PLEASE WELCOME:
 Our newest
Ranger Aaron Leist. He hails from Graytown, Ohio in Ottawa County. He
worked with the Ohio Division of Natural Resources (ODNR) for five years
on and off and for the past two years with the Division of Watercraft.
Aaron is excited to be working for the Park District.
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REUTHINGER MEMORIAL PRESERVE
GREENHOUSE UP!
Thanks to the Friends of Wood County Parks and several other
contributors, the long-awaited transformation of Reuthinger Preserve is
underway.
The greenhouse is completed and the Construction Department of the
Park District has begun construction of the pole barn that will be the new
home for the Stewardship Department. The Department hopes to be operating
out of Reuthinger by spring 2008, where it will conduct a great deal of
volunteer activity for the Native Plant Project.
The Reuthinger Preserve is one of the latest additions to the Wood
County Park District and came through a generous donation from the late Lucille Knepper. The Preserve is located in Perrysburg Township at 30730 Oregon
Road, Northwood, Ohio 43619.
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PLEASE WELCOME: Chief of Ranger Services,
Todd Nofzinger
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Todd Nofzinger comes to the Park District from the
Sandusky County Park District, where he worked for the past 11
years, most recently as Safety Service Coordinator. Nofzinger
received his Bachelor of Science Degree from Ohio State University
in 1992, majoring in Wildlife Management. He and his wife, Debbie,
have two children, Brooke, age 6, and Jaren, age 3.
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The Park District now has a certified personal fitness trainer on staff,
Ranger Dave Vnuck. He is available to help you with your fitness goals on
the Slippery Elm Trail and in our parks. During the winter, the group
meets Tuesdays at 9:00 a.m. at Otsego Park. FREE.
Watch "Events" on this site and
your local newspaper for special programs. For more information, contact
Dave at dvnuck@wcparks.org or
419-575-7331.
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EXPERIENCE THE NATURAL TREASURES OF WOOD
COUNTY
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The
W.W. Knight Nature Preserve…
at the intersection of
East River Road
and White Road
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Site
of:
Wetland, pond and native prairie.
A nature center. The home of the Program Department (Naturalists). You can reach Program Coordinator Debbie Nofzinger (ext. 200) in the
Nature Center to set up school and other special programs for your
organization, as well as Senior Naturalist Pamela Menchaca (ext. 206) and
part-time Naturalist Renell Simrau (ext. 201).
The Nature Center phone
number is (419) 661-1697 if you have nature questions.
All Park District business--including
rental questions, booking facilities, and setting appointments to see
facilities--continues to be handled at Park District
Headquarters in rural Bowling Green (419) 353-1897. But remember, you can
register for programs and book and pay for rental facilities online at
this site.
Rental facilities inside the nature center include the
Hankison Great
Room, the Elsie and William Knight Library (please reserve by calling Park
District Headquarters), a meeting room (coming sometime in 2006/07), and for school
programming, an educational
classroom with wet lab. You can book the Hankison Great Room online. The classroom is for Park District use only.
Please note: rentals for the upcoming month close on the 20th of the month
prior (no same month rentals), so book early and don't miss out on your
chance to use this wonderful facility!
LOONA – Lookout on Nature Area – part of the nature center
experience. Even if the Nature Center is closed, the Window on Wildlife area along
with the Knight Library remains open during park hours - 8:00 a.m. till dark. As the LOONA grows, Knight Preserve visitors will enjoy
wildlife, gardens, and a unique water habitat. Come help out in the community
gardens!
The Park District is currently looking for volunteers to help maintain the
gardens. If you're interested, please call (419) 661-1697 and ask for Pam
Menchaca.
A boardwalk through wetlands, woods and meadow.
Ice Skating when the temperature’s just right, the ice is good,
and the pond frozen. Call (419) 353-1897 x 204 for ice conditions (winter only,
of course).
Youth fishing. One of the only places in
Wood
County
for kids to fish by themselves, and for adults to fish when accompanied by
a fishing child or fishing teen.
No ice fishing, but when the weather's nice that's fishing season at W.W.
Knight.
Please note: adults may
not fish alone at this pond. This location is set up specifically for youth
and family fishing.
Please release any largemouth bass
and amur. You can keep anything else.
W.W. Knight Ranger Station. Now the Rangers have their home all in one
place! They work out of their cruisers, so they also have homes on the road.
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The
Adam Phillips Fishing Pond… off
I-75 and E. Gypsy Lane
by the Northwest
Ohio
Corrections
Center.
YES - it is open to the public!
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Site
of:
A combined effort between the Wood
County Commissioners and the Park District.
Public fishing April – October.
Prior to April, the area will not be treated yet for poison ivy. Beware.
Bank fishing only. See Parks by Activity for more information.
Bass is catch and release.
Drive back to the last parking lot in front of the Northwest Ohio
Corrections Center off East Gypsy Lane in southern Bowling Green.
Please DO NOT PARK ON THE GRASS.
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MORE...
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Beaver Creek sandbar
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ACQUISITIONS:
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Mid-Wood Property in Rudolph. Plans in progress.
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Development of a park property can take many years. Citizen
dollars through a 10-year levy help the Park District maintain the
parks, create school and public programming, and bring new picnic
shelters and other amenities to park areas under development.
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Retreat area with cabin, pond, wet woods,
telescope & more in our Beaver Creek Preserve, 23028 Long Judson Road,
near Grand Rapids. Cabin not yet available for rental,
but park area is open for public enjoyment. Enlarged stone parking area (20
cars) is here! A beautiful site for scouts and other small outdoor
groups.
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ATTENTION
GROUPS OF 25
or more... If you wish to use any Wood County Park District parks such as
the Slippery Elm Trail, Buttonwood, Otsego Park, William Henry Harrison
Park and so forth, please call Park District Headquarters at (419)
353-1897 to obtain a Group Permit. This will help eliminate conflicts
between large groups
in
the parks and make your time more enjoyable. Thank you!
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Need binoculars or the latest bird watching books?
Check out our online Nature Store:
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Click on photo to see enlargement:
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WHY WE BURN...
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Prescribed burns are a way of using fire as a land management tool
under very restricted conditions. The
staff participating on burns in our parks has formal training in this
area. Three crewmembers are
certified by the State of
Ohio
, Division of Forestry as Fire Leaders.
All of the parameters for conducting a safe, low smoke fire are
followed. This means that if any
conditions fall outside of the recommended ranges for conducting a
prescribed burn on a site during the designated period, the burn will not
take place. Conditions may include
but are not limited to wind speed and direction, humidity, and moisture
level of plants in the burn area.
Why burn? Fire is one of
the oldest tools used in agriculture and land management.
Mowing and pesticides are not effective or practical in every
management situation. Burning opens
up new or overgrown habitat and promotes biodiversity.
The Wood County Parks uses prescribed burns for ecological/biological
restoration of degraded natural habitats.
Burning removes accumulated plant litter from previous years’
growth, encourages higher seed germination in many native plants,
increases soil productivity, and slows the growth of many non-native,
invasive species. Prescribed
burning is also used for hazard reduction, scientific research, education,
and training.
We obtain permission from local Fire Departments
and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency to conduct our burns.
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If you have questions about Burns in our parks, you may contact:
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