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Woods Fall Festival celebrates 20th anniversary of donation
Thousands of visitors have enjoyed the tranquility of the Reinstein Woods Nature Preserve, and on September 16 residents are invited to celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the land's donation to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.
DEC officials say that the Sixth Annual Fall Festival and anniversary celebration will be the biggest yet, with more than a dozen new displays, demonstrations and activities for children and adults.
The festival began in 2001 and has become an annual event to honor the 1986 donation of more than 265 acres of ponds, wetlands and forest to the State of New York from the Estate of Dr. Victor Reinstein and Mrs. Julia B. Reinstein.
"The volunteers had such a great time that they asked for it to be an annual event," said Meaghan BoiceGreen, a citizen participation specialist. "That's how the Fall Festival was born."
Popular activities, such as decorating walking sticks and "pond life" observations will be joined by new activities including making a botanical "solar art" print and sprouting a "radish baby" necklace. Guided tours will also be offered.
The solar art project involves placing leaves and other natural objects under specially-treated paper and placing them in the sun. When completed, the sun will have created an image of the objects.
The Herb Gardeners of the Niagara Frontier is sponsoring the radish babies. Children will place radish seeds in small wet towels and wear them around their necks.
"If you wait a few hours, the radish will actually sprout," said BoiceGreen. "Apparently the heat of your skin and the moisture causes them to sprout."
An organic honey maker will be on hand to demonstrate how bees create the sweet, gooey treat.
"It's very interesting to see how bees make honey, how beehives work and how people retrieve the honey," Boice-Green said.
Another new attraction will be snowshoeing. Boice-Green explained that children who weigh less than 100 pounds can participate in this activity.
The shoes can actually be used on grass, and the DEC will have a short trail set up to look like snow had fallen.
The art group Faces of Buffalo will be on hand to display its works and fundraising ideas. Faces of Buffalo creates mosaics that look like the animal and consists of self portraits drawn by people from the community surrounding Buffalo.
Among the more popular attractions is an Environmental Conservation Officer and K-9 dog "Matz," who will demonstrate how trained "detector dogs" assist in enforcing environmental laws.
Detector dogs assist in search and rescue operations and can sniff out protected native plants that some persons may try to smuggle out of the area. They can also track poachers.
A forest ranger, accompanied by Smokey Bear, will demonstrate the tools and techniques of his trade.
Also on hand will be several units of the DEC that have not been on display at previous festivals. A DEC fishery biologist and the Great Lakes Coordinator will be joined by representatives from the Division of Air, the Pesticide Unit and the Division of Remediation, which handles hazardous waste sites.
Visitors will also be provided a "sneak preview" of the soon-to-becompleted "green" environmental education center.
The 4,900 square-foot building will offer year-round space for environmental education programs, exhibits and presentations.
Along with exhibit space, the new building will house an auditorium, a nature viewing area, office space and a classroom.
It is called a "green" building because when it is completed, the building will have been constructed out of mostly environmentallyfriendly material.
"I think people will be surprised with a lot of the products that are
used in there," Boice-Green added. "Many think that in order to do environmentally friendly things, you have to spend a lot of money and buy material that is not readily available. But a lot of our materials are actually available through local 'big box' hardware stores."
Folk singer Nan Hoffman will provide entertainment beginning at noon.
The celebration takes place from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on September 16.
Reinstein Woods is located at 77 Honorine Drive, off Como Park Boulevard. A $1 donation to Friends of Reinstein Nature Preserve is requested at the gate, but there are no additional fees.
For a complete schedule of festival events, call the DEC at (716) 6835959 or visit their Web site at www.dec.state.ny.us/website/reg9/ reinstein.
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