Cedar Valley, IA – This summer, Silos & Smokestacks National Heritage Area (SSNHA) is
partnering with Hartman Reserve Nature Center to offer “Prairie to Pasture” day camps for
children grades 3-8. Campers will spend the summer learning the connection between the
prairie and the pasture, while exploring the sights, sounds and smells of Northeast Iowa.
Each day campers will go on a new and exciting adventure within the Heritage Area.
Activities include:
Fossil & Prairie Park Preserve & Center, Rockford
Explore large kilns where tiles were made for farmland and then dig up fossils in the
quarry where clay was collected. Cost: $20
June 16, grades 3-5
June 18, grades 6-8
Buffalos & Holsteins, Fredericksburg & Hudson
Feed a buffalo at Hawkeye Buffalo Ranch and then milk a cow at Hansen’s Dairy.
Cost: $30
June 23, grades 3-5
June 25, grades 6-8
Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge, Prairie City
Hike through 5,000 acres of tallgrass prairie and experience what it was like to be a
pioneer 150 years ago. Cost: $25
July 7, grades 3-5
July 9, grades 6-8
Fontana Nature Center & Heartland Acres, Hazelton & Independence
Explore the wetlands & woodlands of the nature center and then enjoy a hayrack ride
at Heartland Acres. Cost: $25
July 21, grades 3-5
July 23, grades 6-8
Effigy Mounds & Mississippi Boat Tour, Harpers Ferry
Discover the bluffs and burial mounds at Effigy Mounds, then dip your toes into the
Mississippi River with Captain Jack on the “Mississippi Explorer.” Cost: $40
Aug. 4, grades 3-5
Aug. 6, grades 6-8
Summer Camps are limited to 15 participants, with registration form and payment due two
weeks prior to the camp to reserve a spot. Participants may attend all five camps for $130.
Camps will depart from and return to Hartman Reserve Nature Center in Cedar Falls. For
more information or to register visit www.silosandsmokestacks.org or call Hartman Reserve
Nature Center at 319-277-2187.
“We are excited to offer day camps this summer. It is a great way to introduce youth to the
adventures that exist right here in Iowa. Hopefully by seeing a buffalo or digging up fossils,
campers will want to learn more about their heritage,” Don Short, SSHNA President.
Silos & Smokestacks National Heritage Area is one of 49 federally designated heritage areas
in the nation and is an Affiliated Area of the National Park Service. Through the development
of a network of sites, programs and events, the Heritage Area’s mission is to interpret farm
life, agribusiness and rural communities – past and present.
Topics: Press Releases
Related Attractions:
Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge
9981 Pacific Street
Prairie City, IA
515-994-3400
Fossil & Prairie Park Preserve & Center
1227 215th Street
Rockford, Iowa
641-756-3490
