Fern Hollow Nature Center

Little Explorers
2026-04-16 09:30 - 12:00, 2026-04-22 09:30 - 12:00, 2026-04-23 09:30 - 12:00, 2026-04-29 09:30 - 12:00, 2026-04-30 09:30 - 12:00 (America/New_York) | Ohio Township Nature Center, 325 Nicholson Road, sewickley, PA, 15143, United States
The 6-week drop-off program for bathroom-independent pre-schoolers ages 3-5 starts March 25th, 2026. All sessions will take place at The Ohio Township Community Park at 325 Nicholson Rd, Sewickley, PA 15143, while we prepare for our renovation. A generous grant from the Union Aid Society is available to provide financial assistance to Quaker Valley School District residents in need.
Each week of Explorers is a unique blend of hikes, nature lessons, and play that also foster early learning skills using the natural world, but with content geared towards older Preschool and Kindergarten-aged children. All explorers must be fully bathroom independent.
Children should come dressed according to the weather, bring a reusable water bottle, and a nut-free snack. Different variations of this program are offered throughout the year, providing unique experiences tailored to the changing seasons.
Register Here!

Junior Explorers
2026-04-16 13:30 - 16:00, 2026-04-23 13:30 - 16:00, 2026-04-30 13:30 - 16:00 | Ohio Township Nature Center, 325 Nicholson Road, sewickley, PA, 15143, United States
The 6-week drop-off program for bathroom-independent pre-schoolers ages 3-6 starts March 25th, 2026. All sessions will take place at The Ohio Township Community Park at 325 Nicholson Rd, Sewickley, PA 15143, while we prepare for our renovation. A generous grant from the Union Aid Society is available to provide financial assistance to Quaker Valley School District residents in need.
Each week of Explorers is a unique blend of hikes, nature lessons, and play that also foster early learning skills using the natural world, but with content geared towards older Preschool and Kindergarten-aged children. All explorers must be fully bathroom independent.
Children should come dressed according to the weather, bring a reusable water bottle, and a nut-free snack. Different variations of this program are offered throughout the year, providing unique experiences tailored to the changing seasons.
Register Here!

Quaker Valley Creekers Symposium
2026-04-17 15:00 - 16:30 | Camp Kon-O-Kwee, 126 Nagel Rd, Fombell, 16123, United States
Creeker Symposium
Camp Kon-O-Kwee

CANCELLED: Mentored Youth Trout Day
2026-04-18 08:00 - 15:00 | King’s Lake
Saturday, April 18 | 8:00am–3:00pm | King’s Lake
Learn to fish with us! Join Fern Hollow and Sewickley Valley Conservation Association for free fishing lessons at King’s Lake. The lake will be stocked with rainbow trout and equipment, lures, bait and instruction will be provided.
This event is open to all families in the Sewickley Valley Region. Beat the crowds on opening day and bring the family to this guided and fun event!
Park at Esmark Field at 1857 Camp Meeting Rd Sewickley, PA 15143. Shuttles will take you to the lake every 15 minutes.

Nature & Nurture Hike
2026-04-20 10:00 - 11:00 | Tom’s Run Nature Preserve, Toms Run Rd, Kilbuck Township, Pennsylvania, 15143, United States
Monday March 16 — Tom’s Run Nature Preserve
Monday, April 20 — Henle Park (Victory Garden of Leetsdale)
Monday, May 18 — Sewickley Heights Borough Park
The natural world provides so many opportunities, even for our “littlest explorers,” for discovery, imagination and problem-solving, as well as possible health advantages such as motor-skill development, improved immunity & regulation of sleep-wake cycles. In this new series of guided hikes, we are excited to share all of these benefits with children up to age 5 and a caretaker.
We will explore some of our community’s amazing parks! Terrain will range from easy to moderate, and total length will be determined by the participants, as these are geared to be child-led.
There will be story time and craft making to conclude our hike.
*All children must be accompanied by an adult*
Specific directions and meeting locations will be given to participants after registration.

