Please volunteer with the Ouabache Land Conservancy (OLC) on April 12th, from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm, as we plant nearly 100 native hardwood oak and hickory species.  This opportunity will be at OLC’s 250-acre Atherton Island Natural Area, 6540 W County Rd. 800 S, Rosedale, IN (near Lyford, seventh-tenths of a mile east of US Hwy 41).  In addition, there will be a Weed Wrangle® to control multiflora rose and bush honeysuckle.  Please bring loppers, work gloves, and water.  Those items will be supplied to those as needed as supplies last.  Participants are encouraged to dress appropriate for the weather and wear long pants, boots, and gloves.   Weed Wrangle® sponsors include: Wabash River Invasives Project, ISU Office of Sustainability and SICIM (State of Indiana Cooperative Invasives Management). 

POSTPONED!!! Due to the inclement weather forecast, this event has been postponed to April 12th, from 10 am - 1:00 pm.

Please volunteer with the Ouabache Land Conservancy (OLC) on April 5th, from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm, as we plant nearly 100 native hardwood oak and hickory species.  This opportunity will be at OLC’s 250-acre Atherton Island Natural Area, 6540 W County Rd. 800 S, Rosedale, IN (near Lyford, seventh-tenths of a mile east of US Hwy 41).  In addition, there will be a Weed Wrangle® to control multiflora rose and bush honeysuckle.  Please bring loppers, work gloves, and water.  Those items will be supplied to those as needed as supplies last.  Participants are encouraged to dress appropriate for the weather and wear long pants, boots, and gloves.   Weed Wrangle® sponsors include: Wabash River Invasives Project, ISU Office of Sustainability and SICIM (State of Indiana Cooperative Invasives Management). 

CANCELED! Due to the inclement weather forecast for Wednesday, April 2nd, the Wednesdays in the Wild Hike at Atherton Island Natural Area has been CANCELED! We are sorry, but we want to keep everyone safe!

*THIS EVENT IS FULL. REGISTRATION IS CLOSED.*

Nature will offer unexpected surprises as Wednesdays in the Wild joins Dr. Jim Nardi (Retired Biological Researcher and author, University of Illinois) on this hike to see spring wildflowers, mosses, and early spring insects along the trails of this Ouabache Land Conservancy natural area in Parke County.

**This session is limited to 20 participants. Registration required by noon March 31, call 765-567-2993 or email mcutler@tippecanoe.in.gov (responding on Facebook does not reserve your spot).**

Program content is designed for adults, but school-aged children may attend and enjoy depending on their attention span and interest. For more information, call Tippecanoe County Naturalist Mary Cutler at 765-567-2993

If you want to help protect land and nature in the Wabash Valley, please join us at our Board meeting on Tuesday, April 1st at 5:30 p.m. at the Vigo County Public Library in the basement's Meeting Room A, 680 Poplar St, Terre Haute, IN.

Ouabache Land Conservancy (OLC) invites everyone to a Spring Break Tree ID Hike & Weed Wrangle at Sanctuary Oaks Nature Preserve (1915 W CR 650 N, Shelburn, IN 47879) on Saturday March 29th, from 10:00 to Noon. Purdue University Extension Educator, Phil Cox, will lead hikers through the 14-acre preserve.  Techniques to identify many trees during the early spring will be learned along the way.  In addition, Zoe Newbold, OLC Vice President of Stewardship, will lead a Weed Wrangle® to help volunteers identify and control invasive plant species found on the preserve.  Please bring loppers, work gloves, and water.  Those items will be supplied to those as needed as supplies last.  Participants are encouraged to dress appropriate for the weather and wear long pants, boots, and gloves.  Contact Phil Cox at 765-492-5330 or cox119@purdue.edu with any questions.  Weed Wrangle® sponsors include: ISU Office of Sustainability and SICIM (State of Indiana Cooperative Invasives Management). 

The Ouabache Land Conservancy invites everyone of all ages to a storybook hike at Jackson-Schnyder Nature Preserve on Saturday, March 29th from 10:00 - 11:30 am.  The preserve is located at 3635 W. Concannon Ave., West Terre Haute, IN 47885.  Luke Gentry (Vigo Co. Public Library West Branch Manager) and Denise Sobieski (OLC Board of Directors) will lead this moderate hike through the prairie and woods to the “Crown Point” lookout where Gentry will read Birdsong (by Julie Flett).  This story is about a girl who loves to draw things in nature, going through various seasons and getting to know her elderly neighbor who lives down the hill. When her neighbor becomes ill, the little girl feels bad that the lady can't be outside, so she brings over all her nature drawings and hangs them on the walls, so she can still enjoy nature, even though she's stuck inside.  Drawing pads will be available to draw what beautiful sights participants see that morning. 

