Dutchess County Parks

It's Trails & Tails Tuesday at Dutchess County Parks and today we want to share a great article on the health benefits of hiking. Spring hiking season is here and if you follow safety tips and prepare for some mud, you are in for a treat as nature comes to life this time of year in wonderful ways. Come explore with us and #discoverdutchessparks!! #takeahike #trailsandtails #hikebowdoin

Registration is open TODAY for our spring Park Palette and Nature Eaglet classes at Bowdoin Park. (Archery registration opens 3/16). In these classes you will discover and explore plants, ponds, rivers, turtles, animal dens, the night sky and much more... in a variety of creative ways. Our Park Naturalists have put together a great curriculum and are waiting to share the adventure with YOU! Go to DutchessNY.Gov/ParksEducation to read class descriptions and sign up today! #nature #outdooreducation #discoverdutchessparks #parknaturalists #welovetheoutdoors #explorewithus

It's Maple Monday at Dutchess County Parks and today we are going to talk a little about boiling sap. As you now know, it takes 40 gallons of sap to make one gallon of maple syrup. That's a lot of evaporation needed! Sap on average is 2% sugar when it comes out of the tree and should be 66-67% sugar when it is the finished syrup product. The proper temperature needed for sap to become syrup is 219 degrees Fahrenheit. That's hot! As you can see, it takes a lot of boiling to g...et the water out of the sap and turn it to syrup. Our propane evaporator set up boils roughly 10 gallons of sap per hour. So far this season the crew has collected over 200 gallons of sap at Bowdoin Park. With the nice weather over the next few days we are expecting a MAJOR sap flow. We will be BUSY! Maple syrup production is quite a labor of love as well as a team effort. Stay tuned next week as we bring you along for the finishing and bottling process. Thanks Debbie, maple team lead, for the lesson on boiling. #wemakesyrup #tapbowdoin #maple #stickygoodness #nymapleproducers #getsaphappy See more

Happy International Women’s Day! Today we would like to share highlights of three women who shaped the conservation industry. We thank all women who work tirelessly to educate and improve our environment and our park systems. #InternationalWomensDay #conservation #womenleaders Rachel Carson- A prominent wildlife biologist, her writings support the connection between declining bird populations & the prevalence of pesticide DDT. Her grassroots movements led to the development... of the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Winona LaDuke- A climate activist who brought global attention to issues of wildlife habitat, conservation, climate change, water quality, and many other environmental issues. Herma Baggley- The first female naturalist who worked for the National Park Service and paved the way for Fran P. Mainella, who became the first woman director of the National Park Service in 2001.

Spring is coming to Dutchess County Parks and the weather this week is looking like it will help us get in the groove for warmer temperatures and longer days. In addition to warm sun on your face, spring also brings a new program schedule to the parks. Stay tuned for all the details this Tuesday as we will announce the full class list and open up registration. Be watching for all new Nature Eaglet Classes, Park Palette Classes and Spring Archery (images below). #welovespring #springatbowdoin #parknaturalists #discoverdutchessparks #outdooreducation

Welcome to Base Camp... let's see what's up this week with Dave and Jess! They are bringing us on a tracking adventure. The new snowfall provides a perfect opportunity to look for tracks. Learn about them in this week's lesson, then go to the park or out in your yard and look for some tracks. Have fun exploring! Go to DutchessNY.gov/basecamp to check out this week's new material. #seeyouatbasecamp #natureexplorers #virtualnaturediscovery #dutchesscounty #parknaturalists #gotsnow #trackers

It's Trails & Tails Tuesday and it's also Groundhog Day so we thought we should give these furry creatures a little time in the spotlight today, despite the fact that Phil saw his shadow and is predicting six more weeks of winter! We will forgive him for that because we kind of like winter around here. LOL. There are many animals that share our trails with us and the groundhog is one of them. It you are hiking at Bowdoin, you may just see one. Here are some things you may n...ot know about groundhogs: -Largest species in the squirrel family. -Skilled climbers and swimmers, which helps to escape predators. -They are only found in woodland areas of North America. -They can grow from 17.5-24" long and weigh up to 13 pounds. -They have sharp claws to dig elaborate burrows underground. -They love to eat and lay in the sun. -They like to eat fruit, plants, garden veggies, tree bark and grasses. -In February, they come out of hibernation. You may spot their holes around park pavilions, as well as in the woods. They are busy and persistent creatures. No sooner do we fill their hole, and they start to dig another! So, the next time you are on the trails or in the park, and you spot one of these little fellas, think of them living their best life, eating our flowers, laying in the bright sunshine at Bowdoin! Not a bad way to spend your days. #groundhogday #Lifeisgood #trailfriends

On this snowy morning we have a few announcements: Due to ongoing cleanup efforts, Bowdoin and Wilcox Parks will be opening entrance gates at 10 am. The sledding hill at Bowdoin will open at that time. Skating rink will be closed until the crew can clear off and evaluate the surface. Please remember only to sled between orange safety fencing and no snowboards or skis on sledding hill. Also, snowmobiles and four wheelers are not allowed in any county park. Bundle up Dutchess County, and enjoy the snow!

There are a few short days left to apply to be part of our team. There have been a few edits to the original posting. Please share with anyone who may be interested. Get those applications in! Go to DutchessNY.Gov/Jobs

It's a very snowy Maple Monday and today we are going to talk a little about sap. Soon we will be tapping trees and the sap will be flowing and operations will pick up at our Sugar Shed at Bowdoin Park. You may have seen us doing work there, bringing supplies and getting ready! Maple sap is liquid gold and the entire process depends on this very key element. Here are some interesting facts about sap: -Maple sap is a clear liquid that looks just like water and tastes slightly... sweet. -Sap is a combination of water, sugar, minerals, anti-oxidants and vitamins. -Sap contains about 2% dissolved sugar, but sugar content varies. -The more leaves on a maple tree's crown, the sweeter the sap. -Maple sap can run at a rate of 150 drops/minute. -The best weather for sap to run is a stretch of below freezing temperatures at night, with above freezing temperatures during the day. Pictured with this post is one of our taps and buckets on a tree at Bowdoin and our sugar shed after a snow this season. Stay tuned for the announcement that we have begun tapping and for some exciting news about the month of March. #wetap #saphappy #nystatesyrupproducers #maplemonday #bowdoinsyrupcrew