Description: Summer In The Park, Week of July 6-12
Location: Warriors Path State Park
Come enjoy a week full of natural fun! You and your family can explore high and wide, listen to nature day and night, play and wonder outdoors, and much more. And it's all free!
Here is the detailed schedule for the week:
MONDAY, JULY 6
6:30 PM TREE PRINTS - “Ordinary” tree leaves come in such extraordinary shapes and textures. We can capture these patterns with ink and paper. Come make a leaf souvenir at the main bath house.
9:00 PM GRANDFATHER TALES - Evening is a perfect time to share a story! Come and hear the stories that Grandfathers have told for generations at the Campfire Circle (east end of the campground) or the main bath house if it is raining.
TUESDAY, JULY 7
9:00 AM FALL CREEK LOOP TRAIL -Let’s hike the park’s most scenic trail! Enjoy beautiful vistas of the summer fields, as we search for signs of the unique habitats in the open country. Drive to the camp store, and we’ll carpool to the start of a two hour hike.
10:00 AM BUTTER CHURNING - Early settlers had no WalMart or Food City! How did they get butter for their bread? Meet at the Open Air Chapel to try an old-timey life skill. If it’s raining, meet at the main bath house.
11:30 AM JUNIOR RANGERS: TRAIL SAFETY - Let’s keep our Junior Rangers safe out on the trail. Learn to enjoy a great hike, and to keep yourself and nature as safe as possible. Meet at the main bath house.
1:30 PM OH DEER- Oh Dear a deer! Let’s find what a deer needs to survive. Join us at the Open-air Chapel, or main bathhouse if it is raining.
3:30 PM TREE FRISBEE - Come have a flying good time, and find out more about park trees at the same time! Meet at the Open Air Chapel. We have plenty of extra frisbees!
5:00 PM TREE COOKIES - Let’s read a small slice of nature! The inside of a tree holds many clues to the outside of the land! Meet at the Open Air Chapel, or main bath house if it is raining.
6:00 PM HIKE THE “DARWIN’S REVENGE” TRAIL - It may have a very strange name, but it is an awesome trail! Come spend several hours in one of the most beautiful and wildest parts of the park. Be sure to wear good walking shoes and bring drinking water. Meet at the park’s Mountain Bike Trail parking lot (at the end of Freeman Road, Blountville )
9:00 PM TENNESSEE SEASONS, TENNESSEE WILDLIFE - Enjoy a tour of all four seasons in the hills of Tennessee. With words and pictures, we will experience the excitement of year-round discovery. After the slide show, one of our “Wildlife Ambassadors” will share a lesson on Wildlife Tracking and reading “Critter Signs.” Meet at the Open Air Chapel, or main bath house if it is raining.
WEDNESDAY, JULY 8
9:00 AM HABITAT MEANS HOME - Let’s hike the Devil’s Backbone Trail, and look for clues about who is “at home” in this rich and rugged habitat. This is a steep and rocky trail, be sure to wear sturdy hiking footwear and bring some water. Drive to the camp store, and we’ll carpool
10:00 AM LAKE SHORE ROUNDUP - We can help wildlife, and clean up their home at the same time! If they could talk, the critters would say "THANK YOU!!" Meet at the main bath house.
11:30 AM BIRD BINGO - Discover new insights into our unique and different feathered friends. Afterwards, you’ll use your newfound knowledge to win a game of bird bingo. Meet at Open Air Chapel. In case of rain, meet at the main bath house.
2:00 PM BUTTERFLY WATCHING - Summer days are bright with these fantastic flyers! Come share exciting discoveries as we watch these lovely bugs. Meet at the camp store.
3:00 PM TAG - You’re it! You’re the one we need to make all these great tag games work. Meet at the Open Air Chapel for all kinds of tag games. If it is raining, meet at the main bath house.
5:00 PM PAW PAW PATROL - Have you heard of Paw Paw trees? Let’s go “way down yonder to the Paw Paw patch!” We’ll discover more about this amazing native fruit tree. Join the “Paw Paw Patrol” along the trail. Meet at the camp store.
6:00 PM MEET THE OWL - Meet a REAL LIVE feathered hunter, and learn his fascinating life story. Come to the Open Air Chapel and see “whooo...” is waiting for you. If it is raining, meet at the main bath house.
7:00 PM HOLSTON BLUFFS RAILROAD TOUR - Our park is tied to history through the rails! Let's hike the old railroad grade, and hear the stories of these old railroaders' lives. Meet at the Moody Bluff Campground entrance.
9:00 PM NIGHT VISION - How does night vision work? Meet at the Open Air Chapel to “look into” this amazing tool for us, and for our nocturnal neighbors. (in case of rain, meet at the main bath house.)
THURSDAY, JULY 9
8:00 AM BREAKFAST WITH THE BIRDS - Come wake up to our feathered neighbors. Meet at the main bath house to begin a stroll through bird country! (The first 12 people to come get free doughnut & juice!)
