Join us for a nature walk around the lake at the Billy Johnson Mountain Lakes Nature Preserve. We'll observe the great diversity of life at the Preserve with possible sightings of eastern painted turtles, great blue herons, beavers, salamanders, crayfish, and macroinvertebrates. Learn about various plant species and habitat restoration projects aimed at preserving native organisms. After our walk, we’ll head back to the Mountain Lakes House to delve into the world of lake life collected during our walk. Using field microscopes, we'll explore the diversity of plants & waterbugs and discover their role as indicators of ecosystem health.
This event will be guided by our enthusiastic summer interns, who are actively pursuing careers in ecology, natural resource management, environmental education, and related fields. It's a great way to support and engage with our interns while enjoying an enriching outdoor experience.
This walk will be moderately challenging along trails with uneven terrain and a rocky stream crossing. All ages are welcome!
Meetup Location: Mountain Lakes House Parking Lot
Directions & Parking: We will meet at the Mountain Lake House parking lot, located within the Billy Johnson Mountain Lakes Nature Preserve. Here is a link to the parking lot location on Google Maps & Apple Maps. The address of the Preserve is 57 Mountain Avenue, Princeton, NJ 08540; this will bring you to the entrance of the Preserve, not our meet-up location. To get to the Mountain Lakes House parking lot, look for the white gate along Mountain Avenue, marked by a series of black mailboxes along the road. Drive slowly down the long paved driveway. The gravel parking lot will be on your left, approximately 1/2 mile down the driveway.
Event waiver: Please complete this event waiver - fopos.org/waiver. This needs to be completed once per calendar year.