Member Fee
$6 / session for 1 caregiver and up to 2 children

Public Fee
$9 / session for 1 caregiver and up to 2 children

Register Here!

Evening Hike at Sewickley Heights Borough Park
2026-04-23 18:00 - 19:30 | Sewickley Heights Borough Park, Hallaway Road, Sewickley, 15143
Thursday, April 23 | 6:00-7:30pm
Come join Mr. Sam in at Sewickley Heights Borough Park where we will be going on an evening hike. We will look for amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals as we explore the forest and meadow before sunset. Come watch the animals come alive before nightfall!

Member Fee
$10

Public Fee
$16
Register Here!

Earth Day Spring Clean Up
2026-04-25 09:00 - 13:00 | Fern Hollow Nature Center, 1901 Glen Mitchell Road, sewickley, PA, 15143, United States
APRIL 25 ∙ 9am-1pm ∙ Fern Hollow Nature Center
Come to Fern Hollow on April 26th, Earth Day, and help with our annual spring cleanup! We will have all sorts of opportunities from gardening, weeding, removing invasive species, painting, and more.
This event is great for scouts, Key Club, National Honor Society, families, seniors, completing student volunteer hours and anyone celebrating Earth Day.
We hope to see you here. We recommend bringing your own garden tools and gloves and tools. We will have some tools and gloves to borrow.
Registration is not required, but is appreciated!
Register Here!

BioBlitz with Little Sewickley Creek Watershed Association
2026-04-26 09:00 - 14:00 | Walker Park, 520 Little Sewickley Creek Rd, Sewickley, Pennsylvania, 15143, United States
Join us at Walker Park Shelter #4! This event is FREE and no registration is required. Enjoy the day outdoors and learn a lot about the natural world right here in the Sewickley Valley. Bring water, bug spray, sunscreen, and curiosity!
Schedule of events:
ALL DAY:

Look for Creek Critters in the beautiful Little Sewickley Creek as it flows through Walker Park. Dip nets and cups will be available to borrow.
View the spring wildflowers that are in bloom.
Use the iNaturalist app to identify the organisms that you find. They will be added to our Watershed Project. (If you don’t have the app, it would be helpful to download it before arriving.)

9:00 am: Birding Join Cindy, a local birder, to help identify the birds.
10:00am: Beaver Habitat Walk Judy will guide you on a short drive to the trailhead. You can take a shorter or longer walk depending on how much you want to see of the beavers’ habitat. Steve will also share his video at the shelter 10:00-1:00.
10:30am: Mushroom Walk Cherie, an identifier with the PA Mushroom Club, will be looking for spring mushrooms.
12:00pm: Plants, Creek Critters, and Lunch Bring a picnic lunch to refuel! When you are done eating, join others looking for plants on land and critters in the creek. If you have boots, bring them since the water might be chilly. Or you can wear water sandals.
1:00pm & 2:00pm: Fish Walks Dr. Brady Porter will be teaching people how to find and identify fish. BRING CHEST or HIP WADERS if you have them and WOULD LIKE TO PARTICIPATE IN ELECTROFISHING or you can stay on the shore. This will take place in Morrow-Pontefract Park, closer to the river.

Fiddlehead Homeschool
2026-05-01 10:00 - 12:00 | Walker Park, 520 Little Sewickley Creek Rd, Sewickley, Pennsylvania, 15143, United States
End of Year Celebration

Celebrate the end of the 2025-2026 Fiddlehead Homeschool Club year with us at Walker Park!

Fern Hollow at the YMCA
2026-05-08 13:00 - 15:00, 2026-05-19 13:00 - 15:00 | The Y, 625 Blackburn Road, Sewickley, Pennsylvania, 15143, United States
Fern Hollow is excited to announce our partnership with the Sewickley YMCA. Our educators will provide 2 hours of nature-based programming at the Y on this Quaker Valley in-service days from 1:00-3:00pm.
The program is intended for grades K–5th.
Contact the YMCA to register!
Click Here For More Information!

