I will be leading a nature photography field trip to Saskatoon’s Northeast Swale on Sunday, May 25, 2014 from 4 to 6 p.m. We will explore a beautiful natural prairie landscape at the north edge of town and focus out lenses on wild critters and close-up details. This field trip is part of the Wild about Saskatoon NatureCity Festival and there is no charge to join.
The nature photography field trip will take place immediately after the Prairie Birds, Flowers and Butterflies trip led by members of the Saskatoon Nature Society (2 – 4 p.m.). Come early and learn about things you will be photographing later in a warm afternoon light.
Bring your camera, snacks and drinking water. Optional but recommended: tripod and a macro lens (or a zoom lens that can focus close enough to photograph lichens on rocks). We will be walking on rough terrain; please bring shoes with adequate ankle support. Event will be cancelled in case of heavy rain.
How to get there: we will meet at the entrance to Northeast Swale on Lowe Road. Drive north on Central Ave, turn right on Agra Road, turn left onto Lowe Road – NE Swale is next to the slough on the east side of road. Look for the NatureCity Festival sign. If you reach the Saskatchewan Wildlife Federation building, you have gone too far. Follow this link to see a map showing the meeting place at Northeast Swale.
About the 2014 Saskatoon NatureCity Festival
Wild about Saskatoon’s second annual NatureCity Festival starts on Saturday, May 24 with a warm-up event at the Farmer’s Market at 10 a.m., and runs for a full week until Saturday, May 31 with a varied program of (mostly free) mini-adventures and urban nature events for all ages. In addition to the general calendar of events, the Festival also includes special programming designed for school groups, and two workshops for urban conservation practitioners. Saskatoon City Council has declared May 25 – 31 as the NatureCity Festival Week.
Nature’s Heartbeat – Sambatoon Drum Ensemble with Cathy Chicoine’s Soul Shakers Drum Circle (image from the 2013 NatureCity Festival)
The Festival program includes riverboat runs, adventure hikes, forums of urban agriculture, bird-watching sessions, wetland dips (to look for small critters), face painting for kids, art exhibits and music events, and much, much more. About 80 organizations and businesses are involved in coordinating the events. There will be 3 special presentations at the Roxy Theatre (invited keynote speakers):
- Cam Collyer from the Evergreen Foundation (Toronto) will talk about how communities across the country are connecting kids with nature. Cam will be joined on stage by students from the Outdoor School and Earthkeepers Program, and there will be on-screen display of nature art from Georges Vanier Catholic Fine Arts School.
- Grant Pearsell, an internationally recognized leader in the urban biodiversity movement will come from Edmonton to talk about the efforts in cities around the world to protect plant and animal species in urban environments.
- Michelle Molnar, and Environmental Economist and Policy Analyst at the David Suzuki Foundation will come from Vancouver to talk about the economic value of urban wetlands and explore the benefits that wetlands provide to Saskatoon residents.
The goal of the NatureCity Festival is to change how people who live in Saskatoon see their city, and especially, how they live in the city.
On a lighter note, here are two videos created by Cole Anderson and Dani Henderson, grade 8 students from the EcoQuest Program at Buena Vista School in Saskatoon. They were assisted by Shauna Solloway and their teacher, Jana Miller. Make sure that the sound on your computer is turned on. Cole and Dani used a few of my nature images from in and around Saskatoon in creating the videos.