Herbert River Trail
. Patrick Kelly 472-2322 patrick.kelly@dal.ca will be leading this walk for the Nova Scotia Bird Society. This easy walk follows the rail bed of the former train line that ran from Windsor to Truro via Kennetcook. It runs along the Herbert River for a good part of its length. In addition to birds it is also a great walk for spotting floodplain vegetation. Meet at the Newport Rink parking lot at 9:00 a.m. Take Exit 5 from Highway 101 and follow Highway 14 east for about 10 km to the village of Brooklyn. At the cenotaph, keep left and follow Highway 14 north for just under 1 km. At the intersection (Petro-Canada station) Highway 14 turns right. Continue straight on Highway 215 (Note the YIELD sign. you do NOT have the right of way!) The rink is on the right as soon as you exit the intersection. Bring insect repellent. We should be done by lunch.. Rain date Sun 11 July.

Moon Over the Water – The view from The Lookoff on the North Mountain is something that many society members are likely familiar. But how many have watched the Sun set and the Full Moon rise from that vantage point. Tonight, the Moon will rise around 8:30 PM, about half an hour before the Sun sets and about two hours from being full. The tide will be coming in, although you will have to stay until after 1:30 AM if you want to see the moonlight with the tide in all the way! Arrive for around 8:00 and enjoy the evening. We will likely hear lots of nature sounds as it darkens and the brighter constellations will come into view. Weather permitting, of course.

Beginning Birders Trip — Windsor, Hants County. Leader: Patrick Kelly 494-3294 (w) 472-2322 (h) Email: patrick.kelly@dal.ca. Limited registration. Pre-registration is required.  These trips are geared for those who have always had an interest in bird watching, but were not sure how it was actually done. Bring binoculars and field guides, if you have them. Meet at 9:00 a.m. at the parking lot for the Windsor Tourist Bureau, which is just north of Exit 6 (Water Street) on Highway 101. We should be 1–2 hours and will visit a few different types of habitat in the town of Windsor. No storm date for this trip.

Cornwallis River Greenway — Murray Colbo and Bernard Forsythe will lead this walk which will start behind the Foodland in Coldbrook, which is located along Highway 1 at South Bishop Road, about three kilometres west of Exit 14 on Highway 101. The trail is on the old rail bed which is now resurfaced with gates and is restricted to walking and bicycles. As the trail is flat with two rest sites with benches and tables and designed to be wheelchair accessible so all are welcome. This section runs through mixed forest with two stream crossing and parallels the Cornwallis River with its broad flood plain. An interesting fen is also present. For those in the Wolfville area who wish to carpool meet at the Wolfville Waterfront at 9:15 a.m. or meet Murray and Bernard behind the Foodland in Coldbrook at 10:00 a.m.

Put on your hiking shoes and join Geologist, Ron Buckley, on a journey through time with this very easy, slow-paced walk on the beach in front of Cape Blomidon. The red sandstone and shale that has formed Cape Blomidon was deposited between 245 and 210 Million years ago. The rock that can be seen on the cliff is the youngest sediments of the series. Discover and explore all these rocks on the beach plus igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks from as far away as New Brunswick that have freighted here by the glaciers between 100,000 and a mere 15,000 years ago. It really rocks! The walk will be on the sand and rock of the beach so wear good walking shoes; water-proof not required. Ages 10 and up. For more information contact Kari at (902) 584-2331 or
 
brownkm@gov.ns.ca

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Nova Scotia’s provincial parks are a great place for stargazing ? not much light pollution here! Join Larry Bogan, from the Blomidon Naturalist Society and Minas Astronomy Group, for an up-close peek at our cosmic neighborhood through a telescope! Dress warmly; bring along a chair & binoculars if you have them. Don?t miss this exciting chance to get to know your universe! The event will be about 2 hours in length. Campers, day user, and locals welcome. Fun for all ages! In case of bad weather, contact the park at (902) 582-7319. Contact Kari at (902) 584-2331 or brownkm@gov.ns.ca. 

Kingsport Mudflat Critters (shells, snails, clams, worms, crabs, mud shrimps, sand shrimps, etc.)  Jim Wolford (902-542-9204) will lead us on a hike to the bottom of the Minas Basin at low tide to see the incredible diversity of life on the mudflats.  Rubber boots or old washable shoes are a must. Meet at the Wolfville Waterfront at 7:45 a.m. or the Kingsport Wharfat 8:15 a.m. This will be a very low, low tide, so that the high tide at 15:38 in the afternoon should be very impressive and possibly even a bit damaging to some dykes.

Four Mile and Two Mile Lakes Canoe Trip – Larry Bogan (902 678-0446, larry@bogan.ca) will lead a trip to this beautiful area of the southwest end of the Gaspereau Lake complex of flooded area.  It has many interesting islands and a beautiful inlet stillwater to explore for wildlife. This will be a half-day paddle so bring a lunch and we will find a nice spot to eat.

Meet at the Park and Ride lot at Exit 13 off Highway 101 (Route 12 exit) at 8:30 AM. Access is via a woods road south running between Aylesford and Gaspereau Lake. I have driven this road with my Toyota Matrix - there are some uneven areas but it is passable with care. A high clearance vehicle is better of course. There is abundant parking at the put-in spot which is about 75 metres from the shore (carry in). The access point is shown on BNS webpages (click on Local Trails/Waterways then on Lakes and Stillwater Access). If there is rain and/or heavy wind then the trip will be take place on Sunday the 19th.

 Floodplain Hotspots for Southern Hardwood Herbs by Nick Hill. who is a plant ecologist. 

Nick Hill trained in botany at Acadia with Sam VanderKloet (BSc/MSc) and received his Ph.D in microbial ecology at Dalhousie University. His post-doctoral work was done with Paul Keddy in 1988 looking for the reasons for rarity in plant species in 47 lakes in southwest Nova Scotia. That began his interest in rare plants and conservation biology.

Taught at Mount St. Vincent 1989-2003. I continued research into the rare elements of the coastal plain flora in NS. This period also included three and a half years in Kentucky where he did sabbaticals and fell in love with their deciduous forest flora and found a new bible: Lucy Braun's Deciduous Forest of Eastern North America.

He now works as a wetland consultant and part-time lecturer at Dalhousie's College of Sustainability and at St. Francis Xavier (field course) and he is developing a native plant nurery at his farm in South Berwick.

He will be comparing two very different wetland systems: the acid, infertile coastal plain lake shores, and the fertile floodplains of eastern Nova Scotia.