Quaker Valley Creekers Middle School
2026-05-13 15:00 - 16:30
End of Year Wrap Up
Quaker Valley Middle School Room 308
3:05-4:40pm

Crazy Carnivorous Plants (Adults & Kids aged 12+ with Adult)
2026-05-13 18:30 - 20:00 | Sewickley Heights History Center, 1901 Glen Mitchell Rd, Sewickley, Pennsylvania, 15143, United States
Wednesday, May 13, 2026 | 6:30-8:00 PM
Discover the wild world of carnivorous plants! These amazing plants have to fight to survive in habitats where most plants would struggle. From Venus flytraps that snap shut in a fraction of a second to pitcher plants that lure insects with sweet nectar, we’ll uncover the clever tricks these plants use to catch and digest their prey. Learn how to care for and take home your own carnivorous plant to nurture and grow.
Member Fee: $16/person
Public Fee: $20/person
Register Here!

Sewickley Valley Geo-Trail Challenge
2026-06-06 - 2026-06-13 | Henle Park (Victory Garden of Leetsdale), 505 Beaver St, Leetsdale, Pennsylvania, 15056
What’s better than spending time in one of our local greenspaces for National Get Outdoors Day? How about exploring up to 5 different parks over a week, with a chance to win some awesome prizes! Fern Hollow Nature Center and Sewickley Public Library, with support from our local parks and communities, are proud to present the Sewickley Valley Geo-Trail! Are you up for the challenge?
How to participate:

Get the family or a group of friends together
Get an official Sewickley Valley Geotrail passport (available at fhnc.org or at SPL starting on Monday June 1st.)
Download the Geocaching app for free
From Saturday June 6th through Saturday June 13th, participants have a week to find each cache located in Henle Park, Mary Roberts Rinehart Park, Sewickley Heights Borough Park, Walker Park and War Memorial Park, and stamp their passport.
Passports returned to SPL by the 13th with 3 or more caches found will be entered into a drawing for several prizes, including the grand prize of 4 Free General Admission passes to Fern Hollow’s Fall Music Festival!

Included parks:

Henle Park
Mary Roberts Rinehart Park
Sewickley Heights Borough Park
Walker Park
War Memorial Park

Register Here!

Rock Gardening & Hypertufa Container Construction
2026-06-10 18:30 - 20:00 | Sewickley Heights History Center, 1901 Glen Mitchell Rd, Sewickley, Pennsylvania, 15143, United States
Get introduced to the art of rock gardening and learn how to craft beautiful, lightweight hypertufa containers that showcase alpine and drought-tolerant plants. This hands-on workshop blends horticulture, design, and creativity, giving you the knowledge and skills to build your own container alpine garden.
Members Fee: $20
Public Fee: $26
REGISTRATION HERE

Saddle Up: Summer Soiree
2026-06-12 17:30 - 22:00 | The Sewickley Quarter, 545 Beaver St, Sewickley, Pennsylvania, 15143, United States
Friday, June 12 · Sewickley Quarter
VIP Reception: 5:30-6:30pm · Event: 6:30-10:00pm
Our fundraising event of the year is coming up! Join us for the annual Summer Soiree, a chic cocktail party for 150 people at Sewickley Quarter in downtown Sewickley. This year’s event theme is Saddle Up, featuring Western themed activities, entertainment, dancing and delicious food and drink.
Support the Nature Center and join the community for a boot-scootin’ good time!
Reserve Your Tickets!

Family Composting Workshop
2026-06-27 09:00 - 11:00 | Fern Hollow Nature Center, 1901 Glen Mitchell Road, sewickley, PA, 15143, United States
Saturday, June 27
9:00-11:00 AM
FHNC Garden
Cost Per Family: $18/member, $30/non-member
Children must be accompanied by an adult.
Turn kitchen scraps and yard waste into garden treasure! In this hands-on workshop, kids and adults will explore composting and vermiculture — learning how to build a healthy compost pile and how to raise worms that supercharge your soil.
Get your hands dirty with Cam and Janel in the FHNC Garden as we cover:

The “recipe” for great compost: what to add (and what not to!)
Meet the decomposers: worms, bacteria, and fungi that do the real work
Troubleshooting a compost pile (too smelly? too dry?)
How to properly use finished compost

Register Here!

