Creatures of the Watershed - A Nature Festival

When: Saturday, October 26th, 11:00 am - 4:00 pm

Where: Big Sewickley Creek Fire Hall: 1850 Big Sewickley Creek Rd, Sewickley, PA 15143

Join the Big Sewickley Creek Watershed Association, Bell Acres Firehall and local environmental organizations for a FREE festival focused on the amazing creatures that call Big Sewickley Creek Watershed home!

Come enjoy scheduled speakers with live animal ambassadors. Between speakers, visit with folks from local environmental organizations to see all the awesome things they are doing in the Big Sewickley Creek Watershed! Purchase hot dogs and popcorn from the Bell Acres Ladies Auxiliary, participate in kids activities, take home native seeds, and more!

SCHEDULE:

11:00-12:00

Free time for attendees to walk around to explore tables, get snacks, etc.

12:00-1:00

Presentation by Stormy Oaks Nature Conservancy

Learn about the incredible birds that live in our watershed with a local bird rehabilitation nonprofit! Meet with their live animal ambassadors and learn how you can help keep local birds healthy.

1:00-2:00

Free time for attendees to walk around to explore tables, get snacks, etc.

2:00-3:00

Presentation by Interactive Environmental Program with April Claus

Salamanders, snakes, frogs, oh my! April Claus specializes in herpetology, the study of reptiles and amphibians, and will be bringing along some live critters to talk about their importance in the Big Sewickley Creek Watershed.

3:00-4:00

Free time for attendees to walk around to explore tables, get snacks, etc.

Stop and visit the Big Sewickley Creek Watershed Association booth at Economy Borough Community Day!

September 28th, 2:00-fireworks

Come chat with us about everything BSC watershed, hear about our current projects and events, learn what a watershed is, and more! Hope to see you there!!

Stop and visit the Big Sewickley Creek Watershed Association booth at Marshall Township Community Day!

August 24th 4pm-fireworks!

Come chat with us about everything BSC watershed, hear about our current projects and events, learn what a watershed is, and more! Hope to see you there!!

Join us for some citizen science for Earth Day! Walk the creek and search under rocks to find and identify macroinvertebrates - the critters that make up the base of our food chain! Examples include crayfish, mayfly, caddisfly, and other larvae, snails, etc. This will help us understand the health of our waterways and provide a baseline for future reference!

REGISTRATION REQUIRED! Sign up here: https://forms.gle/498f1SSRvweaDZLk9

All participants should dress well for outdoor weather and prepare to get wet. Waders or muck boots recommend.

No open-toed shoes.

All children must be accompanied by an adult.

Anyone under 18 must have a life jacket. If you do not have a life jacket you cannot enter the creek.

Only 20 spots available. You will receive an email with the meeting location if you make it in.

Join us at the Baden Earth Day celebration at Sisters of St. Joseph! We will have a table set up with giveaway items and a children’s activity. Come learn what we do to keep Big Sewickley Creek Watershed wild!

All are welcome to join the festivities, which will include fun for all ages.

• Live bluegrass by Nemo and the Litter-Gitters

• Crafts and sidewalk chalk art for kids

• Delicious food truck fare from Papa Dukes and Tipicos Monroy

• Coffee, tea and treats from Merchant Coffee Co.

• Guided nature walks on our beautiful 80-acre grounds

• A clothing exchange

• Visits with our Motherhouse hens and Pets with Heart therapy dogs

• A CommuniCycle bike distribution

• Educational exhibits from local environmental experts and advocates about what we can all do to protect our water, soil and air

• And much more!

Explore, learn, and find inspiration in the boundless gifts of nature! No RSVP is necessary.

*In the event of inclement weather, an announcement will be made 24 hours in advance on our website and social media.*

Join Leet Township for their annual Keep Leet Neat litter cleanup!! 🤩

When: Saturday April 20th 10-12

Where: Leet Township Municipal Building - 194 Ambridge Ave, Fair Oaks, 15003

Meet up at the municipal building and enjoy coffee and donuts before heading out to keep Leet neat! Gloves, bags and vests will be provided, all that is needed is YOU! Bring a friend and come join in on the fun while making a huge impact on our beautiful watershed!

An extra big THANK YOU to Andy Wanto and Leet Township Public Works for organizing this yearly cleanup event and for coordinating all of the trash pickup and disposal!

Cleanup Location: Cooney Hollow Road

Come join us for our first official litter cleanup of 2024!

We will be cleaning up one of our favorite watershed green spaces, Cooney Hollow! We will be splitting into groups to pick up both lower and upper Cooney Hollow road so that it is ready to show off how beautiful it is just in time for opening day of trout fishing!

We will be meeting at 180 Cooney Hollow road. Please bring a water bottle, long pants, closed toe shoes, and bug spray if you wish. We will supply all the litter supplies, vests, gloves, etc, and special thanks to Economy Borough for providing litter pickup!

Come learn how to winter sow with Fern Hollow Nature Center and Big Sewickley Creek Watersed Association! This fun activity will teach you how you can easily start native seeds over the winter for sprouts to plant in the spring! Milkweed and other native plants will be the focus. More details coming soon!

Stop and visit the Big Sewickley Creek Watershed Association booth at Economy Borough Community Day! Come chat with us about everything BSC watershed, hear about our current projects and events, learn what a watershed is, paint some BSC rocks and more! Hope to see you there!

Stop and visit the Big Sewickley Creek Watershed Association booth at Marshall Township Community Day!

August 27th 4pm-fireworks!

Come chat with us about everything BSC watershed, hear about our current projects and events, learn what a watershed is, paint some BSC rocks and more! Hope to see you there!!

Join BSCWA President and Allegheny County Naturalist Katie Stanley for a Firefly Hike at Linbrook Park! Explore Linbrook as the sun goes down while learning about our state insect, the Firefly! Search for lightening bugs and learn how you can help protect these magical creatures. Meet at the parking lots at the park entrance along Big Sewickley Creek Road, no registration necessary. Open to all ages!

In an effort to limit light, we will be hiking in the dark. If you do bring a flashlight please only use a red light setting to protect the fireflies and our night vision. Hike will be about 0.5 miles along paved road and is rated as easy. Linbrook Park address: 2631 Big Sewickley Creek Road, Sewickley PA 15143

Cleanup Location: TBD

We are so lucky to have a beautiful creek running through our community - so let's keep it clean! Join the Big Sewickley Creek Watershed Association for a litter cleanup. We will provide trash bags, gloves, and vests- all we need is you! By cleaning litter in and around our waterways, we keep it safe for the people who use it to recreate and for the animals who use it to live. If you want to attend, simply show up. Litter cleanups are a fun, fulfilling and easy way to keep our watershed beautiful. All ages welcome.