Hitchcock Nature Center

[icejammer]

If you are a nature-lover and haven't been to the Hitchcock Nature Center north of Crescent, I highly recommend a visit.

The Hitchcock Nature Center received a $90,000 grant to turn the Hitchcock Nature Center lodge from a meeting facility into the Loess Hills Interpretive Center.

Planned improvements include construction of a 50-foot observation tower, development of outdoor classroom space and an entrance courtyard, development of an interpretive trail, new exhibit space, computer kiosks and more.

The total cost of the project has been estimated at $529,955. Hitchcock had requested $103,000 from the Community Attraction and Tourism program, which passed the grant request along to the Vision Iowa board.

Executive director Mark Shoemaker said that the board was very pleased with Wednesday's outcome.

"It was a good experience," he said. "They have never given a grant to a Loess Hills project."

It was also announced that Hitchcock has received $10,000 from the 2005 Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail Challenge Cost Share project. Those funds will also go toward the completion of interpretive center.

[eomaha]

New watch tower dedicated Saturday and raptor numbers skyrocketing, Hitchcock is becoming a national birding destination.

http://www.omaha.com/index.php?u_pg=1636&u_sid=2064814

[icejammer]

The beauty of the Hitchcock Nature Center is no longer confined to the nearby trees and hawks that fly overhead. The center's lodge is in the final stage of an attractive renovation. It will be much more practical, too.
...
The hawk tower where people get a bird's-eye view of birds and the surrounding sights is also being upgraded, he said.

Hitchcock in final stages of renovation

[w8ing]

I've been up there at least 4 times in the couple months.  Can't beat the price either - $2 per car or $10 for an annual pass.

[icejammer]

Nice to see these efforts undertaken, hopefully reminding us to be better stewards of our planet (but a rather ironic choice of pics to headline the story)...

A greener, prettier Hitchcock Nature Center

"Walking the walk" at the Hitchcock Nature Center might include trodding on porous pavers or being able to drive your car onto some grassy areas.

Chad Graeve, natural resource specialist, said recent renovations to the center's Loess Hills Lodge include a number of conservation measures.

"Since one of our missions is to teach conservation, we need to walk the walk, not just talk the talk," said Graeve.

[icejammer]

Hitchcock begins summer hours

Hitchcock Nature Center's Loess Hills Lodge will be open additional hours for the summer.

In addition to regular weekday hours, the lodge will now be open Saturdays and Sundays from noon to 4 p.m. through August.

The Loess Hills Lodge at Hitchcock Nature Center serves as the environmental education hub for Pottawattamie County Conservation and currently includes indoor and outdoor classrooms, a 45-foot observation tower and renovated lodge deck. . .

[Mike-Ro-Brew]

I think Hitchcock is an undiscovered secret close to the metro.  There are some "back country" campsites that require a short hike to get to, but are worth it for the scenery and isolation.  I know when I go camping, my goal is to get away from other people, not just end up surrounded by a bunch of noisy drunk people around their campfire, so this is a good place to do just that.  Also, for any runners out there, there are some killer hills that are fun to train on.  I can't even make it up most of them without having to stop and give my legs a break.

[icejammer]

Lodge to celebrate grand opening

The Loess Hills are alive with festivities this weekend.

The Fall HawkWatch Festival will also herald the grand opening of the Loess Hills Lodge at Hitchcock Nature Center on Saturday.

After two years of renovation, the former YMCA facility now features a 3-D tour of the 1,000-acre preserve, new prairie and woodland habitat exhibits, raptors and a children's activity center. . . .

From 1 to 4 p.m., the Hitchcock Nature Center will provide refreshments along with live raptor demonstrations by Raptor Recovery Nebraska, hikes in the Loess Hills, children's activities and other scheduled programs. Anyone is welcome to enjoy the HawkWatch Festival and Loess Hills Lodge grand opening for free. The center is located five miles north of Crescent off of The Old Lincoln Highway. Contact Tina Popson at (712) 545-3283 for questions, or visit http://www.pottcoconversation.com.

[icejammer]

County will add 145 acres to Hitchcock Nature Area

Some day in the future, people will be able to watch bison and elk room freely in the Hitchcock Nature Area just north of Council Bluffs, according to a park official there.

A key piece of land for creating that scene will soon be purchased.