Roadside parking is available on the preserve side of the road, but there are no facilities.  No reservations are required and participants are encouraged to wear long pants, hiking boots, or good tennis shoes.

The Annual Celebration is sold out! We encourage you to join the waiting list if you are interested in attending. https://forms.gle/fKtzwbhsXg3TRZY8A

Ouabache Land Conservancy (OLC) invites you (and your non-member friends!) to our 15th annual celebration at the Vigo County History Center on March 12th!

Please join us as we celebrate protecting and restoring land for future generations in west-central Indiana.

The excitement will start with a silent auction, live music, a bowl hewing demo by Keith Ruble, and a Windsor chair making demo by Blaine Berry at 5:30 pm; followed by dinner catered by Federal Coffee + Fine Foods at 6:30 pm for $50 per person.

Our featured guest speaker is natural environment author, Scott Russell Sanders, a Distinguished Professor Emeritus of English at Indiana University, and a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Sanders will discuss how evolution has been weaving the web of life on Earth, linking all creatures, from bacteria to humpback whales, into vital relationships—pollinators to plants, plants to grazing animals, grazers to predators, predators to scavengers, scavengers to microbes, and so on through every level of complexity; and most importantly how we should proceed to “reweave” in his presentation, “Reweaving the Web of Life”.

We also want to thank Viribus Wealth Management, the title sponsor for our celebration! Our sponsors make events like this possible, and you can help, too. For sponsorship information, contact lisa@ouabachelandconservancy.org.

If you want to help protect land and nature in the Wabash Valley, please join us at our Board meeting on Tuesday, March 4th at 5:30 p.m. at the Vigo County Public Library in the basement's Meeting Room A, 680 Poplar St, Terre Haute, IN.

If you want to help protect land and nature in the Wabash Valley, please join us at our next board meeting on Tuesday, February 11th at 5:30 pm. Please note that this meeting is one week later than was originally scheduled.

PLEASE NOTE OUR MEETING LOCATION: Vigo Co. Public Library, 680 Poplar St., Terre Haute, IN. In the Conference Room, located on the main floor. As you come into the main entrance, it is located on the back right side of the atrium.

If you want to help protect land and nature in the Wabash Valley, please join us at our next board meeting on Tuesday, January 7th at 5:30 pm.

If you need more info email ouabachelandconservancy@gmail.com

Welcome in the New Year with the winter beauty of Atherton Island Natural Area. Join Ouabache Land Conservancy for a guided first-day hike (led by Parke Trails Alliance Vice-President Mike Fisher) on January 1, 2025, at 9 AM to Noon.
Wear weather-appropriate clothing, bring binoculars if you wish, and be ready to take in a winter morning hike's unique views and stillness as we usher in a new year. Meet at the AINA parking area, 6540 W County Rd. 800 S, Rosedale, IN 47874 (0.7 tenths of a mile east of US Hwy 41, near Lyford).

If you want to help protect land and nature in the Wabash Valley, please join us at our next board meeting on Tuesday, December 3rd at 5:30 pm.

PLEASE NOTE OUR MEETING LOCATION: Dobbs Park Nature Center, 5170 E. Poplar St., Terre Haute, IN.

This hike is to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the Jackson-Schnyder Nature Preserve’s dedication as a State nature preserve.  Rich Hull, a PhD candidate at Indiana University, will share about the preserve's flora (at least 140 species documented by Hull) as he leads hikers through the tallgrass prairie and approximately 25 species of trees found on the preserve.

Jackson Schnyder Nature Preserve is at 3635 W. Concannon Ave., West Terre Haute, IN 47885. No reservations are needed for this moderate hike.

We are excited to invite you to the Grand Opening and Ribbon Cutting for Ouabache Land Conservancy’s Atherton Island Natural Area on Sunday, October 27th at 1 p.m. The preserve is located at 6540 W. County Road 800 S., Rosedale, IN 47874 (0.7 (seven-tenths) miles east of Lyford and US 41). We hope you can join us!

Background: Over the last 31 years, four parcels of land were acquired for the preservation and restoration of this wild landscape with generous private donations and funding from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, Natural Resources Conservation Service, and Farm Service Agency.  This 250-acre nature preserve is now protected forever! Join the members of the Ouabache Land Conservancy and the Parke County Chamber of Commerce to celebrate the Grand Opening! 

Please RSVP by October 25th to ouabachelandconservancy@gmail.com

After the ribbon cutting, we will be leading optional hikes of the property to the new bridges and more!  Wear your hiking shoes if you are interested!

Join us for a candle-lit Halloween Night Hike & Campfire at Whitaker Woods Nature Preserve. Costumes are welcome at this free, all-ages easy hike through the woods. Afterward, enjoy a campfire and s’mores. Please bring lawn chairs and flashlights. Questions? Contact OLC Advisory Board Member, Denise Sobieski, at bill.denise.home@gmail.com .

