POSTPONED UNTIL SPRING: Trail Opening at Woodchuck Lodge

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* * * UPDATE: DUE TO EXPECTED RAIN on OCTOBER 29TH, WE ARE POSTPONING OUR TRAIL OPENING UNTIL NEXT SPRING * * * * 

The Board of Trustees of John Burroughs’ Woodchuck Lodge in Roxbury is pleased to announce that a new trail on the lodge property will soon open to the public. The trail, named the Trout-Lily Trail, will have its unveiling event NEXT SPRING instead of October 29th at 1pm as previously planned.

We hope to see you all next year! Continue reading “POSTPONED UNTIL SPRING: Trail Opening at Woodchuck Lodge”

Wild Saturdays: Alien Invaders in Burroughs’ Backyard on Oct 7th

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The final Wild Saturday at Woodchuck Lodge, on Saturday October 7th at 1pm, is “Alien Invaders in Burroughs Backyard”.

John Thompson, Catskill Regional Invasive Species Partnership Coordinator, updates us on how Catskill forests have changed since John Burroughs tramped through these woods. Forests are now threatened by the introduction of species that would be unfamiliar to Burroughs. There will be discussion of invasive species and what we can do to help protect the Catskill Mountains for the future. This is a chance for all to learn how to identify the top pests that are killing our trees.

Not everybody knows not to move firewood, for example, which is very important because this is the way invasive pests travel from ports of entry into the interior of the US. It’s illegal in New York State to move firewood more than 50 miles from its source. Its also illegal to bring untreated firewood into New York state. Always buy firewood in the village or town where you intend to camp.

Woodchuck Lodge’s Wild Saturdays have been hugely popular with locals and visitors alike. Our last Wild Saturday (Face to Face with Raptors) on September 2nd with received 45 visitors.

Free, guided tours of Woodchuck Lodge are offered the first weekend of the month on Saturday and Sunday, 11am to 3pm, so if you can’t make our Wild Saturday presentation, you still have the rest of the weekend to take a tour with one of our docents on October 7th and October 8th, which will be the final guided tour of the year.

All events take place at 1pm at 1633 Burroughs Memorial Road, Roxbury, NY 12474. Children are welcome.

Wild Saturdays: Face-to-Face with Raptors on Sept 2nd

The next Wild Saturday at Woodchuck Lodge, on September 2nd at 1pm, is entitled Face-to-Face with Raptors. Annie Mardiney, federally licensed wildlife “rehabilitator”, shares her deep passion by bringing hawks, owls, and falcons to Woodchuck Lodge. Come meet them face to face!

Free, guided tours of Woodchuck Lodge are offered the first weekend of the month on Saturday and Sunday, 11am to 3pm, so if you can’t make our Wild Saturday, you still have the rest of the weekend to take a tour with one of our docents on September 2nd or September 3rd.

The final guided tour of the year will take place on the first weekend in October.

Visitors can also now take advantage of our new trail. Woodchuck Lodge received a grant this year to develop the mile-long trail around the Woodchuck Lodge grounds and our Trustee Patti Rudge has been overseeing its construction. The trail provides a unique view of the property, snaking up and behind the Lodge and through a forest and out into our meadow that has stunning views.

All events take place at 1pm at 1633 Burroughs Memorial Road, Roxbury, NY 12474. Children are welcome.

Wild Saturdays: Observational Hiking on August 5th

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Woodchuck Lodge’s Wild Saturdays have been hugely popular with locals and visitors alike. Our last Wild Saturday on July 1st entitled Wildlife Near Home with Mairead Mulhern received 35 visitors, even on a day on which rain was forecast!

Paul Misko, founder of THE CATSKILL 4000 CLUB gives talks and writes articles on Catskill history, John Burroughs, and hiking. His talk on August 5th beginning at 1pm is called “Observational Hiking”, something John Burroughs encouraged whenever outdoors. There’s plenty to discover in the forests of the Catskills in terms of wildlife, natural history and the environment. Paul provides a multi-media presentation of his hiking discoveries enhanced by his relevant anecdotes. All events take place at 1633 Burroughs Memorial Road, Roxbury, NY 12474. Children are welcome.

Wild Saturdays: Wildlife Near Home on July 1st

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On Saturday July 1st at 1pm, Mairead Mulhern will give a talk on Wildlife Near Home at Woodchuck Lodge. Mairead, an Environmental Educator from Mine Kill and Mac V. Shaul State Parks, will discuss local wildlife found in Upstate New York. Come take a look at various pelts, skulls, and feathers that are from local animals found in your county! This is a family friendly event. All ages welcome. Address: 1633 Burroughs Memorial Road, Roxbury, NY 12474.

On The Radio: WIOX Interviews Paul Misko

 

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To promote our Wild Saturday events at Woodchuck Lodge Paul Misko will be appearing on WIOX Radio tomorrow, Monday morning June 12th. The show is broadcast for an hour from 9am to 10am on Monday. Tune in at 9am to hear J.N. Urbanski’s interview with Paul.

Paul will be speaking at Woodchuck Lodge on August 5th at 1pm about Observational Hiking, something that John Burroughs encouraged whenever outdoors. He is founder of The Catskills 4000 Club and gives talks and writes articles on Catskill history, John Burroughs, and hiking. Paul provides a multi-media presentation of his hiking discoveries enhanced by his relevant anecdotes.

Free Tours of The Lodge, 1633 Burroughs Memorial Road, Roxbury, NY 12474.

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The Lodge is now open for the summer season! Tours of the Lodge are offered the first weekend of every month, May through October, Saturday and Sunday, 11-3pm. Click here to find a map of our location.

Reservations are not needed. Group tours on other dates are provided upon request with at least one month’s notice.

Please note: The Lodge is not wheelchair accessible.

Admission is free; donations towards the ongoing restoration of the house are warmly received.

After your tour, be sure to spend some time at John Burroughs Memorial Field State Historic Site a pleasant walk (or a short drive) up the road. An outdoor exhibit recounts highlights of Burroughs’ life and work. A marked path takes you to his burial place where you can sit on a rustic bench, or on the stone wall surrounding his grave, to drink in the wonderful view and savor the silence. John spent much time here in his youth, day-dreaming atop a boulder deposited by a glacier eons ago. Known as Boyhood Rock, it now marks his resting place, visited by pilgrims from all over the world.

Wild Saturdays: Catskill Fungi on May 6th, 2017

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Saturday May 6, 2017: Fungi Of The Catskills

This Saturday, John Michelotti, owner of Catskill Fungi and President of the Mid-Hudson Mycological Association, discusses the ecological functions of fungi, common edibles and medicinal mushrooms in the Catskills, as well as historic uses of fungi and present day research and innovations. Learn to easily grow mushrooms indoors or in your garden as companions to your plants this season. Find out more at CatskillFungi.com. This event takes place at Woodchuck Lodge, 1633 Burroughs Memorial Road, Roxbury, NY 12474.

Welcome to the Woodchuck Lodge Blog

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Welcome to Woodchuck Lodge’s brand new website. Stay tuned on the blog for the latest happenings in and around John Burroughs’ home and gravesite, a property that is conserved by a non-profit organization of the same name, devoted to preserving the lodge, headed by Bill Birns, a local Catskills historian.

The lodge opens to the public on May 5th with the first of our Wild Saturdays!