Program and Event Descriptions:

Plant a Tree ― Saturday, November 5, 9:00 a.m.  Join Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy, Loudoun County and the Town of Leesburg at Ida Lee Park for a tree planting event designed to improve the water quality of Big Spring Creek and create new wildlife habitat in the park. Please bring work gloves and, if you have one, a shovel with your name on it.  Questions: contact Scott Sandberg at 571-258-3304 or scott.sandberg@loudoun.gov.

Reading the Land ― Saturday, November 5, 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.   Registration Required.  Join Emily Southgate at the Blue Ridge Center for Environmental Stewardship (BRCES) on a walk to discover man’s impact on the land.  The 900-acre Blue Ridge Center is comprised mostly of meadows in the valley and heavily forested slopes today; however, people have lived and used the land there for centuries and have had a tremendous impact on it.  Dr. Southgate, a historical ecologist, will describe what and how we can learn from studying human impact on the land and ecology.  The Blue Ridge Center, which is co-sponsoring this field trip, is located just north of Neersville at 11611 Harpers Ferry Road (Rte 671).  Meet at the Education Center.  Detailed directions can be found on the website, www.brces.org.  Limited to 15 participants.  To register sign up online at http://brces.org/calendar. 

Birding Banshee ― Saturday, November 12, 8:00 a.m. Join the Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy and the Friends of Banshee Reeks at the Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve in Leesburg for the monthly bird walk. Because of its rich and varied habitat, this part of the county is a birding hot spot. Please bring binoculars. All experience levels welcome! Questions: contact Joe Coleman at 540-554-2542 or jcoleman@loudounwildlife.org.

Exploring Nature during a Changing Season ― Sunday, November 13, 1:00 – 4:00 p.m.  Registration Required.  Join Phil Daley on this free, family walk as he explores the Blue Ridge Center for Environmental Stewardship, looking at how plants and animals prepare for winter.  Enjoy the fall foliage in this heavily forested preserve.  The Blue Ridge Center comprises 900 acres of fields, forests, and wetlands on the west side of Harpers Ferry Road in northwestern Loudoun County.  Meet at the Education Center, which is located just north of Neersville, at 11611 Harpers Ferry Road, Rte 671.This program is co-sponsored between Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy and the Blue Ridge Center for Environmental Stewardship. Detailed directions can be found on the website, www.brces.org.  For informaton contact Phil Daley at 540-338-6528 or pdaley@loudounwildlife.org. To register sign up online at http://brces.org/calendar. 

Exploring the Future White’s Ford Park ― Saturday, Nov 19, 8:00 a.m.  Registration Required. Join Mary Ann Good and Jim McWalters for an exploration of White’s Ford, a future Northern Virginia Regional Park.  This future regional park, which borders the Potomac River near Lucketts and is still being farmed, is in an area that birding groups have been visiting for years in the fall and winter because of the richness of the bird life that shows up here. While there are no real trails on this 295-acre property, most of it is relatively easy to explore.   Please bring binoculars.  We will meet at Temple Hall Farm and carpool from there to the future park.  Registration is required as space is limited.  Sign-up online or contact Joe Coleman at jcoleman@loudounwildlife.org or 540-554-2542.

Sunday in the Preserve ― Sunday, November 20, 1:00 p.m.  Join a naturalist from Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy and the Friends of Banshee Reeks for a free, informal family walk around the preserve. Search for the many natural wonders that make this a special place. For information call the Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve at 703-669-0316.

Birding the Blue Ridge Center ― Saturday, November 26, 8:00 a.m. On the fourth Saturday of each month (except December), Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy leads a free bird walk at the Blue Ridge Center for Environmental Stewardship (BRCES). This beautiful 900-acre preserve is located on Harpers Ferry Road, Rt. 671, in northwestern Loudoun County. Only a few miles south of Harpers Ferry and the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers, the property includes meadows in the valley and heavily forested slopes on the Blue Ridge. Meet at the Visitor Center. The Blue Ridge Center is located just north of Neersville, at 11611 Harpers Ferry Road (Rt 671).  Detailed directions can be found on the website, www.brces.org . Questions: contact Joe Coleman at 540-554-2542 or jcoleman@loudounwildlife.org.

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