Tag: Fairfield County

Free Family Halloween Event Features a Hay Maze Oct. 29 and Oct. 30 At Bartlett Arboretum & Gardens

The Bartlett Arboretum & Gardens at 151 Brookdale Road in Stamford becomes home to a huge hay maze, fun activities for kids and other Halloween happenings on Saturday, October 29, 2011 and Sunday October 30, 2011 from 12 p.m.- 4 p.m.

The event, AMAZEing Halloween, also features free admission to The Bartlett Arboretum & Gardens and its new Outdoor Explore Classroom, as well as the “Monster Mash” costume parade at 1pm and 3pm, face-painting, magicians, pumpkin carving, and many other kid-friendly activities.

“We wanted to showcase our grounds at a free Halloween event to let people see how wonderful the property looks in the fall” said Peter Saverine, Bartlett Arboretum’s Executive Director of Operations. “We’re excited about the hay maze and we’ll have lots to do for kids and their families.

With the recent opening of our new Silver Educational Center and its outdoor complement, the new Nature Explore Classroom, we are sure the Bartlett Arboretum will become a must-visit location for families to learn about nature together.”

The event is FREE and open to the public. It is being held in partnership with Stamford Recreation Services and supports the Food Bank of Lower Fairfield County. Families are encouraged to bring any non-perishable items they would like to donate to help others in our community.

Register at http://stamfordhalloween.eventbrite.com for your child or children to receive a free Halloween goody bag on the day of the event.

About The Bartlett Arboretum & Gardens:

The Bartlett Arboretum & Gardens is located at 151 Brookdale Road in Stamford, CT and is a natural preserve like no other in this region. The property features 91 acres of irreplaceable open space highlighting the best of what Connecticut’s

Native landscape has to offer: magnificent award-winning Champion trees, charming gardens, wildflower meadows, red maple wetlands and boardwalks, woodland walking trails, varied wildlife and native habitats. A wonderful getaway from the hustle and bustle of daily life, it serves as a leading recreational and educational resource for area residents and visitors of all ages. For weekend gardeners to budding young botanists, the Bartlett offers a place to relax, learn and play. The mission of the Bartlett Arboretum & Gardens is to inspire the community to explore, examine, understand and appreciate the natural history of the botanical world and its place in our lives. It is open to the public 365 days a year. Children under 12 are always free, adult entry is $6. Individual, family, and senior memberships are available for free access year round and discounts to programs, special events and local merchants. Visit www.bartlettarboretum.org or call 203-322-6971 for more information.

Photo Credit: P. Pogo

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The Lights Are Back On — At Sheffield Island Lighthouse

It has been over one-hundred years since the lighthouse on Sheffield Island off the coast of Norwalk has cast it’s light across the waters of Long Island Sound. Tonight, that will all change thanks to NRG Energy Inc. A low-energy reflective light has been installed in the tower and will be turned on for the first time in over 100 years today. Activated in 1868, the Sheffield Island Lighthouse was in service for 34 years until its retirement in 1902. The lighthouse served as a navigational beacon before the Greens Ledge Lighthouse was built. Today, Greens Ledge Lighthouse is a beacon for pleasure and commercial boaters cruising Long Island Sound.

The Norwalk Seaport Association purchased the lighthouse in 1987 for $700,000 from Thorston O. Stabell, who bought the structure from the U.S. government years prior and used it as a summer residence. Today, the Sheffield Lighthouse is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is maintained by the Association. Visitors to the island can stroll along the shoreline of the island and explore the lighthouse museum and nature preserve that is home to a number of seabirds and other island wildlife.

The new light on the island will not be used for navigational purposes, rather its intermittent light, visible from the Norwalk side of Long Island Sound is a reminder of the history of this important maritime landmark and a beacon that will welcome visitors to Sheffield Island.

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CELBRATE THE FALL HARVEST AT STAMFORD MUSEUM AND NATURE CENTER OCT. 15 AND 16

The crisp days of fall are a glorious time of year in Connecticut and part of our New England Heritage. What better way to celebrate the fall than to visit the Stamford Museum and Nature Center www.stamfordmuseum.org this weekend for the Harvest Festival. The fair is located on 39 Scofieldtown Rd. in Stamford and takes place on October 15 and 16 from 11 am to 3 pm.

