EarthFest 2025

7:30-9 am, Bird Walk, Meet at Trail Center
Join Michelle Terrell, vice president of Wild River Audubon, in search of feathered friends. We have binoculars to borrow. Wear good hiking boots.

9:15-10 am, Storytime & Craft, Trail Center
Geared toward kids, but adults are welcome! Park Naturalist Sean Hoppes will read a few short books and lead games and activities that celebrate the theme of the day: oak savannas.

10 am-noon, Woodpecker Walk & Talk, Meet at Trail Center
Caitlyn Jacobson studies red-headed woodpeckers at Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve. We’ll join her in a search for this rare woodpecker and discover their connection to oak savannas. The final 30 minutes will be an indoor presentation in the trail center. Wear good hiking boots and long pants. We may go off trail.

12-5 pm, Earth Day Sound Garden, Outside the Visitor Center
Wild River Artist-in-Residence JG Everest presents a powerful experience for the senses. Each speaker in the sound garden plays a different part of the whole piece of music, so that every step, every turn of the head, every bird song and shifting breeze results in a different mix and arrangement of the music. With live, pop-up performances.

1-2 pm, What Fills the Open Space: Savanna Stories, Visitor Center
Keynote presentation by poet & essayist Laurie Allmann
Join Laurie for selected readings, poems and research-based insights illuminating these special places. As a writer, Allmann’s sweet spot lies at the intersection of art and science, always with a sense of curiosity and more to learn. Here’s a chance to celebrate this globally imperiled native plant community and its restoration here at Wild River State Park.

2-2:15 pm, Oak Savanna Restoration at Wild River, Visitor Center
Naturalist Sean Hoppes will highlight the restoration efforts at the park. Discover why we are undertaking this project and how you can participate for a single day or as a regular volunteer.

3-5 pm, Oak Savanna Stewardship Projects, Meet at the Trail Center
Discover your own connection to oak savanna. In collaboration with Great River Greening, we will be planting a seed mixture made of 50 species, most of which were carefully hand-collected by volunteers at the park. Wear work clothes, hiking boots, and long pants.

This event is supported by the Friends of Wild River State Park.