Nature & Nurture Hike Summer 2026
2026-06-29 10:00 - 11:00, 2026-07-27 10:00 - 11:00 | Bell Acres Nature Trail
6/29: Bell Acres Nature Trail
7/27: Walker Park
8/24: War Memorial Park
The natural world provides so many opportunities, even for our “littlest explorers,” for discovery, imagination and problem-solving, as well as possible health advantages such as motor-skill development, improved immunity & regulation of sleep-wake cycles. In this new series of guided hikes, we are excited to share all of these benefits with children up to age 5 and a caretaker.
We will explore some of our community’s amazing parks! Terrain will range from easy to moderate, and total length will be determined by the participants, as these are geared to be child-led.
There will be story time and craft making to conclude our hike.
*All children must be accompanied by an adult*
Specific directions and meeting locations will be given to participants after registration.

Member Fee
$6 / session for 1 caregiver and up to 2 children

Public Fee
$9 / session for 1 caregiver and up to 2 children

Register Here!

Mushroom Walk with ALT
2026-07-08 17:00 - 20:00 | Sewickley Heights History Center, 1901 Glen Mitchell Rd, Sewickley, Pennsylvania, 15143, United States
Join ALT staff and WPMC Identifier Julie Travaglini for a mushroom talk, walk and ID table at Fern Hollow Nature Center.
We will start with an introduction to the Kingdom of Fungi with an indoor learning session, followed by an outdoor mushroom hunt. This is not a traditional guided hike; after the indoor introduction, attendees will be looking for mushrooms on their own before reconvening for an ID table and discussion at the end. As this hike is beginner-friendly, we will be using the mushrooms common names and looking at distinguishing features to begin identifying mushrooms.
We will not be foraging on this hike or discussing edibility. Foraging for mushrooms can be risky, and it is never safe to eat a wild mushroom unless an expert confirms the identity.
$10 per person
Hike runs rain or shine. No walk-ins will be permitted.
Register Here!

Flora & Fauna Hike at SHBP (Adults & Families)
2026-07-10 09:00 - 10:30 | Sewickley Heights History Center, 1901 Glen Mitchell Rd, Sewickley, Pennsylvania, 15143, United States
Join FHNC Naturalist, Janel and Environmental Educator, Sam for an easy hike through Sewickley Heights Borough Park. Learn more about the plants and animals of our area. From the meadows to the woods, discover how both the flora and fauna change throughout the park.
Member Fee; $7
Public Fee: $10
Register Here!

Birds of the Creek
2026-07-11 10:00 - 12:00 | Walker Park
Join Mr. Sam at Walker Park to learn about the amazing and vibrant birds that inhabit our local creek ecosystem. We will be looking for herons, kingfishers, warblers, and many more. Be sure to bring your binoculars and shoes to wear in the creek! Children under 14 must be accompanied by an adult.
Members: $7
Public: $10
Register Here!

Family Bird Hike
2026-07-18 09:00 - 10:30 | Fern Hollow Nature Center, 1901 Glen Mitchell Road, sewickley, PA, 15143, United States
Join Cassie and Janel for a family bird hike at Sewickley Heights Borough Park. Cassandra Ziegler is a PhD student in Pittsburgh studying birds and their ecology, with a focus on what birds eat and how they use different habitats. She loves sharing her enthusiasm for birds with others and enjoys helping people of all experience levels learn and feel more confident exploring and identifying the birds around them. Registration Required.
Register Here!

Firefly Fun Night
2026-07-31 19:30 - 21:00 | Ohio Township Nature Center, 325 Nicholson Road, sewickley, PA, 15143, United States
As the sun sets, join us for a fun evening of discovery! Kids will learn all about the fascinating world of PA’s state insect – the firefly; how and why they glow, their unique life cycle, and the important part they play in nature. Participants will also have a chance to make a hands-on craft before ending the night exploring and observing these glowing insects for themselves!
Register Here!