The Iowa West Foundation and the state’s Resource Enhancement and Protection, or REAP, program have each awarded $242,500 in grant money to Hitchcock to help buy an adjacent 145 acres to restore native prairie and grasses and to bring bison and elk there someday, according to Chad Graeve, natural resource specialist.

The land is located just east of the nature area near Ski Hill Loop Road and is known as the Rayburn Addition, since it was once owned by the Duane Rayburn family, Graeve said. . . .

[Brad]

Great news.  I was trying to get up there today, but I am not sure if my work will let that happen.  May be tomorrow.

[thenewguy]

i'd love to see bison and elk there...hopefully sooner than later.

[Brad]

I read that Hitchcock Nature Center is doing more controlled burns today. Seems like the burns over the past couple years have really cleaned things up.

[Brad]

A new trail connecting Hitchcock Nature Center to MT Crescent Ski Area will open on June 3rd.

make sure to join us at Hitchcock's Loess Hills Lodge at 1 p.m. on June 3rd for our public ribbon-cutting ceremony with guided hikes to follow.

[ita]

A new trail connecting Hitchcock Nature Center to MT Crescent Ski Area will open on June 3rd.

make sure to join us at Hitchcock's Loess Hills Lodge at 1 p.m. on June 3rd for our public ribbon-cutting ceremony with guided hikes to follow.

https://www.wowt.com/2023/05/17/new-tra ... re-center/

Brent Weber
The seeds were planted long ago, and no one has sowed more of this soon-to-be-opened slice of the Loess Hills than Chad Graeve.

“In 1997 we put together the long-range acquisition plan for how to build a preserve that could function ecologically, and every piece of the puzzle is important and these are these are really exciting pieces of that puzzle,” Pottawattamie Conservation’s natural resource specialist said. ”It’s fun to see things fall into place and it’s really a privilege to be able to share it with people. I’m just so excited to see people get in here and enjoy it.”

On June 3, National Trails Day, Hitchcock Nature Center will open 400 acres of land the public, acquired in recent years adjacent to the existing park. Conservation and restoration efforts aren’t geared towards turning back the clock, but building a natural, healthy ecosystem.
...
“There’s an old bulldozed road that was put in before 1938, we can see it on the 1938 aerial photos, and it was all overgrown with trees,” he said. “And so we’ve just been clearing trees to open that back up again. We will have to do a little bit of dirt work to reshape some of it but it’s going to be a pretty nice trail.”

As will Lotus Loop, around the yet-to-be-renamed pond, and Crescent Ridge, connecting to the Mt. Crescent Ski Area, which was also part of recent land acquisitions for Pottawattamie Conservation.

I love what Pott County is doing in the Loess Hills.

[Brad]

I love what Pott County is doing in the Loess Hills.

Yeah, its really great to have that much natural land to hike in. That said, its not just Pottawattamie County, there are areas like this further north too.

[Coyote]

New trails to be unveiled at Hitchcock Nature Center
“I’m just so excited to see people get in here and enjoy it.”



HONEY CREEK, Iowa (WOWT) - The seeds were planted long ago, and no one has sowed more of this soon-to-be-opened slice of the Loess Hills than Chad Graeve.

On June 3, National Trails Day, Hitchcock Nature Center will open 400 acres of land the public, acquired in recent years adjacent to the existing park.

[Coyote]

'Our prairie is essentially disappearing':
New grant helps fund expansion of Hitchcock Nature Center



HONEY CREEK, Iowa — Pottawattamie County Conservation says a 93-acre expansion of Hitchcock Nature Center is part of a long-term plan to protect the land and 20 species on Iowa's Greatest Conservation Need List. "In Iowa, our prairie essentially is disappearing," Kylie Jacott, Promotions and Outreach Coordinator for Pottawattamie County Conservation, said. "Grant programs like REAP are helping us save what little is left."

[Busguy2010]

That's funny this came up. I was thinking maybe I'd do some cold weather camping over there within the next two weeks. How is that place? I've never been. It looked like all the tent camping sites are hike-to, is that right?

