Kern Valley Spring Nature Festival   2007 Spring Nature Activities at a Glance  

Activities and Trips    2007 All Day Trip Descriptions   Spring Nature Bird List

NatureFest Workshops     Events only at KRP    NatureFest 5K/10K Run

NatureFest Photo Contest   River Cleanup     Youth Essay Contest     

Accommodations  Travel Information and Maps

FRIDAY April 27     SATURDAY, April 28     SUNDAY April 29     MONDAY April 30

Come celebrate Spring in the Kern River Valley

Welcome to the 13th Annual Kern River Valley Spring Nature Festival and Earth Day Celebration. On Saturday and Sunday find many events at AUDUBON-CALIFORNIA’S Kern River Preserve, 18747 Hwy 178, Weldon, bird walks led by Kerncrest Audubon Society volunteers, bird banding by the Southern Sierra Research Station, and on Saturday only information booths and exhibits are found in Circle Park, Kernville.

COLORING CONTEST: Kids see the Kern Valley Sun's free community newspaper on March 28th for the Kern Valley Spring Nature Festival coloring contest. Win a ribbon to be awarded Saturday night April 28 at the Nature Festival dinner. See contest entry rules here.

PHOTO CONTEST: Enter our 1st Annual Nature Festival Photo Contest for prestige and a ribbon. See our contest entry page for official rules. Final judging at Friday and Saturday evening's nature festival dinners and programs. Awards on Saturday night.

ESSAY CONTEST: Kid's enter the Kern River Courier's nature essay contest. Rules are posted here. Winner's get a ribbon and 1st place winners in each category get to read their essay at the beginning of Saturday night's program.

BUTTERFLY IDENTIFICATION CONTEST: Find the Kern Valley Nature Events postcard and correctly identify the butterflies on the front to be entered into a drawing for Fred Heath's book "An Introduction to Butterflies of Southern California".

Trip Leaders to Date: Bob Barnes, Tom Edell, Gary File, Joe Fontaine, Mary Freeman, Nick Freeman, Wes Fritz, Fred Heath, Lee Jones, Kerncrest Audubon Society members, Fletcher Linton, Dan Lockshaw, Michael McQuerrey, Gary Potter, Roy Poucher, John Schmitt, Jeff Seay, Alison Sheehey, Steve Sosensky, Southern Sierra Research Station staff, Bob Steele, Susan Steele, Lee Sutton, and Reed Tollefson.

FEES:  Trip Costs: One trip - $40, Two trips - $75, Three or four trips - $100, Five trips $125. Owling trips (separate fee) - $20. Please show up for the trip at least 5 minutes before departure time.

WHERE TO MEET:  Unless otherwise noted, field trips will start and end at Riverside Park across from Riverside One Stop (Shell gas station), Kernville or Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. Be sure to check the festival schedule carefully to determine exactly where your field trip starts and ends.

WHAT TO BRING: All trips will be via private car caravan. Carpooling is highly encouraged. Bring food and water to last all day. Bring comfortable walking shoes and layered clothing for weather that may range from cloudless to rainy and cold to hot. If possible, bring two-way radios for inter-car communication.

ITINERARIES: Kern River Valley & Southern Sierra Nevada consists of several trips, leaders, and destinations. Destinations include combinations from among: Canebrake Ecological Reserve, Chimney Peak National Backcountry Byway, Giant Sequoia National Monument (depending on snow pack), Greenhorn Mountains, Isabella Reservoir, Kelso Valley Road (including Audubon's Kelso Creek Sanctuary), Kern River Preserve, Kern River Valley west side, Onyx (Scodie Park), Piute Mountains, and Walker's Pass. In addition, all day fee-based birding and natural history field trips coordinated by Bob Barnes & Associates and led by expert birders and naturalists are available for reservation Friday-Monday. Trip cost includes personalized trip planning services (E-mail: krpfriends@lightspeed.net).

Click this link for maps and travel information.

Click here for Hotel and Camping Information. The Kernville Chamber of Commerce also can provide lodging information call (760) 376-2629.

