October is always surprising, what with migration trailing off, interesting swings in weather, and the Big Sit.
Through the Window: October 2025
November 2025 events
November is mostly behind-the-scenes month. We have a lot to be thankful for, this month, and will post about all sorts of amazing people, places, and phenomena on instagram, facebook, and/or bluesky. We are open by appointment while we take the time to move art around, build the annual appeal, work on our newsletters, and update and invent new traveling exhibits. We have a few events, of course!
=== NOVEMBER EVENTS ===
Continue reading “November 2025 events”
December Bird Monitoring Walk
All birders — current, experienced, newbie and would-be — welcome!
Join our monthly monitoring walk to record birds at the Museum’s trails, forest, and meadow. Learn something new, share what you know, or both! Most fun for adults, older children.
Please bring your own binoculars and dress for the weather. We recommend bringing tick repellent and a water bottle.
Free, suggested donation $10 – $15
Max: 12 people
Outdoors
We go out the last Saturday of every month. Walks start at 7:30 am April – August; 8am in September – March
Photo of Northern Cardinal.
CANCELLED November Bird Monitoring Walk
We’re sorry, but we have had to cancel this month’s monitoring walk.
Please visit our main events page to find other upcoming events.
Thank you!
All birders — current, experienced, newbie, and would-be — welcome!
Join our monthly monitoring walk to record birds at the Museum’s trails, forest, and meadow. Learn something new, share what you know, or both! Most fun for adults, older children.
Please bring your own binoculars and dress for the weather. We recommend bringing tick repellent and a water bottle.
Free, suggested donation $10 – $15
Max: 12 people
Outdoors
We go out the last Saturday of every month. Walks start at 7:30 am April – August; 8am in September – March
Photo of Ruffed Grouse in Crabapple. Photographed at the Museum by Museum staff.
Help Us Get to the Other Side!
Water Damage
You can Help!
We need your help to get to the other side! We have a plan to re-cross Sherman Hollow Brook, and need your help to help fund the construction.
Everything helps, from $5 once, $50 monthly, to $5000 annually.
Bob’s Bridge has been closed since July 2024. Torrential rains and floods that month damaged the bridge and its footing. For safety, the Museum closed it, limiting public access to the museum’s trails on the 60 acres across Sherman Hollow Brook. This also restricted access to Gale’s Retreat.
First Steps
Right after the flood, we began working with Timber and Stone LLC and DeWolfe engineers. Together we are designing and will build a new accessible bridge!
The new route includes a board walk, places to pause and bird, and views above the stream. The new bridge will be above the 100-year flood mark and allow us to reopen the trails for everyone. By rerouting access, we make the access more gradual, more accessible, and minimize erosion into the brook. Continue reading “Help Us Get to the Other Side!”
Through the Window: September 2025
Warm and dry pretty much the whole month. Pleasant for sitting around, and can make some nice updrafts. Did you go hawk watching?
Every now and then this year, a warbler comes to the feeder—not to eat, apparently, just to check things out from that perch. And (presumably less often) we notice!
September Bird List
the Big Sit! 2025
The most relaxed birding around. And around and around …
How many birds (and birdwatchers) can we identify from a 17-foot diameter circle between sunrise and sunset? Can we beat last year’s record? We’ve seen birds big and small, in night and day: from Kinglets to Great Blue Herons, Barred Owls to Turkey Vultures.
This is a great long-running community science project. Pledges and donations welcome:
We are observing from Dawn to Dusk. The Museum is open from 10am – 4pm.
Call or email to ask about joining the observation team.
For much more info, see https://www.thebigsit.org/ .
Check out the reports from previous years: 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 (overall), 2021 (ours), 2022 (overall), 2022 (ours), 2023 (overall), 2023 (ours)
October Bird Monitoring Walk
All birders — current, experienced, newbie and would-be — welcome!
Join our monthly monitoring walk to record birds at the Museum’s trails, forest, and meadow. Learn something new, share what you know, or both! Most fun for adults, older children.
Please bring your own binoculars and dress for the weather. We recommend bringing tick repellent and a water bottle.
Free, suggested donation $10 – $15
Max: 12 people
Register with the button below or call 802 434-2167.
Outdoors
We go out the last Saturday of every month. Walks start at 7:30 am April – August; 8am in September – March
Photo of White-breasted Nuthatch © Zac Cota-Weaver and used by permission.
Through the Window: August 2025
Oh my gosh, it’s been SO dry. Thankfully, we have a little trickle of water coming into a well-shaded tiny pond. The Bee balm and the willow and the goldenrod are a bit too tall and dense to see the birds taking their small drinks at the water, though! (The Hummingbirds sure like the bee balm!)
August Bird List
CANCELLED : Meander for Mushrooms
We’re sorry but we have had to cancel this event. We hope to offer it again sometime!
It’s widely known that some fungi are decomposers, but did you know that they can also eat plastic, clean up oil spills, hunt for prey, and enable trees to talk to each other?
Join mycology educator, macro photographer, and author Meg Madden on a mushroom curiosity walk to learn more about the lives of these fascinating organisms. On this walk we will explore the woods and talk about the mushrooms we find along the way including what they are and how to identify them.
From building soil to connecting trees, we will go over the essential roles that fungi play within their natural communities. From environmental remediation to mycelium-based green building materials, we’ll also learn about some of the unique ways fungi can help us navigate our way in a more planet-friendly manner.
Meg will also discuss the importance of community science, how you can contribute to Vermont’s growing database of fungi species on iNaturalist, and share tips and tricks for taking scientific grade mushroom photos.
Wear comfortable walking shoes, weather-appropriate clothing, and bring your questions and curiosity! A smartphone equipped with the iNaturalist app is a plus, but not required.
Signed copies of Meg’s new book, This Is A Book For People Who Love Mushrooms is available for purchase in the Musuem’s Gift Shop.
Note: this is NOT a foraging program.
About Meg Madden
Fungi educator, author, and professional photographer, Meg Madden can often be found in the forests of her childhood practicing what she calls “mushroom yoga” — laying on the ground, standing on her head, or balancing precariously on a log — to capture the perfect snail’s-eye view of her favorite photo subject: Fungi! Her colorful, highly detailed mushroom portraits offer an intimate look into the often-overlooked world of these extraordinary organisms.
Inspired by the belief that people are more likely to take care of something they love, she finds great joy in facilitating fun and meaningful connections between humans and nature. Meg shares her knowledge and contagious passion for the fantastic world of fungi through visually engaging presentations, mushroom walks, and via her Instagram gallery @megmaddendesign. An advocate for fungal diversity and community science, Meg teaches iNaturalist classes, organizes educational workshops and Bioblitzes, and is compiling an Atlas Of Fungi for the state of Vermont.