Mark your calendars; this Saturday is the second annual Clifton Park Open Space Day! The Open Space Day is a celebration of the town’s beautiful conserved natural areas including parks, preserves, and trails. Several of the parks and preserves throughout the town will be open and have guided tours for the public starting at 10:00am, including Saratoga PLAN’s Woodcock Preserve off Tanner Road.

butterflyThe Open Space Day is a great opportunity to get outside and learn about the many parks & preserves throughout the town that are open for public recreation year-round. The Open Space Day also includes a community celebration at the Historic Grooms Tavern, located at the corner of Grooms and Sugar Hill Roads, between 11:30am and 1:30pm, featuring food and refreshments, exhibitors from local environmental groups, birding activities for families and children, speeches from local Town Officials, and an open space hero award ceremony. The entire event is planned thanks to the hard work of the Clifton Park Open Space, Trails and Riverfront Advisory Committee.

Morning guided hike options include:

North Woods Nature Preserve – led by Ray Seymour, member of the Open Space, Trails & Riverfront Committee
Ushers Rd. State Forest – led by Bryon Backenson, co-chair of the Open Space, Trails & Riverfront Committee and Ed Peck, volunteer steward for the state forest
Dwaas Kill Nature Preserve – led by Frank Berlin, member of the Open Space, Trails & Riverfront Committee
Woodcock Preserve – led by Saratoga PLAN environmental educator volunteer Jacky Thomson
Veterans Memorial Park & Mooney Carrese Forest – led by David Behm, volunteer naturalist
Garnsey Park –led by Tony Wilkinson, member of the Open Space, Trails & Riverfront Committee
Vischer Ferry Nature & Historic Preserve (Whipple Bridge Entrance) – Birding Walk led by Evan Mistur and John Sayles, volunteers with Capital Region Audubon, and Jerry Burr, member of the Open Space, Trails & Riverfront Committee

Afternoon guided wildflower hike:

A guided wildflower hike will also be taking place that same day at 2:00pm with participants meeting up at the Clute’s Dry Dock entrance to Vischer Ferry Nature & Historic Preserve (directly off of Riverview Rd – about a half mile EAST of Whipple Bridge). David Behm, local naturalist, will leading this walk.

Whether you are out enjoying the parks and preserves in Clifton Park, or are out exploring the other many natural wonders throughout Saratoga County, we hope you all have a wonderful weekend outdoors!