FOX Days
Family Outdoor eXploration
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FOX days are a great way to spend time outdoors as a whole family, meet new people, and learn a lot about nature along the way. Designed for families with children ages 6 and up, younger kids and siblings are still welcome. Expect hands on activities, forest games, scavenger hunts, and guided naturalist walks.
Program Details
We’ll meet up at a local park, introduce ourselves, and spend our time exploring the theme for the given day. Expect some nature games, scavenger hunts, hands on exploration of a nature museum, and guided naturalist walks about wildlife tracking, birding and more. Each day will be tailored to the group that is present.
​Ages: Families with kids ages 6+ (younger kids and siblings still welcome!)
Time: 11am - 1pm
Cost: Sliding Scale: Free → $15/person
Dates (descriptions below)
Saturday, November 14th: Owls and Squirrels - Cornwall Park (meet at south entrance near the bathrooms)
Saturday, November 21st: Birds in Winter - Cornwall Park (meet at south entrance near the bathrooms)
Saturday, December 5th: Wildlife Tracking - Tenant Lake Fragrance Garden
Saturday, December 12: Fire - Nugent's Corner Park
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Drop-ins are welcome, but registration is encouraged!
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Owls and Squirrels
Meet at Cornwall Park to learn all about the owls and squirrels that call the park home in this hands-on outdoor adventure for the whole family.
There will be a hands-on nature museum with different items about owls and squirrels, scavenger hunt to find different bones, feathers, and nests, simple forest games to get everyone moving around, and a guided naturalist walk through the forest. If we’re lucky, we’ll get to see an owl in person, but we’ll definitely see some squirrels.
Owls and Squirrels
Birds in Winter
Birds in Winter
Meet at Cornwall Park to learn all about the birds that call the park home for winter in this hands-on outdoor adventure for the whole family.
There are over a dozen species of birds that winter in the park, from obvious ones like the crow to lesser known birds like the brown creeper and golden crowned kinglet. We’ll play some simple bird themed games, learn to identify them by sight and sound, and go for a walk through the forest to put our skills to the test. Binoculars are not required, but bring them if you have them.
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Wildife Tracking
Meet at Tenant Lake Fragrance Garden to learn all about wildlife tracking in this hands-on outdoor adventure for the whole family.
Learn the basics of animal tracks, scat, and trails in this interactive workshop. We’ll identify tracks and scat as we walk down the trail, eventually ending up on the muddy banks of the Nooksack River.
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Wildlife Tracking
Fire
Fire
Meet at Nugent’s Corner River Access to learn all about fire in this hands-on outdoor adventure for the whole family.
You will practice friction fire methods like bow drill and hand drill, try your hand at flint and steel, keep a candle flame alive for as long as you can, and see if you can master the black-match challenge.
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Community - Songs, stories, personal growth, relationship to one another
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Play - Joy for life, forest games, spontaneity, sharpening our senses, silliness, honing animal instincts
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Crafting - Wood carving, weaving, twining, shelters, bushcraft
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Natural History - Fluency with the natural world, knowing plant, animal, and fungi names, animal tracking, bird language, phenology, sit spot, nature journaling, nature museum​
Harvesting - Being in direct relationship with the land, eatings plants and berries, harvesting materials for crafts, herbal and medicinal plants
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Fire - Friction fire, tending the hearth, cooking
6 Pillars
Philosophy
Mountainside Nature School's curriculum is built upon six core pillars. The six pillars are Community, Play, Crafting, Natural History, Harvesting, and Fire. These six pillars are naturally woven into the seasonal framework of each Mountainside program. They provide a broad range of activities and experiences for the students to engage with; some are naturals with Play and experience challenges with Crafting, while others are naturals with Fire but are challenged by Community. The six pillars are designed to provide a comprehensive and balanced approach to outdoor learning and nature connection.
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Mountainside also follows in the tradition of coyote mentoring, which focuses on the learning and growth of students rather than the imparting of knowledge from teachers. Students will have the chance to learn, grow, and discover new things everyday on their own time. The outdoor environment and changing seasons provide infinite opportunities for exploration of all kinds.