[thenewguy]

i wish they had bison

[Coyote]

'Makes everything healthier':
Prescribed fires burn through Hitchcock Nature Center



HONEY CREEK, Iowa —If you're near Hitchcock Nature Center or planning a visit to the park this week, you may see some smoke or fire. There's no need to panic; it's part of a prescribed fire. Pottawattamie County Conservation said the land inside Hitchcock Nature Center, especially the prairie, needs fire to survive, and a prescribed fire, or controlled burn, is the best option.

[Busguy2010]

Haven't had the chance to go yet, but hopefully I don't run out of time. The weather has been and continues to look perfect, if not a little warmer than I like, for camping... And we're talking mid November!

I took a little drive out there just to scope it out and get a map. Granted it was late at night, the gate to the lodge was closed. Do they close it for the season, or close it every night? I understand it's off season, but the weather is great. Just wondering cause it will be a long hike with water, tent, food, etc. I've never roughed it quite like that before. I've always camped within easy reach of my vehicle and charger and other niceties.

[almighty_tuna]

Just wondering cause it will be a long hike with water, tent, food, etc. I've never roughed it quite like that before. I've always camped within easy reach of my vehicle and charger and other niceties.

Then you've never truly camped!! Okay, maybe that's a bit of a reach, but hiking in for a couple days and carrying all your stuff with you is a fantastic adventure. The water part is what really sucks if you aren't going where there's a stream you can filter off of.

[Busguy2010]

Then you've never truly camped!! Okay, maybe that's a bit of a reach, but hiking in for a couple days and carrying all your stuff with you is a fantastic adventure. The water part is what really sucks if you aren't going where there's a stream you can filter off of.

I did some camping as a kid in the 90's. I'm sure we had done some roughing it, but I don't remember it all that much. It's quite different now being able to have a constant connection, charge, service. It's tougher now more than ever to completely disconnect. I never even had a smart phone until like 2014 and now I can watch TV, bet sports, look at social media, check in here, keep in touch. You really can do anything, but the point of camping is really to get away from all that. It would be really nice to go back in time and camp before such convenient technology.

[almighty_tuna]

It would be really nice to go back in time and camp before such convenient technology.

That part's easy; just leave it behind or, even better, find a campsite without cell reception. Those are the best!

[Brad]

"Hitchcock Nature Center is open 365 days a year to the public, even when we're doing prescribed fire," Jacott said. "And part of the reason for that is that we want the public to understand that fire is a natural part of our environment."

I'm glad they are taking such an active roll in management of the park. Hitchcock really is a treasure for our area!

[Coyote]

Did you see smoke in the Loess Hills on Wednesday? Here's why that's good.



Pottawattamie County Conservation conducted a prescribed burn at Hitchcock Nature Center on Wednesday. It was visible for miles.

It's part of a responsible conservation practice.

“Historically, the indigenous people that lived here were burning every year and that became the natural rhythm of the land and it’s much healthier when it happens,” said Chad Graeve, Natural Resource Specialist with Pottawattamie County.

[Brad]

Burning again today.

[Coyote]

Pottawattamie County Conservation invites community to clean-up Hitchcock Nature Center



Pottawattamie County Conservation's annual little Busters Park cleanup is keeping the community free of trash. The organization is leaning on volunteers to hunt for trash at Hitchcock Nature Center and Mt. Crescent Ski Area. From 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, April 20, volunteers can get their hands dirty and follow in the steps of the Dump Busters. In the 1980s a group of hundreds of people from the community came together to prevent the area from becoming a landfill. Volunteers will check in either at Hitchcock Nature Center's Loess Hills Lodge or Mt. Crescent Ski Area's ski lodge.

[Coyote]

Pottawattamie County Conservation invites community to clean-up Hitchcock Nature Center



POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY, Iowa — County Conservation's annual little Busters Park cleanup is keeping the community free of trash. The organization is leaning on volunteers to hunt for trash at Hitchcock Nature Center and Mt. Crescent Ski Area. From 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, April 20, volunteers can get their hands dirty and follow in the steps of the Dump Busters. In the 1980s a group of hundreds of people from the community came together to prevent the area from becoming a landfill. Volunteers will check in either at Hitchcock Nature Center's Loess Hills Lodge or Mt. Crescent Ski Area's ski lodge. Once all the trash is picked up, volunteers are asked to weigh their bags and record how much litter they collected. All park entry fees are being waived for "Free Day" at both parks, you can extend your adventure by using the Lotus Loop and Crescent Ridge trails connecting both parks.