THURSDAY April 26th

NEW in 2007!!!!! 5:45 am - 3 pm, Butterbredt Spring & East Kern Desert Oases. Meet at Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. FEE

 TRIP FULL!!!!! NEW in 2007!!!!! 6 am - 3 pm, Cottonwood-Willow Riparian, Great Basin, & Mojave Desert Spring Birding: Le Conte's Thrasher & More! Meet at the Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. FEE

FRIDAY April 27th

RETURNS in 2007!!!!! BIRDERS' COOPERATIVE BIG DAY ... A modified Big Day style of all day birding. The goal will be to see as many species as possible while enjoying them as well. Bring food & water to last all day. All field trips involve carpooling. Sign-up for one of the following:

 TRIP FULL!!!!! NEW in 2007!!!!! 5:45 am - 3 pm, Butterbredt Spring & East Kern Desert Oases. Meet at Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. FEE

 TRIP FULL!!!!! NEW in 2007!!!!! 6 am - 3 pm, Inyokern west to the Kern River Valley: Le Conte's Thrasher & More! Meet at the Union 76 Station in Inyokern. FEE

 TRIP FULL!!!!! NEW in 2007!!!!! 7 am - 3pm, Chaparral, Oak Foothill, & Mixed Conifer Spring Birding. Meet at Riverside Park across from Riverside One Stop (Shell gas station) in Kernville. FEE

7 am - 3 pm, Kern National Wildlife Refuge east to the Kern River Valley via Greenhorn Summit. Meet at the Kern National Wildlife Refuge located in the San Joaquin Valley, 19 miles west of Delano at the west end of Garces Highway. FEE

 TRIP FULL!!!!! 7 am - 3 pm, Kern River Valley/Southern Sierra Nevada Spring Birding. Several trips, several leaders, several destinations (Trip planning services will be provided to avoid duplication one day to the next.). Meet at Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. FEE

 TRIP FULL!!!!! NEW in 2007!!!!! 6 pm - 10 pm, Low Country Owling (Try for Barn, Western Screech, Great Horned, Burrowing, Long-eared). Meet at Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. FEE

 TRIP FULL!!!!! NEW in 2007!!!!! 6 pm - 10/11 pm, High Country Owling (Try for Western Screech, Northern Pygmy, Spotted, Northern Saw-whet). Meet at Riverside Park across from Riverside One Stop (Shell gas station) in Kernville. FEE

SATURDAY, April 28th

 TRIP FULL!!!!! 5:45 am - 3 pm, Butterbredt Spring & East Kern Desert Oases. Meet at Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. FEE

 TRIP FULL!!!!! NEW in 2007!!!!! 6 am - 3 pm, Cottonwood-Willow Riparian, Great Basin, & Mojave Desert Spring Birding: Le Conte's Thrasher & More! Meet at the Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. FEE

7 am - 3 pm, Kern River Valley/Southern Sierra Nevada Spring Birding. Several trips, several leaders, several destinations (Trip planning services will be provided). Meet at Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. FEE

7 am - Noon Bird Banding Demonstration at Kern River Preserve.  FREE

8 am - 10 am Spring Nature Run 10K/ 5K. Start from Whiskey Flat Trailhead, Burlando Road, Kernville. FEE

8 am-Noon Hillsides in Bloom: Wildflower Walk. Meet at Riverside Park across from Riverside One Stop (Shell gas station) in Kernville. Carpool. Trip Limit: FEE

RETURNING IN 2007!!!  8am-1:30pm. Geology of the Southern Sierra. Meet at Riverside Park across from Riverside One Stop (Shell gas station) in Kernville, for carpooling. Trip Limit. FEE

9 am - 11 am Kern River Preserve Beginning Birdwatching. Led by Kerncrest Audubon Society volunteers. Meet at the Information table at the Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. FREE

9 am - 11 am Habitat enhancements and stewardship at the Kern River Preserve.  FREE.

NEW in 2007!!!!! 10 am - 11 am. Hiking and Biking Safety in Mountain Lion Country. Sequoia National Forest's Kernville office. FREE

10 am - 3 pm  An Introduction to the Butterflies of the Kern River Valley. Meet at 9:45am at Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. Carpooling. Binoculars helpful. Bring a sack lunch & water. FEE: $10.

10 am - 4 pm Children’s Activities at the Kern River Preserve. Charlotte Goodson Nature crafts, storytelling, live snakes & frogs. FREE

10 am - 4 pm Kern River Preserve Festival Headquarters, Kern River Preserve, Weldon: Children’s activities, Information, Educational & Interactive Exhibits, Field Trip Departures, Live animals, Music and more. FREE (Donations welcome).

10 am - 4 pm Kern Valley Museum. FREE (Donations welcome).

10 am - 4 pm Live Native Amphibians & Reptiles, Herp-Ecology. Kern River Preserve Headquarters. FREE

10 am - 4 pm Kern River Fish Hatchery Trout Festival. Kernville. FREE (Donations welcome).

10 am - 4 pm Paiute Nuui Cunni Cultural Center (Native American) French Gulch, Wofford Heights. FREE (Donations welcome).

10 am - 5 pm CIRCLE PARK FESTIVAL HEADQUARTERS, Circle Park, Kernville: Information, Educational & Interactive Exhibits. Informational displays, live animals, music, and more. FREE.

