September 2010 Events
Sign Up Now!! Climb Trees for Fun on Saturday, September 18th!
Riveredge Master Naturalist Series
Adult Program
Thursday, September 2, 9 – 3pm, Climate and Wisconsin’s Glacial Landscape
Designed for new and experienced naturalists, these programs provide foundational training in ecology, natural history, and living systems. Through hands-on activities you’ll explore the landscape while gaining experience in teaching methods, program design, field study techniques and experimental methods. Sign up for one or all of the sessions. Visit
www.riveredge.us for more details or call 262-375-2715.
Fee: $25/session
Family Overnight at Riveredge
Family Program
Exploring the Night Sky, Saturday, September 4, 5 pm – Sunday, September 5, 9 am
Join a Riveredge Naturalist for a unique opportunity to experience Riveredge after hours. Spend the evening exploring the trails, looking for night creatures, catching fireflies, or relaxing at the campfire. Pitch your tent on the Riveredge lawn and slumber to the sound of the night choir. Bring a picnic supper, and in the morning you’ll enjoy pancakes on the campfire with Riveredge maple syrup. Each family is limited to one tent. Pre-registration required.
Fee: $55 per Family
Members: $40 per Family
Labor Day: Riveredge Nature Center Building Closed
Second Annual Bird Identification Challenge
Riveredge Bird Club & Lecture Series
Tuesday, September 7, Hike 6pm, Program 7–8:30pm
Test your Wisconsin bird identification skills by attending this action packed power point program. Learn from lively discussion the techniques other birders use to tell hard to identify species apart. It’s ok to bring a bird book if you think you’ll need one. Fee: Free
Planting a Rainbow
Nature Tots: environmental education for children ages 3-5
Wednesday, September 8, 10–11:30am
Discover all the colors of the rainbow both above and below the soil in the organic garden. Join us as we smell, touch, and taste the different colors. Crunch on a carrot or bite into a bean as we read a book, Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert.
Pre-registration suggested.
Fee: Adult $6, Nature Tots $4
Member: Adult $4, Nature Tots $3
How to Manage Large-Scale Grassland Burns with Marty Johnson
Riveredge Speaks Out
Wednesday, September 8, 7pm at the Washington County PAC
Marty Johnson, a Wildlife Biologist with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, covers Kenosha, Racine and the Southern ½ of Milwaukee Counties. He serves as a burn boss leading controlled burns on properties such as Richard Bong Recreation Area (Important Bird Area) and the Chiwaukee Prairie State Natural Area. He is also a member of the Wisconsin DNR Prescribed Burn Team, a team that is helping to restructure the prescribed burn program in the state. For two summers during his college days he worked for the US Forest Service in California and worked on a few hand crews fighting forest fires.
Controlled burns are an essential management tool for maintaining our remaining fire-dependent natural areas. In Controlled burns: What happens before the match is lit? Marty will describe the nuts and bolts of conducting a controlled burn. As the world keeps changing, many of our wild areas are being encroached upon by development making burning more complicated. As a result many aspects of a burn must be planned and considered before the match can be lit. Topics to be covered: What goes into setting up a controlled burn (e.g., burn plan, firebreaks, etc.)? What is considered when planning a burn- biologically, socially, and environmentally? How is the actual burn carried out? See Riveredge’s Website for location details.
Fee: Free, suggested donation $5
Pizza Pizza
Food For Thought: Cooking with Kids (ages 6-16)
Friday, September 10, 5–8pm
We will start from scratch making our own pizza dough and sauce. We’ll then load up our individual pizzas with our favorite toppings. A fresh salad and homemade honey ginger lemonade will round out the meal. Class size: 12. Space is limited! Call 262-375-2715 to reserve your spot!
Fee: Adult $8, Child $6
Member: Adult $6, Child $4
Harvest Picnic
Family Program
Saturday, September 11, 5-7pm
Celebrate the harvest season with a potluck picnic! Bring a vegetarian dish to pass and join friends and family for good conversation, delicious seasonal food, and exploration in the Riveredge children’s garden and natural playground.
Fee: Free
Riveredge Hiking Club
Saturday, September 11 (rain date, Sunday, September 12)
Introductory Navigation Course – North Kettle Moraine Hike
A joint adventure between Riveredge and Sierra Club's Great Water's Group. A simple, in-the-field approach to basic navigation with map and compass (+ GPS if you have one). A full day's hike/instruction. Meet at 9:27am at Greenbush Trails (possibility of carpool(s) from Riveredge/Milwaukee area). Saturday preferred unless bad weather predicted or to accommodate an overflow number of participants. Contact leader early to receive paperwork via snail mail ($3). Maximum of 8 participants/day. Ron Horn: 262-675-6747 or ronhorn7@yahoo.com.