Whitaker Woods Nature Preserve is at 3801 W. County Rd. 950 N., Brazil, IN 47834. No reservations are needed.

Join Dr. Jim Nardi to harvest seeds from three species of grasses and about 40 species of wildflowers growing in the 4-acre prairie restoration at Atherton Island Natural Area. Gathering seeds on a lovely October day is an excellent way to learn about the plants of our Indiana prairies. We’ll provide information on identifying plants and explain how the seed harvest will be prepared for winter or spring planting.

Atherton Island Natural Area is at 6540 W County Road 800 S., Rosedale, IN 47874 (near Lyford, about 0.7 miles east of Hwy 41). No reservations are required.

Mike Lunsford (Terre Haute Tribune-Star columnist and photographer) will lead our next Storybook Hike in collaboration with Vigo County Public Library. He will read The Acorn & the Oak by Rhonda Accardo. We will provide a few copies for participants to take home, too!

Jackson-Schnyder Nature Preserve is at 3635 W. Concannon Ave., West Terre Haute, IN 47885. No reservations are needed for this moderate hike for ages 5 and up!

Join OLC Advisory Board member Dr. Peter Scott (professor emeritus Indiana State University) as he leads the way through this 43-acre woodland that Dr. John O. Whitaker Jr. donated in 2021. The preserve boasts more than 2,250 trees of 34 different species. The most abundant species are Tulip Tree, Red Hickory, Red Oak, Shagbark Hickory, White Oak, Red Maple, and American Sycamore.

The preserve is at 3801 W County Road 950 N, Brazil, IN 47834. No reservations are needed for this easy hike.

Light is all around us even when it is not supposed to be. Steve Haines, Public Event Coordinator, for the Indiana Astronomical Society will talk about Light Pollution at the, Clinton Public Library (313 S. 4th St., Clinton, IN 47842). This presentation will cover what light pollution is, the effects it has on humans and other creatures, and how light pollution can be decreased.

After the presentation, members of the Indiana Astronomical Society and Wabash Valley Astronomical Society will be setting up their telescopes to view the Moon and other night sky objects visible that evening. This program is weather-dependent. This is a free family-friendly event (no pre-registration is required) and will be held at Atherton Island Natural Area, with parking available at 6540 W. CR 800 S., Rosedale, IN (near Lyford, about 0.7 miles east of Hwy 41). Please bring a chair, as we will be in the prairie area. All members and non-members are invited to this free program.

Everyone is invited to attend both or either of the above programs!

October Big Day allows people all over the world to gather outside, observe, and celebrate birds. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology created October Big Day, which challenges birders to find as many bird species as they can in 24 hours. This global bird-counting and data-collection initiative sheds light on bird migration and encourages people to appreciate both resident and migratory species.

OLC Immediate Past President, Marty Jones, will lead a bird count hosted by Indiana Audubon Society and Indiana Land Protection Alliance at Atherton Island Natural Area. All bird identification skill levels are welcome. Register at: obd2024.eventbrite.com

OLC invites everyone to the 6th annual "Jackson-Schnyder Day" celebration on Saturday, August 17th from 10:00 to Noon. This Weed Wrangle ® will celebrate the legacy and land ethic of Dr. Marion Jackson and Julius Schnyder, the preserve's former owners and namesakes.  Harmful invasive plants will be cut and treated with herbicide in the preserve’s 4-acre tallgrass prairie and the woodlands as time and volunteer participation permits. Please bring loppers, work gloves, and water.  Those items will be supplied to those as needed as supplies last.  The address of the preserve is 3635 W. Concannon Ave., West Terre Haute, IN 47885. To get there, take Hwy 150 to St. Mary’s Ave and turn west, drive past the St. Mary-of-the-Woods College main entrance continuing west and turn left on Bloomtown Road, go under the railroad and turn right on Concannon Ave.  Just past the bridge is the roadside entrance (on the right) to the preserve. No reservations are required.  Sponsors include: Vigo Invasives Management, ISU Office of Sustainability, and SICIM (State of Indiana Cooperative Invasives Management).  Vigo Invasives Management (VIM) is a volunteer organization focused on the education and eradication of invasive plants. VIM meets the 2nd Thursday of each month at 5:30 p.m. at the Vigo County Public Library. 

