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Overnight Programs


Customize Your Group's Overnight Experience!

Overnight Programs Overview
Abbott's Mill Nature Center
Ashland Nature Center
Coverdale Farm Preserve


OVERNIGHT PROGRAMS OVERVIEW
Overnights with the Delaware Nature Society are a great kickoff or culminating activity for your group. Overnight programs include hands-on activities led by experienced naturalists. Create an exciting indoor/outdoor adventure including just the features you want! Each overnight program includes a night hike, campfire, morning walk and your choice of one Evening Program and your choice of one Field Study. Ask us about custom designed programs or check out our themed overnights for activities organized to take full advantage of seasonal natural history. Enjoy the fun and adventure of toasting marshmallows, discovering wildlife, and night hiking. Overnights are an experience everyone will always remember!


ABBOTT'S MILL NATURE CENTER OVERNIGHTS - Milford

Abbott's Mill Nature Center is a perfect place for first-time campers, but provides plenty to do for the more experienced. Each overnight program includes a campfire and camping, a morning nature walk and your choice of one Evening Program (see below) and your choice of one Field Trip.

Overnight Accommodations:
  • Campground with fire pit (tents/sleeping bags not included) or Nature Center available
  • Restrooms with running water a short distance from camp
  • Nature Center available for programs or activities (see below)
  • Refrigerator, microwave, and camp stoves available for use
Overnight Schedule

DAY 1
6:00 - 6:30 pm    Arrive & unpack
6:30 - 7:00 pm    Orientation
7:00 - 8:00 pm    Choice of Evening Program
8:00 - 9:00 pm    Night Hike
9:00 - 9:30 pm    Campfire

DAY 2
7:30 - 8:15 am    Morning Walk
9:00 - 11:00 am    Choice of Field Study
11:30 am    Depart

Evening Program Choices:

Astronomy
Learn how to use star charts, binoculars, and telescopes. Locate and identify stars, constellations, galaxies, and planets.

Nature Center Tour
Explore Abbott's Mill Nature Center to discover a variety of topics including Native Americans, Reptiles and Amphibians, Mammals, Waterfowl, Hawks and Owls, and much more. Make a take home nature craft.

Owls of Delaware
Discover the three common species of owls in Delaware as well as five rare species. Examine wings adapted for quiet flight and talons designed to seize prey. Learn and imitate vocalizations and pick apart an owl pellet to see what they eat. Note: Owl Pellets $1/participant.

Reptiles and Amphibians
Come face to face with the fascinating salamanders, frogs, turtles, lizards, and snakes that call Delaware home. Discover their adaptations that have made reptiles and amphibians such successful animals throughout the world.

Skulls and Skins
Use your detective skills to identify mammals by their skulls and skins. Discover the adaptations that differentiate herbivores, carnivores, and omnivores.

To register an Overnight program, contact Jason Beale, Manager by E-mail or call 302-422-0847


ASHLAND NATURE CENTER OVERNIGHTS - Hockessin

Based at the Overnight Lodge at Ashland Nature Center, each overnight program includes a night hike, campfire, morning walk and your choice of one Evening Program and your choice of one Field Trip program.

Overnight Accommodations:
  • Two dormitories with bunk beds for up to 72 people
  • Large, modern kitchen and appliances with all utensils
  • Great room w/fireplace, seats 80
  • Panoramic view
  • Restrooms with showers
  • Electrical generator to ensure comfort and safety
Overnight Schedule

DAY 1 6:00 - 6:30 pm    Arrive & unpack
6:30 - 7:00 pm    Orientation
7:00 - 8:00 pm    Evening Program
8:00 - 9:00 pm    Night Hike
9:00 - 9:30 pm    Campfire

DAY 2 7:30 - 8:15 am    Morning Walk
9:00 - 11:00 am    Field Study
11:30 am    Depart

Evening Program Choices:

Astronomy
Make your own star finder and learn how to use it. Climb Hawk Watch Hill for a breathtaking view of the heavens as you learn to identify stars, constellations, and planets.
Bats of America
Learn about these often misunderstood mammals while examining mounted specimens and viewing slides. Outside, visit a Bat House and use a bat detector to listen for echolocation calls.
Nocturnal Animals
No telling what creatures you might meet on a dark night. Discover night life in nature through meeting feathered, furry and scaled, live and taxidermy animals.
Themed Overnight Program
Themed overnights include special activities and a theme-related craft in addition to the standard night hike, campfire, and morning walk. Choose from among our themed program listings below:

Themed Overnight Schedule:

DAY 1
6:00 - 6:30 pm    Arrive & unpack
6:30 - 7:00 pm    Orientation
7:00 - 8:00 pm    Themed Program
8:00 - 9:00 pm    Night Hike
9:00 - 9:30 pm    Campfire

DAY 2
7:30 - 8:30 am    Morning Walk
9:30 - 11:30 am    Hike/ Activities/ Craft
12:00 pm    Depart

Themed Overnight Program Options

Owl Prowl (January & February)
Beautiful, spooky, wise, ominous...Since ancient times, humans have associated owls with many different, often contradictory qualities. Learn the myths and truths about these creatures. Discover the secret of owl ears and what we have in common with owl eyes. Listen to owl calls and use recordings to attract one close to us during a night hike. Dissect an owl pellet to discover what these silent hunters eat. View live and taxidermy owl prey up close and see how your senses stack up against an owl's. Create a unique craft to take home.

Maple Sugaring (February)
What does a maple tree look like? How did local animals help Native Americans discover its sweet secret? Find out the answers as you "Meet the Tree", learn about the winter habits of some of Ashland's live animal collection, and try your hand at drilling, tapping, and boiling down sap to syrup. Compare the flavors of maple and other syrups during a taste test, hear a story of "backyard sugarin'", and compete in the "Winter Clothes Relay".

Spring Chorus (Late March - Early May)
Meet live amphibians, listen to frog and toad calls, go on a night hunt for amphibians and their eggs; and become a "citizen scientist" during an Ashland Frogwatch survey. After an early-morning birding walk, join in on games of "Fill the Bill" and "Bird Behavior Bingo", a Signs of Spring hike, and make a special take-home craft.

Birds, Bees, & Butterflies (June - September)
Explore habitats where birds are nesting and raising young, flowers are blooming, and insects are buzzing. Search Ashland's meadows for butterflies, caterpillars, and other insects; join a "Birding with Binoculars" hike, and visit the Butterfly House. Learn who eats what and help collect food for resident caterpillars. Discover the secrets of attracting birds and beneficial (and beautiful!) insects to your own yard, and get a head start by taking home a plant that these creatures love.

Lenape Lifeways (Year-round)
The native Lenni Lenape depended on the natural world for everything in their lives. Experience life as they did. Hear stories from the people of "Turtle Island" and hike to a replica wigwam while tracking the animals and finding the plants that made their survival possible. Dress in Lenape clothing, examine tools and artifacts, whittle and crack nuts with stone tools, and make a clay pot.

To register an Overnight program at Ashland, contact Glynne Nagle, Education Assistant by E-mail or call 302-239-2334, ext. 110.


COVERDALE FARM PRESERVE OVERNIGHTS (Late May - September only) - Greenville

Jump into the farm cycles of life! Discover the basics of animal husbandry with daily chores at Coverdale Farm Preserve. Milk the dairy cow and bottle-feed the calves; feed and water chickens and chicks; feed the sheep their grain and the pigs their grain and milk. Dig into the garden and crop fields to seed, weed, and harvest the seasonal plants. Make a farm-based lunch and hike from farm to forest. This Overnight begins at Ashland Nature Center Lodge with a night hike and a popcorn snack from corn grown at Coverdale and butter you make yourself. Pack up your vehicles after breakfast the following morning and caravan over to the farm for a day of fun! (maximum 25 participants).

Overnight Accommodations at the Ashland Lodge:
  • Two dormitories with bunk beds
  • Large, modern kitchen and appliances with all utensils
  • Great room w/fireplace
  • Panoramic view
  • Restrooms with showers
  • Electrical generator to ensure comfort and safety
Coverdale Farm Preserve Overnight Schedule

DAY 1
6:00 - 6:30 pm    Arrive & unpack
6:30 - 7:00 pm    Orientation
7:00 - 8:00 pm    Butter/Popcorn-making
8:00 - 9:00 pm    Night Hike
9:00 - 9:30 pm    Campfire

DAY 2
7:00 - 8:45 am    Breakfast, cleanup, pack, drive to Coverdale Farm Preserve
9:00 - 10:30 am    Farm chores
10:30 - 11:30 am    Gardening
11:30 - 12:30 pm    Cleanup, lunch preparation
12:30 - 1:00 pm    Lunch
1:00 - 1:45 pm    Farm to Forest hike
2:00 pm    Depart

To register a Coverdale Farm Preserve Overnight program, contact Glynne Nagle, Education Assistant by E-mail or call 302-239-2334, ext. 110.

General Information
Field Trip Programs
(c) 2009 Delaware Nature Society, PO Box 700, Hockessin, DE 19707 (302) 239-2334             E-mail Us!