Sustainability Workshop: Green Building – with Rick Walker, Sr. Vice President, Sustainability Services at Transwestern and Sue Loomans, Executive Director of the Wisconsin Green Building Alliance
Wednesday, September 15, 6:30-8pm at Riveredge
The focus on green is creating demand for sustainability in the design and construction of new buildings and the operations and maintenance of existing buildings. We will examine how these sustainable solutions are being implemented and how products and services are changing to meet changing market demand. Bring your questions and your friends.
Click Here for More Details! Fee: Free, suggested donation $5
Meet Me in the Tree House
Children’s Story Hour
Thursday, September 16, 10:30-Noon
We will have fun doing some indoor and outdoor science experiments geared for the little ones. So meet at the outdoor tree house and we will go from there. A snack will be included, but feel free to bring a bag lunch for a picnic with the other participants. Appropriate for ages 3-5, but all ages will enjoy it! Please dress accordingly.
Fee: Adult $6, Child $4
Members: Adult $4, Child $3
Climb Trees for Fun
Family Program
Saturday, September 18, 12-3pm
Experience a tree from a new perspective – the top! Gear up with climbing equipment and take tree climbing to new heights under the guidance of trained facilitators. Fun for children 4 and up; adults too! All equipment is provided, but we advise wearing long pants and sensible footwear. Visit
Climb Trees 4 Fun website for additional information. P
articipants will need to sign up for a specific time to climb when they register for the program. Climbing starts at noon, and groups of 4-6 people will be staggered every ½ hour. The last climbs will begin at 3:00pm lasting until 4:00 or 4:30pm. Attention: A waiver form for each child must be signed by a parent/guardian and presented to RNC staff on the day of the climb. Please print out these pdf forms, complete both and bring with you on the day of the event. (
Liability Form;
Agreement and Photo Release.) Pre-registration required.
Fee: $12 per climber
Member: $10 per climber
Beginning Wine Making
Food For Thought
Monday, September 20, 6:30-8:30pm
Erin Ortiz, wine expert and coinsurer, will give us the ins and outs small batch wine making. Late summer and fall is abundant with fruits just ripe and ready to be made into wine. She'll also bring a few samples of the wines she has created.
Fee:Adult $12, Members $10
Climate Change and Global Warming with Norm Lasca
Riveredge Speaks Out
Tuesday, September 21, 7pm at the Cedarburg Cultural Center
Fee: Free, suggested donation $5
Project RED (Riverine Early Detectors)Training Workshop
Adult Program
Wednesday, September 22, 8:45–11:45am at Riveredge
Wisconsin’s rivers are vulnerable to invasion by a number of invasive species from Eurasian milfoil to Japanese knotweed. The key to successfully protecting your river is detecting invasives early when it is still possible to isolate or eradicate the infestation. The longer we wait to find them and fight them, the more money and time it will take. Volunteers like you are invaluable for early detection.
Contact Mary Holleback at 262-375-2715/maryh@riveredge.us if you have questions or would like to sign up.
Fee: Free, $5 donation suggested
Great Outdoors Weekend
Family Program
Saturday, September 25, 1-3pm
The Great Outdoors Weekend was started by a group of environmental education and outdoor recreation organizations to draw children outside with a diverse sampling of the best nature activities in the Greater Milwaukee area. The weekend will give visitors a chance to take part in fun, outdoor events at any of the participating “green spaces” in the Milwaukee area. For a complete list of programs and locations, visit
www.greatoutdoorsweekendsewi.org.
Come to Riveredge and hike the trails for FREE from dawn to dusk, or join us for these activities.
Saturday, September 25, 1-3pm
Celebrate fall by bringing the entire family to this fun-filled afternoon of FREE educational opportunities.
Experience a treasure hunt designed for all ages through our beautiful trails.
Wander the paths of the Riveredge Organic Garden and nibble on fresh veggies.
Check out one of our self-guided Adventure Packs and explore the trails at your own pace.
Explore the Children’s Natural Play Area or relax in the Children’s Nature Library with a good book.
Pizzas of the World
Food For Thought
Sunday, September 26, 1–4pm
The basis of any good pizza is a quality, authentic crust. Learn Tim Thomas’ easy tips and become an expert in making homemade pizza in this fun and educational class. These are skills you will use your whole life! Pizzas will be assembled from the regions surrounding the Mediterranean including Spain, Italy, Greece and even North Africa.
Class size -12
Fee: $27
Photographers Anonymous
Tuesday, September 28, 7 -8:30 pm
The Photo Club brings together those who enjoy photography and wish to take better pictures through practice. Held at Riveredge on the last Tuesday of every month.
Fee: Free
Meet Me in the Tree House
Children’s Story Hour
Thursday, September 30, 10:30-Noon
We will have fun doing some indoor and outdoor science experiments geared for the little ones. So meet at the outdoor tree house and we will go from there. A snack will be included, but feel free to bring a bag lunch for a picnic with the other participants. Appropriate for ages 3-5, but all ages will enjoy it! Please dress accordingly.
Fee: Adult $6, Child $4
Members: Adult $4, Child $3