9:30 AM WHITETAIL HIKE - Come investigate some deer habitat, and find out more about their special place in our region’s natural and human history. We might even spot some deer “at home” in their habitat. Meet at the camp store, and we’ll carpool
2:00 PM PINE CONE BIRD FEEDERS - Let’s make a snack for our feathered friends! Meet at the main bath house, and you’ll be able to bring back home your own little bird feeder.
4:00 PM SOIL STUDIES - It’s not just plain old “dirt!” Come “dig into” some new discoveries about the soil beneath our feet. Meet at the Open Air Chapel.
5:00 PM CORN HUSK CRAFTS - The early settlers along the Warriors' Path couldn't afford to waste anything! Even old corn husks could become a doll or toy. Meet at the Open Air Chapel to try this old-timey craft. If it's raining, meet at the main bath house.
6:00 PM NOISY TOYS - How did the pioneer children make music or noise? Make your very own “musical” instrument with a few simple things from nature. Meet at the Open Air Chapel to create some “beautiful music.” In case of rain, meet at the main bath house.
7:00 PM “INVADERS” AMONG US - Discover more about the dangers of invasive plant and animal species by playing a nature game about these invaders. Meet at the Open Air Chapel, or main bath house if it’s raining.
8:00 PM THE WARRIORS’ PATH - Why was our park named “Warriors’ Path?” Take a short hike to find out more. Meet at the main bath house.
9:00 PM NIGHT SOUNDS - Nature is full of sounds when the sun goes down! Some seem eerie, but there’s no need to be nervous. Come find out whose noise is whose. Meet at the Open Air Chapel for a short slide show of the creatures who “talk” in the night! (At the main bath house if it is raining.) NOTE - there will be a special NIGHT SOUNDS contest for children after the show.
FRIDAY, JULY 10
10:00 AM PAW PRINT BOOKLETS - Create your own personalized booklets, using local animal’s tracks! Your unique design is only a “footstep” away. Meet at the main bath house.
11:30 AM WEB OF LIFE - Every living thing is part of the web! Help us get really “tied up” in our work as we build our own living web. You’ll see natural places like you’ve never seen them before! Meet at the Open Air Chapel, or main bath house if it is raining.
3:00 PM ANIMAL TALES - Sit back and enjoy some legends and tales about our wild neighbors. Be prepared to share your own “critter story” if you’d like. Meet at the Open Air Chapel, or main bath house if it is raining.
4:30 PM TURTLE TALK - Meet a real, live “shelled friend” and find out more about their amazing lives. Join our “wildlife ambassador” at the Open Air Chapel, or main bath house if it is raining.
6:00 PM OLD TIMEY GAMES - Enjoy some good-old fun! Try some games from the early settlement days of East Tennessee. Meet at the Open Air Chapel, or main bath house if it’s raining.
7:00 PM NON-FLOWERING PLANTS RAMBLE - Not every green growing thing makes flowers! Come visit some of the ferns, mosses, and other non-flowering plants in the park. Meet at the main bath house to begin our walk.
8:00 PM EVENING STROLL - Let’s wake up our senses to evening in the forest. Meet at the main bath house for a short, refreshing hike.
9:00 PM TENNESSEE TALES - Enjoy new insights into Tennessee Folklife as we share some good-old traditional tall tales. Meet at the Open Air Chapel, or main bath house if it rains.
SATURDAY, JULY 11
9:00 AM HIKE THE BONEYARD - Come explore a remote corner of Warriors’ Path, full of geologic discovery. This will be a challenging 2-3 mile hike, so be sure to wear comfortable clothes, good hiking shoes, and bring some drinking water. Meet at the park’s Mountain Bike parking lot, at the end of Freeman Road, Blountville TN.
2:00 PM MAGNIFYING GLASS STROLL - Use your eyes and some handy little magnifiers to get a close look at nature's amazing details. Meet at the main bath house to begin a short discovery walk.
2:00 PM MAGNIFYING GLASS STROLL - Use your eyes and some handy little magnifiers to get a close look at nature's amazing details. Meet at the main bath house to begin a short discovery walk.
4:00 PM JUNIOR RANGERS: TRAIL CLEANUP - Make our park a cleaner, healthier environment! You’ll make a big difference for our earth, and begin to earn your Junior Ranger badge. Meet at the main bath house. Be prepared to get dirty!
5:30 PM OLD-TIME WEATHER SAYINGS - Do wooly worms really predict winter weather? Find out about our region’s weather forecasting traditions. Meet at the Open Air Chapel, or main bath house if it rains.
8:00 PM SUNSET HIKE - Watch the sun go down across the green hills. Drive to the camp store, and we’ll carpool. This is a short, but rather steep hike. Bring a flashlight for the walk back down.
SUNDAY, JULY 12
9:00 AM WORSHIP SERVICE - Enjoy a peaceful morning worship service at the Open Air Chapel, or at the pool entrance if it is raining. Sponsored by Fall Creek Baptist Church.
Program Host: Marty Silver
Contact Email: marty.silver@tn.gov
Contact Phone: 423-239-6786