Kids will enjoy hayrides, apple cider demonstrations, a scarecrow contest, pumpkin carving, llama trekking, farm animal demonstrations and many other fun activities.

As Halloween is just around the corner, children are encouraged to wear a costume and participate in the Harvest Festival parade led by a special guest! Many other activities will keep families busy including an apple slingshot, corn husk dolls, live music, face painting, farm tool demonstrations, cauldron-cooked corn, storytelling, and children’s crafts.

A special highlight of this year’s harvest festival includes the chance to meet the newest members of Heckscher Farm – two female guinea hogs. Families are invited to help name these two new residents during Harvest Festival Weekend. Visitors can make suggestions for the piglets’ names as part of Stamford Museum and Nature Center’s “Name Our Pigs” Challenge. The people who suggest the winning names will receive free admission for four to the Maple Sugar Weekend (in March 2012) and Spring on the Farm Weekend (in May 2012) at the Stamford Museum and Nature Center.

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Find Mothers Day Gifts That Keep Giving At Plant Sales In Connecticut’s Fairfield County

Flowers may be fine on Mothers Day, but plants that give pleasure all year may be even nicer. Best of all, consider a day out with Mom to choose her own special plant. Two exceptional plant sales at the Garden Education Center of Greenwich beginning May 7 and the Bartlett Arboretum in Stamford on May 7, the day before Mothers Day, offers a day in beautiful surroundings in Connecticut’s Fairfield County and experts to help with the choices.

MAY GARDENERS’ MARKET

This is the Golden Jubilee celebration of the May Gardeners’ Market at the Greenwich Garden Education Center, located in Cos Cob. The 50th anniversary celebration will run the entire week of May 7 at this organization dedicated to promoting home horticulture. It will feature landscape designers, garden planners, noted plant, garden sculpture and furniture sellers, and floral designers all week, culminating in an extraordinary Gardener’s Market of spectacular plants on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The setting of the Center in the 91-acre Montgomery Pinetum adds to the day’s pleasures. The property, once a private estate known as Wild Acres, features over 80 species of beautiful pines. From the flagstone terrace of the Garden Center office, the view is manicured lawns ending at a reflecting pool, framed in spring with masses of tulips, daffodils and early azaleas. Peony and primrose gardens always are at their best in May. The Garden Education Center of Greenwich is located at 130 Bible Street, Cos Cob. Phone 203-869-9242 or see http://www.gecgreenwich.org for further details.

SPRING PLANT SALE

Not far away in North Stamford, the Bartlett Arboretum and Gardens will be holding its own semi-annual plant sale, on Saturday, May 7th from 8:30 a.m.-3:00p.m. Expert advice will be available to customers from Bartlett staff and Master Gardeners from the University of Connecticut. Specialty made Herb Baskets will be available for purchase just in time for Mother’s Day. Hours are seven days a week from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Proceeds help support the Arboretum, another exceptional 91-acre spot for strolling. The property features the best of Connecticut’s native landscapes, with award-winning Champion trees, themed gardens, red maple wetlands and boardwalks, ten woodland walking trails, and varied wildlife. Magnolias, rhododendrons and conifers are among the specialties at the Arboretum that is conveniently reached off the Merritt Parkway Exit 35.

The Visitor Center houses a horticulture resource library, an art gallery and a plant clinic that remains open during the growing season. The Bartlett Arboretum is located at 151 Brookdale Road in Stamford. For information: 203-322-6971 or see http://www.bartlettarboretum.org.

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Touch A Shark April 16-24 at The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk in Fairfield County CT

Visitor response was so positive to “Touch A Shark” in February that the special exhibit will return for an encore April 16-24 to The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk.

As similarly offered in February, “Touch A Shark” will feature live nurse sharks (Ginglymostoma cirratum), a comparatively docile species that tolerates having their backs gently touched by human fingers.

