Mel is at Penn Dixie Fossil Park and Nature Reserve and she is taking a walk through the nature reserve. They have over a one and a half miles of nature trail on their 54-acre nature reserve. Being a nature preserve, everything is protected. Catherine Konieczny, M.S., director of science at Penn Dixie says one of their rules is leave the wildlife where you found it and that counts for plants and animals. She says the best part is it is different every season you come so from spring to fall and everything in between you are seeing something different each time you come.
Catherine says if you are a member you can get special access and that allows you to come 24 hours a day so you can do a little night fossil hike but you can also walk the trails by moonlight, see all the fireflies and all the nocturnal animals, you just have to request special permission.
They have two different wetlands; eastern and western wetlands. Catherine says they are kind of connected when they are full, but they are mostly separate. You can see and hear a lot of birds. They have binoculars that you can rent for free to take out there. There is also aquatic life.
If you are walking the nature trail you may be lucky enough to stumble a trilobite labyrinth and if you are lucky you might find a fossil or two.
The nature trails are a nice option if you want to beat the heat because the trail is shaded, and it is a very easy walk. Most of is stoned so you can go as slow as you like and, it’s really nice and flat. It’s really short walk, about a mile, mile and a half and takes on average about 20-25 minutes to walk the loop.
Visit penndixie.org for more information or give them a call at 716-627-4560.