In celebration of National Moth Week, Ouabache Land Conservancy is offering a night out on the prairie at Atherton Island Natural Area in southwestern Parke County on July 27th. This is for all nature enthusiasts that would like to learn about prairie, creatures of the night, “foxfire”, and skygazing. An optional easy walk around the prairie will start at 8:30 pm to discover what flowers are blooming for our native pollinators. After dark (about 9:30 pm) we’ll attract and identify many species of moths, beetles, ant lions, and other insects up-close on a large white sheet. Participants will see the many different moth patterns, colors, and behaviors, as well as learn about the essential role of moths as pollinators. Information about what native plants to plant for moths and other pollinators will be shared, as well as, information about how to contribute to community science by reporting moth/butterfly sightings through the Great American Indiana Nature Lepidoptera Project (GAINLP).

We also hope to capture images of flying squirrels, white-footed mice, and other creatures attracted to an LED red light and sunflower feeder set up in the nearby woods. In addition, we’ll be monitoring bat activity with the aid of a bat detector. Lastly, we’ll also see the fascinating fungi of Atherton Island known as “foxfire” that begin to glow after dark and have a telescope available to do some skygazing by the nearby campfire.

Moth Night Out is a free family-friendly event (no pre-registration required) and will be held at Atherton Island Natural Area, with parking available at 6540 W CR 800 S, Rosedale, IN (near Lyford, about 0.7 miles east of Hwy 41).  Please carpool as much as possible as parking is limited and overflow parking will likely be used. The optional prairie walk will start at 8:30 pm, with nocturnal activities from 9:30 pm to 11:00 pm. Water and a handicapped-accessible porta-potty will be provided. Please bring your own tick/mosquito repellent as needed.

Everyone is invited to a tallgrass prairie hike at the Jackson-Schnyder Nature Preserve, west of St. Mary-of-the-Woods College, on Saturday, July 20 from 10:00 to 11:30 am.  Phil Cox, Purdue University Extension Educator, and Dr. Jim Nardi, University of Illinois Research Entomologist (retired), will lead hikers on the Julius Trail around the 4-acre tallgrass prairie identifying the native and invasive flora, pollinators, and other insects of the prairie along the way.  Ten species of native grasses and sedges, including Big and Little Bluestem, Indian Grass, and Prairie Dropseed; and 38 species of native forbs including Wild Quinine, Dense Blazing Star, Mountain Mint, Wild Senna, Compass Plant, Culver's Root, White False Indigo, and Rattlesnake Master were drilled into this former soybean field in June 2009.  In addition, Cox will discuss recommended Indiana-native plants for attracting pollinators.  The preserve is located at 3635 W. Concannon Ave., West Terre Haute, IN 47885. To get to the Jackson-Schnyder Nature Preserve, take Hwy 150 to St. Mary’s Ave and turn west, drive past the St. Mary-of-the-Woods College main entrance, continue west and turn left on Bloomtown Road, go under the railroad and turn right on Concannon Ave. and just past the bridge is the roadside entrance (on the right) to the Preserve. No reservations are required for this easy, free family-friendly hike.  Please follow OLC on Facebook or email ouabachelandconservancy@gmail.com for more information.

The Wabash Valley Audubon Society will host Dr. Henry Loope, Research Glacial Geologist, Indiana Geological & Water Survey (Indiana University).  Loope will present "The Geology of Atherton Island" at 6:30 pm on Wednesday, May 15th at the Dobbs Memorial Park Nature Center, 5170 East Poplar St., Terre Haute.  Come learn all about how the glaciers receded to form the unique land formation known as Atherton Island (the namesake for Ouabache Land Conservancy’s Atherton Island Natural Area) in southwestern Parke and northwestern Vigo Counties and caused Big Racoon Creek to flow “backwards” into the Wabash.  In addition, Loope will share about his continuing research at Atherton Island.  All members and non-members are invited to this free program. The Wabash Valley Audubon Society serves Clay, Parke, Sullivan, Vermillion, and Vigo counties. To learn more about the Wabash Valley Audubon Society like their Facebook page or visit their website at www.wabashvalleyaudubonsociety.org.

Everyone is invited to join the Ouabache Land Conservancy for a spring wildflower hike at John O. Whitaker Woods Nature Preserve west of Brazil. The preserve’s namesake, Dr. John Whitaker, (OLC Board of Directors), and Carissa Lovett, Naturalist at John G. Dobbs Memorial Grove Nature Center (and OLC Advisory Board Member), will lead the hike from 10:00 – 11:30 am on May 11th. The John O. Whitaker Woods Nature Preserve is at 3801 W County Rd. 950 N, Brazil, IN 47834; with a parking area on the east side of the preserve.  This is a free program; however, reservations are required by contacting Carissa at carissa.lovett@terrehaute.in.gov or 812-877-1095 by May 6th.

Attendees are encouraged to wear long pants, tick repellent, hiking boots, or good tennis shoes.  Ouabache Land Conservancy is a non-profit land trust that protects land in the west-central Indiana counties of Clay, Parke, Putnam, Sullivan, Vermillion, and Vigo.