Events
Migratory Bird Day Walk
May 14 7 AM - 12:00 David Govatski
Join us for a Migratory Bird Day Walk at Weeks State Park. We will meet at the parking lot of the scenic auto road at 7 AM. We will slowly walk up the auto road looking and listening for a variety of migratory birds that are settling in on territories. We expect to see a variety of warblers and flycatchers at this birding hotspot. We also will be looking at Spring ephemeral wildflowers. The walk is 3 miles round trip and ascends 800 vertical feet at an easy pace.
At 11 AM we will offer an optional visit to Martin Meadow Pond to look for loons, osprey and eagles. Free Migratory Bird Day posters will be available. The program is free and open to the public. Bring binoculars and dress for the weather.
David Govatski is the field trip leader and is an experienced birding guide and naturalist. He is President of the Ammonoosuc Chapter of the National Audubon Society.
Spring Wildflower Walk
Sunday, June 7 1- 4 PM Matt Peters
Spring has sprung and it is time to get outdoors to enjoy the signs of spring. Please join us for this free wildflower walk led by field ecologist and naturalist, Matt Peters, who has over a dozen years of experience studying the flora, fauna, geology and soils of Weeks State Park.
Matt has led nature walks at the park for many years. Meet at the parking lot at the start of the scenic auto road up Mount Prospect at 1 PM. Bring a hand lens and flower guide if you like and dress for the weather. A paper list of common spring wildflowers will be provided at the assembly point. The free program ends at 4 PM.
That Reminds Me of a Funny Story
June 25 6:00 PM Rebecca Rule
Stories speak to us of community. They hold our history and reflect our identity. Rebecca Rule has made it her mission over the last 20 years to collect stories of NH, especially those that reflect what's special about this rocky old place. She'll tell some of those stories – her favorites are the funny ones – and invite audience members to contribute a few stories of their own.
Hero or Villain:
Colonel Edward Cross
Colonel Edward E. Cross is the best-known Civil War hero from New Hampshire. Mortally wounded at Gettysburg, he led the Fifth New Hampshire Volunteers through some of the bloodiest battles of the war.
Who was the real Edward Cross, and how has he been remembered by posterity for the last 160 years? Join award-winning Civil War historian Robert Grandchamp to find out.
July 2 6:00 PM Robert Grandchamp
Raptors up Close
July 9 6:00 PM VT Institute of Natural Science
Take flight with the Vermont Institute of Natural Science on an unforgettable experience! In this live bird demonstration, you’ll gain an up-close view and an in-depth understanding of these majestic birds. The naturalists from VINS will bring three live birds with them!
Naming the Presidentials
July 16 6:00 PM Rebecca More
As the well-known story goes, the Presidential Range was named in July 1820 by a group of Lancaster and Guildhall men. Later known as the Weeks-Brackett party, the party hiked up Mount Washington in order to name the mountains adjacent to New Hampshire’s tallest peak for the four Presidents succeeding Washington. They were guided by Ethan Allen Crawford and accompanied by Philip Carrigain, creator of the first official New Hampshire State Map. In this talk, Naming the Presidential Range in 1820, Rebecca Weeks Sherrill More explores the accuracy of the story and shares a possible alternative account.
Are NH Forests Threatened?
July 23 6:00 PM Jack Savage
New Hampshire’s forests have been changing during the 125 years of the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests and will continue to evolve. Forest Society President, Jack Savage, discusses the trends and impacts shaping our forests in the decades to come and the priorities of the statewide conservation and forestry organization going forward.
Allagash - New England's Wild River
July 30 6:00 PM Tim Caverly
Tim Caverly will present Allagash–New England’s Wild River, during which the audience will virtually canoe the 92 mile Allagash River and hear the lore and legends from Maine’s wilderness. Maine author and humorist Tim Caverly and his wife Susan spent eighteen years living in the middle of Maine’s Northwoods. Discover native American heritage, a lost railroad, and the best of Maine’s wildlife.
Helping Native Pollinators Thrive
August 6 6:00 PM
Debra Marnich & Wendy Scribner
You have likely heard about declining numbers in some of our important pollinators. They are so important to our food production and to healthy, functioning habitats. A frequently cited statistic is that “One of every three bites of our food comes to us courtesy of pollinators” who pollinate the flowers that produce many of our fruits, vegetables, and nuts.
Pollinators include not only honeybees, but native bees, butterflies, moths and other insects, as well as birds and bats. As these creatures visit plants foraging for food (pollen and nectar), they move pollen around, providing a vital service, helping plants reproduce.
One Disaster at a Time: The History of Crawford Notch
August 13 6:00 PM
Elizabeth Peel
What do a giant, a hermit, a dentist, and a man named Frankenstein all have in common? They are some of the eclectic characters which make up the legends and myths of Crawford Notch. From the devastating 1826 landslide which resulted in the deaths of the Willey family to the rise of industrialization and implementation of the railroad, this small stretch of land has been the epicenter of White Mountains tourism for centuries.
Join Elizabeth Peel from the New Hampshire State Parks’ Bureau of Historic Sites to discover how natural disasters, ambitious pioneers, and determined preservation groups shaped the development and legacy of Crawford Notch State Park.
WSPA Annual Meeting
Bogs and Fens
August 20 5:00 PM WSPA Annual Meeting
Followed by: 6:00 PM Bogs and Fens - Tom Eid
Bogs in New England were created thousands of years ago by the Laurentide Ice Sheet during the Wisconsin Glaciation Period. They are not just places to visit, but living environments, unique unto their own. Each supports a diverse habitat of flora and fauna within its waters, along its banks, and integrated within a larger watershed. They transcend time, being both patient and persistent. Bogs, fens, and peatlands share common features of containing layers of decayed and decaying plant materials known as peat. Bogs are a special place all of their own.
The Mud Pond Trail is in the Pondicherry Division of the Silvio O. Conte National Wildlife Refuge, and is universally accessible.
Registration is required for this field trip and is limited to 20 participants. To register for this field trip, email:
info.weeksstateparkassociation@gmail.com
and put “Mud Pond” in the subject line. The details of where and when to meet that morning will be sent to you via an automatic email response.
Chasing Fins & Ocean State: Rhode Island's Wild Coast
August 27 7:00 PM Tomas Koeck
Tomas Koeck returns to the Rialto, with two amazing documentaries. Tomas brought us his Flyway of Life documentary last year at the Rialto, and it filled the house. This award-winning filmmaker was recently nominated for a New England Emmy for his work.
This year, he will provide two 20-minute presentations of his documentaries, with a 20-minute commentary segment between them.