NEW in 2007!!!!! 3:30 pm - 5 pm, Advanced Bird Photography Workshop with Bob Steele. Learn how to photograph birds in flight. FEE

 TRIP FULL!!!!! RETURNS in 2007!!!!! 6 pm - 10 pm, Low Country Owling (Try for Barn, Western Screech, Great Horned, Burrowing, Long-eared). Meet at Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. FEE

 TRIP FULL!!!!! NEW in 2007!!!!! 6 pm - 10/11 pm, High Country Owling (Try for Western Screech, Northern Pygmy, Spotted, Northern Saw-whet). Meet at Riverside Park across from Riverside One Stop (Shell gas station) in Kernville. FEE

SUNDAY, April 29th

NOTE: Most Sunday workshops are held at the Kern River Preserve: read where to meet carefully.

 TRIP FULL!!!!! 5:45 am - 3 pm, Butterbredt Spring & East Kern Desert Oases. Meet at Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. FEE

NEW in 2007!!!!! 6 am - 3 pm, Cottonwood-Willow Riparian, Great Basin, & Mojave Desert Spring Birding: Le Conte's Thrasher & More! Meet at the Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. FEE

7 am - Noon Bird Banding Demonstration at Kern River Preserve. Join volunteers from the Southern Sierra Research Station. Learn how banding is used to conserve birds, listen to the heartbeat of a bird and otherwise observe birds up close & personal. FREE

7 am - 3 pm, Kern River Valley/Southern Sierra Nevada Spring Birding. Several trips, several leaders, several destinations (Trip planning services will be provided). Meet at Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. FEE

7 am - 5 pm or later, Natural History of the Kern River Watershed Meet at Kern River Preserve Headquarters for carpooling. FEE

9 am - 11 am, Kern River Preserve Beginning Birdwatching. Led by Kerncrest Audubon Society volunteers . Meet at the Information table at the Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. FREE

 TRIP FULL!!!!! NEW in 2007!!!!! 10 am - 3 pm  An Introduction to the Butterflies of the Kern River Valley. Meet at 9:45am at Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. Carpooling. Binoculars helpful. Bring a sack lunch & water. FEE: $10.

10 am - 4 pm Children’s Activities at the Kern River Preserve. Nature crafts, storytelling, live snakes & frogs. FREE

10 am - 4 pm Kern River Preserve Headquarters. Kern River Preserve, Weldon: Children’s activities, Information, Educational & Interactive Exhibits, Field Trip Departures, Live animals, and more. FREE (Donations welcome).  

10 am - 4 pm Kern Valley Museum. 49 Big Blue Road. FREE (Donations welcome).

10 am - 4 pm Live Native Amphibians & Reptiles. Kern River Preserve. Educational presentations throughout the day by HerpEcology. On display will be a wide variety of California reptiles and amphibians. FREE

10 am - 4 pm Paiute Nuui Cunni Cultural Center (Native American) French Gulch, Wofford Heights. For more information, call (760) 549-0800. FREE (Donations welcome).

 TRIP FULL!!!!! RETURNS in 2007!!!!! 6 pm - 10 pm, Low Country Owling (Try for Barn, Western Screech, Great Horned, Burrowing, Long-eared). Meet at Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. FEE

MONDAY April 30th

 TRIP FULL!!!!! NEW in 2007!!!!! 5:45 am - 3 pm, Butterbredt Spring & East Kern Desert Oases. Meet at Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. FEE

6:30 am - 3 pm, Kern River Valley to Kern National Wildlife Refuge via the Kern River Canyon. Meet at the Park-'N-Ride located on the north side of Hwys. 155 and 178 in Lake Isabella. FEE

 TRIP FULL!!!!! NEW in 2007!!!!! 6 am - 3 pm.  Cottonwood-Willow Riparian, Great Basin, & Mojave Desert Spring Birding w. Bob Barnes. Meet at the Kern River Preserve Headquarters in Weldon. FEE

 TRIP FULL!!!!! NEW in 2007!!!!! 7 am - 3 pm.  Chaparral, Oak Foothill, & Mixed Conifer Spring Birding. Meet at Riverside Park across from Riverside One Stop (Shell gas station) in Kernville. FEE

SPRING NATURE FESTIVAL FIELD TRIPS

This year's SPRING NATURE FESTIVAL will feature Friday through Monday Kern River Valley and Southern Sierra Nevada birding and natural history field trips. Destinations will include the GLOBALLY IMPORTANT BIRD AREAS of the Kern River Preserve, Sequoia National Forest, and South Fork Valley. The NATIONALLY IMPORTANT BIRD AREA of Butterbredt Spring will also be a destination. Let experts lead you to experience the region's "among the best in the west" bird migration and natural history phenomena. There is no better time to capture this experience than the end of April. Visit SPRING NATURE FESTIVAL web pages periodically as new field trips will likely be added between now and SPRING NATURE FESTIVAL weekend itself.

