden and a buffet meal by chef Sam Rule of Fiddleheads Cafe.
A Monadnock Gardening Day: Gardening for Sanity
Harris Center for Conservation Education 83 Kings Hwy, Hancock, NH, United StatesSpend an inspiring day with gardening experts Fergus Garrett, Matt Mattus, and Katia Lysy, facilitated by Taylor Johnston of issima, as you explore fresh ideas about gardens, plants, and life — with coffee, snacks, and a Fiddleheads Cafe lunch included, plus books and botanical wares from special guest vendors.
Garden Conservancy Garden Tour
Dublin, Peterborough, & Hancock Hancock, New Hampshire, United StatesTour four stunning private Monadnock Region gardens — from intimate terraces to Japanese-inspired landscapes and off-the-grid plant paradises — during this self-guided day of inspiration, culminating in a Digging Deeper talk with Bill and Eileen Elliott on growing food and cultivating plants from around the world.
Land Management Practices for New Hampshire Turtles: A Wildlife Workshop
Join NRCS biologists for a walking tour at Reservoir Woods, where we’ll learn about the habitat management practices they’ve put in place to support local turtle populations — and discuss ways you can help turtles on your own property.
Babies in Backpacks & Toddlers in Tow at Tenant Swamp Boardwalk in Keene
Tenant Swamp Boardwalk 167 Maple Avenue, Keene, United StatesJoin Harris Center naturalists Susie Spikol and Nikko Gagnon to explore, wander, and discover the magic of nearby nature at Tenant Swamp in Keene, a unique wetland and mixed forest ecosystem accessible via a scenic boardwalk. These pint-sized adventures are perfect for little legs and for babies in front packs, backpacks, slings, or wraps.
Field Foray with the SuperSanctuary Butterfly Club
Join Mark Ellingwood and the SuperSanctuary Butterfly Club to search meadows and woodlands for crescents, blues, sulfurs, and more while sharpening your butterfly identification skills for the SuperSanctuary Butterfly Count in July.
Field Foray with the SuperSanctuary Butterfly Club
Join Mark Ellingwood and the SuperSanctuary Butterfly Club as we search for swallowtails, satyrs, skippers, and other butterflies — and learn to identify them by their field marks, flight patterns, and behavior.
SuperSanctuary Butterfly Count
Join the SuperSanctuary Butterfly Club to survey for coppers, crescents, skippers, swallowtails, monarchs, and more! The data we collect will be submitted to both the North American Butterfly Association and the NH Butterfly Monitoring Network.
Insects in the Schoolyard: A Workshop for Teachers
Gain the skills and confidence to teach insect studies in your classroom through this hands-on workshop. Explore insect anatomy, life cycles, and identification, and leave with ready-to-use, NGSS-aligned lessons and practical strategies for outdoor learning.
Starting the School Year with Nature as Your Co-Teacher
Join Harris Center teacher-naturalists Jenna Spear and Jaime Hutchinson for this fun and energizing professional development workshop for K to 5th-grade teachers. The first two months of school are the perfect time to establish a class culture that includes focused, nature-based learning. This workshop will kick off your outdoor planning by offering numerous strategies for including fresh-air learning during the school day.