“We had a great response to ‘Touch A Shark’ during the winter school break,” said Chris Loynd, the Aquarium’s marketing director. “Visitors were surprised at the feel of the sharks’ tough skin. And, importantly to us, they also learned that sharks aren’t the violent bloodthirsty beasts that they’re portrayed as in the media.”

Aquarium volunteers will be on-hand to make sure the shark-human interactions are safe for both parties.

Interpretative graphics will provide details about nurse sharks and how they hunt and eat their prey, and also about how sharks sense their world.

Plus, be sure to bring your camera to “Touch A Shark” for a shark dive-cage photo opportunity! A real diving cage, used for safe approaches to large sharks, will be positioned next to the Aquarium’s cast model of a 16-foot great white shark caught in the eastern end of Long Island Sound in the 1970s. Step inside the cage and pose to look like you’re having a real underwater encounter with the largest species of predatory shark – a species you don’t want to touch.

“Touch A Shark” will be free with Maritime Aquarium general admission: $12.95 for adults, $11.95 for seniors and $9.95 for children 2-12.

For more details, go online to http://www.maritimeaquarium.org or call (203) 852-0700 or visit http://www.MaritimeAquarium.or

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Amazing Mazes Beckon Autumn Visitors to Connecticut’s Litchfield Hills and Fairfield County

The mazes are amazing. Imagine acres of tall corn cut into twisting paths in whimsical shapes from crossword puzzles to bumblebees. Finding your way amidst these mazes of maize is a fun-filled adventure for all ages at four beautiful family farms in western Connecticut. Located in Litchfield and Fairfield Counties, the farms also offer hayrides, animals for petting, and apples and pumpkins ripe for picking to make for a perfect fall weekend outing.

Ellsworth Hill Farm in Sharon may take the prize for originality this season with a crossword puzzle maze covering four acres. Pick-your-own apples is another favorite activity at this berry farm and orchard. On hayrides at Ellsworth Hill “Farmer Mike” shows off the glowing foliage-covered hills of northwestern Connecticut and tells about the fruit varieties he grows on the farm.

One of the most elaborate maze designs is the bumblebee at Plaskos Farm in Trumbull. Plaskos is known for the imaginative designs cut each year through four acres of ten-foot-high corn. Crazy Cows, Spider Webs, and Lady Liberty are among the past creations. The twisty mazes provide some 15 miles of trails, but frequent escape hatches mean everyone can choose their own distance. Once again, hayrides are a scenic way to the fields.

Littlest guests will find a new treat this year at March Farm in Bethlehem, where a new Sunflower Maze designed for children is ready for action along with the traditional five-acre corn maze. This year’s main maze theme is designed to teach the value of composting. Along with the chance to pick your own apples, treats at this family-friendly farm include hayrides, and an animal farm where pygmy goats, lambs and llamas can be visited. An expanded Hayloft Playscape invites youngsters to enjoy a mini-hay loft, school and farmhouse, slides, a climbing wall and a tractor-themed sand play area.

Families also enjoy the six-acre corn maze in a unique triangle shape and the four-acre pumpkin patch awaiting visitors to Castle Hill Farm in Newtown. As an added treat, hayrides at Castle Hill bring visitors through a stream to the corn and pumpkin fields. Farm animals for petting and pony rides provide more treats for youngsters.

All of the mazes are open weekends through October, some into November. For exact hours and admission fees, check with each farm listed below or contact the Western Connecticut Visitors Bureau, PO Box 968, Litchfield, CT 06759, (860) 567-4506, http://www.visitwesternct.com.

Information:
Castle Hill Farm 40 Sugar Lane, Newtown, 203-426-5487, http://www.castlehillfarm.biz
Ellsworth Hill Farm, 461 Cornwall Bridge Road (Route 4), Sharon, http://www.ellsworthfarm.com
March Farm, 160 Munger Lane, Bethlehem, 203-266-7721, http://www.marchfarms.com
Plaskos Farm, 670 Daniels Farm Road, Trumbull, 203-268-2716, http://www.plaskosfarm.com

Hills, Fall Foliage, and Family Fun in Litchfield Hills Connecticut

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