Trip Leaders: Bob Barnes, Tom Edell, Gary File, Joe Fontaine, Mary Freeman, Nick Freeman, Wes Fritz, Fred Heath, Lee Jones, Kerncrest Audubon Society members, Fletcher Linton, Dan Lockshaw, Michael McQuerrey, Gary Potter, Roy Poucher, John Schmitt, Jeff Seay, Alison Sheehey, Steve Sosensky,  Susan Steele, and Reed Tollefson.

Workshop Leaders: Marlene Hensley-Benton (FACT), Amy & Dusty Allison (Leave No Trace), Jim Lowery (EarthSkills.com), Buz Lunsford (HerpEcology), Marya Miller (CNPS), Mountain Lion Foundation, Southern Sierra Research Station, Sheri Spiegal (Audubon), Bob Steele (BobSteelePhoto.com) and Reed Tollefson (Kern River Preserve).

Field Trips: Carpooling is encouraged - be sure to start the day with a full tank of gas before heading out! Participants on long field trips should pack a lunch and drinks for the day. All field trips held rain or shine.

COST is $40 for one up-to-all-day trip, $75 for two days, $100 for three or four days, and $125 for five days. Owling trips (separate fee) - $20. We are very happy to tell you that PROCEEDS will go to Highway 178 Corridor, Kern River Valley, and Kern River Preserve Stewardship Endowment Funds. The result? By participating in this year's Nature Festival field trips, you will have the rewards from time spent out in the field in one of America's great outdoor recreation areas and of knowing you are helping to insure the quality of those experiences well into the future. Such a deal!

PRE-REGISTRATION is REQUIRED by e-mail: krpfriends@lightspeed.net or telephone: 760-378-3044 (24 hours answering machine). Spaces for trip selection will be filled on a first come first serve basis. NO SHOWS do happen. STANDYBYS will be taken at the start of each field trip on a space available basis.

PAYMENT by cash or check.

LODGINGS become very crowded in the Kern River Valley by late April. Be sure to make your reservations sooner rather than later so you have a comfortable place to stay each night during the Nature Festival. Click here for local inns.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Weather: Weather in the Kern Valley in late April is usually spectacular (sunny, 65-80° F daytime highs), but it can be variable. On mountain trips prepare for very cool to freezing weather. For your comfort, we suggest bringing water, snacks, a hat, sunscreen, insect repellent, jacket for cool weather, and sturdy shoes (waterproof boots may be handy in riparian areas).

Fees/Registration: There is no general entrance fee to attend the Kern River Valley Spring Nature Festival. All fee activities are limited to twenty or less participants... usually ten to fifteen. All fees go to support the Festival and are not refundable. Vendor fees are waved at Circle Park but are 10% of net or $100 whichever is lower for booths selling merchandise at the Kern River Preserve.

Schedule of Events: Additional events may be added between now and the Spring Nature Festival weekend.

Volunteer NatureFest Steering Committee: Steve Kenton, Bill & Birdie Foster, Reed Tollefson, Jeff King, Ellen Schafhauser, Ron Gillentine, Sandra Wieser, Darrell and Marya Barnes, Ron Wermuth, Bob Barnes, Chuck White, Wendy Rannals, John and Rhonda Stallone, Jennie Cox, Gordon & Chris Hancock, Judy Hyatt, Kernville Chamber, Steve Anderson, Bob Lowe, Buz Lunsford, Brenda Burnett, Dave Ogden, Justin Schuetz, Nancy Ivey, Charlotte Goodson, Sheri Spiegel, Scott Yoo, Valerie Cassity, Dolly Ogawa, Marsha Smith, Lee Sutton, Alison Sheehey

A big thank you to all of the 2007 Festival Sponsors: Audubon-California (Kern River Preserve), EK Schafhauser Photography, Friends of the Kern River Preserve, Herp-Ecology, Kern River Courier, KernCrest Audubon Society, Kern River Valley Revitalization, Inc., Kern Valley Sun, Mountain & River Adventures, Nature Alley, Rossback & Sons, Southern Sierra Research Center, USDA- Forest Service – Sequoia National Forest, TLH (Turn-left Here), Valley Wild

JOIN US FOR FUN IN THE CALIFORNIA SUN

Visit the Kern River Preserve in Weldon, California. Open every day of the year from dawn to dusk.