Happy Thanksgiving from staff at Ijams

Happy Thanksgiving, 

i.e. Take a Turkey to Lunch Day.

From our family to yours, 

we hope you have a warm and gentle holiday. 

The grounds and all the trails at Ijams

will be open throughout the holiday, 

but the Visitor Center will be closed 

Thursday and Friday so that our staff 

can be with their families. 

The staff returns on Saturday.

Ijams veterinarian, Dr. Louise, leads Waggin' Walks most months

Even on a chilly morning at Ijams, Dr. Louise Conrad had a good turnout for her Waggin' Walk last Saturday. It's a great way to give your best friend a little excercise and get advice from a trained veterinarian. 

After a break for the holidays, Dr. Louise's next Waggin' Walk is Saturday, January 17.

TN Naturalists @ Ijams get down to the rock and the roll

TN Naturalist @ Ijams class of 2014 at exposed outcropping of 
Chapman Ridge formation

The TN Naturalist @ Ijams class of 2014 got down to the rock and the roll of the Ridge and Valley, our geologic province.

After we went over the basics of geology indoors, the class walked from the west end of Ijams to the east, covering four different rock formations along the way (all sedimentary, as it is everywhere in the valley). The four formations of exposed bedrock at Ijams are Ottosee (shale), Chapman Ridge (sandstone), Holston (crystalline limestone) and Lenior (silty limestone). 

The TN Naturalist Program @ Ijams is 20 hours of naturalist classes covering a wide range of topics plus 20 hours of volunteer work.  

The classes begin in March and wrap up in November. We are already taking registration for 2015. To register call Peg at (865) 577-4717, ext. 114. (She needs your name, phone number and email address.)

- Stephen Lyn Bales.

Chapman Ridge formation originally deposited roughly 450 million years ago.

Cave on boardwalk illustrates karst topography of caves and sinkholes

The geologic fold and faulting occurred roughly 250 million years ago

Chunk of crystalline limestone, part of the Holston Formation

Chunk of shale, part of the Ottosee Formation

At exposed section of Lenior Formation

Silty, crumbly limestone from the Lenior Formation

End of a long afternoon

Volunteer to take a Humane Society dog for a walk at Ijams

Chester needs a morning outing

One of the volunteer programs at The Humane Society of the Tennessee Valley is the opportunity to take a dog out for a hike or run any day of the week. 

Volunteers pick an adult dog up at 9 a.m. and return them by noon. The Humane Society provides the leash and encourages volunteers to go to Ijams for a jog/hike/run. It offers the Humane Society's shelter dogs a much needed break from the shelter. It has also proven to be quite therapeutic for the volunteers as well!

For more information call 573-9674. The Humane Society of the Tennessee Valley is located at 6717 Kingston Pike (on Bearden Hill).

Both the Humane Society and Ijams are members of Community Shares.

TN Naturalist @ Ijams class talk mammals for a day

Lynne McCoy with baby squirrels. 

It was a furry fun day for the TN Naturalist @ Ijams class of 2014.

Peg Beute taught the mammal portion of the curriculum with the help of local animal rehabilitator Lynne McCoy, who brought several of her "well care-for" critters: groundhog, opossum and baby squirrels. 

The TN Naturalist Program @ Ijams is 20 hours of naturalist classes covering a wide range of topics plus 20 hours of volunteer work.  

The classes begin in March and wrap up in November. We are already taking registration for 2015. To register call Peg at (865) 577-4717, ext. 114. (She needs your name, phone number and email address.)

- Stephen Lyn Bales. Class photos by Carissa "Joe" Fairchild.

Lynne McCoy

Searching for animal tracks

Eagle scout organizes group to replace portion of boardwalk

On a recent Saturday, a 40-foot section of the historic Lotus Pond Boardwalk at the Homesite was replaced as a boy scout eagle project.  

Ijams thanks eagle scout Joe Bogle of Troop 6 for his generous donation of $500 in lumber plus $500 in labor man hours.

Park Manager, Ed Yost, oversaw the project. 

- Stephen Lyn Bales

TN Naturalists @ Ijams class get a two-for

The TN Naturalist Program @ Ijams is 20 hours of naturalist classes covering a wide range of topics plus 20 hours of volunteer work.  

Recently, we did a two-for. That's two classes in one day. Peg Beute taught the fungi portion of the curriculum in the afternoon, then at 5 o'clock I took over the group for the Nocturnal Naturalist class.

Between the two, we took a break for supper at Cracker Barrel.

We conducted the nocturnal outing at Seven Islands State Birding Park because of its wide view of the night sky away from the city lights. We were also lucky to be serenaded by a family of great horned owls as the sun set. 
 
The TN Naturalist Program @ Ijams classes begin in March and end in November. We are already taking registration for 2015. To register call Peg at (865) 577-4717, ext. 114. (She needs your name, phone number and email address.)

- Stephen Lyn Bales.

Trick or Treat? WBIR's Live@5@4 celebrates Halloween at Ijams

Captain America and Catwoman join forces with forest pirate Red Squirrely
to protect Ijams from Halloween tricksters

Ijams thanks WBIR's Live@5@4 for broadcasting one-hour live last Friday from Ijams to celebrate Halloween. 

Co-hosts Russell "Captain America" Biven and Beth "Catwoman" Haynes teamed up with Ijams staffers to greet kids in costume, have a little fun and watch for Halloween tricksters. 

Ijams hosted several activities and demonstrations including Good Witch’s Story Time, Spooky Moo Milkshakes, Dr. Freaky’s Flubber and Monster Make-n-Takes.

We also say thank you to reporter J.J. "Where's Waldo?" Jones, producer Lee Ann Bowman and all the other behind the scenes TV folks.

Great fun was had by all.

- Stephen Lyn Bales. Additional photos by Jill Sublett

Ijams Halloween treaters: slime making, story telling, milk shaking, monster crafting. 
 Check out Jenny's pink feet. So, who knew?