Welcome to the Dallas Group of the Sierra Club
General Meeting Program - Tuesday, July 11, 7:00 pm - Refreshments at 6:30
Citizen Science and iNaturalist
What if you find something outside but don’t know what it is? How do you find out? What if you could share that discovery with others to excite them about nature as well? Citizen science is one way to address each of those questions. One particularly useful tool is iNaturalist, an online network with an associated app where participants document all of the living organisms around them, share that data with the rest of the naturalist community, and learn a lot in the process.
Sam Kieschnick, this program's presenter, is an urban wildlife biologist with Texas Parks and Wildlife serving the east side of the DFW metroplex. He previously worked as a nature educator with the City of Mansfield at Oliver Nature Park, as a naturalist at the Fort Worth Nature Center and Refuge, as a science interpreter with the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History, as a botanist with BRIT, and as an instructor at Weatherford College. He has a master's degree from Tarleton State University studying the genetics of pocket gophers. As an urban wildlife biologist, Sam’s focus will be on three a's: awareness, appreciation, and action.
Everyone is welcome. FREE! You don't have to be a Sierra Club member. Just show up. We'd love to meet you.
Our General Meeting starts at 7:00 pm, but come at 6:30 for snacks, information and fellowship. Click over to our General Meeting page for more information and a map.
General Meeting Program - Tuesday, August 8, 7:00 pm - Refreshments at 6:30
Wildlife Sanctuary Night - We will have presentations from representatives of two animal sanctuaries: Black Beauty Ranch and The Creature Teacher.
The Creature Teacher
Jon Bjornen will have live animals (including a kangaroo) that are engaging entertainment for children and adults alike.
Black Beauty Ranch
Briana MacDougall will tell us about Black Beauty Ranch (BBR), founded in 1979 by Cleveland Amory. Located in Murchison, TX, BBR has been home to retired research chimpanzees, rescued elephants, kangaroos, monkeys, camels, giraffes, and tigers. Today, there are over 40 species, and about 1,000 animals on 1,400 acres. BBR is partnered with the Humane Society of the United States, Accredited by the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries, and a member of the North American Primate Sanctuary Alliance. The animal residents of BBR act as ambassadors for the issues we are working on together. BBR is also undergoing an ongoing development project for a Primate Habitat Expansion. It is the mission of BBR to provide a lifelong safe-haven for animals who have been rescued from abuse, cruelty, neglect, and exploitation. With this mission comes the educational responsibility to teach about the issues that cause animals to need sanctuary, including: the exotic pet trade, research, captive hunting, factory farming, public lands roundup, etc., and to prevent animals from needing sanctuary in the future. Black Beauty Ranch offers private visits, sustainer benefit packages, group tours, and volunteer and internship opportunities.
Briana is a Registered Dietitian and clinical staff trainer at a health care organization. She is a volunteer with the Primate Team at the Ranch, and has also helped with open house and group tours. She is interested in animal advocacy and environmental issues, an outdoor enthusiast, loves hiking, mountain biking, and spending time with her dog and two cats.
Everyone is welcome. FREE! You don't have to be a Sierra Club member. Just show up. We'd love to meet you.
Our General Meeting starts at 7:00 pm, but come at 6:30 for snacks, information and fellowship. Click over to our General Meeting page for more information and a map.
Pecos Wilderness Bus Trip on Labor Day Weekend
Details of the sleeper bus trip to backpack in the Pecos Wilderness are now online in this PDF file, as are registration forms. The bus leaves Dallas at 9:00 pm Thursday night, August 31 and returns by 6:00 am on Tuesday, September 5, allowing four days to hike and three nights to camp. We offer a choice of five hike itineraries ranging in difficulty from moderate to strenuous. The Pecos Wilderness Area protects a significant part of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains in northern New Mexico. Late summer temperatures will be significantly cooler than Dallas. The trip price is discounted to $260 per person for registration received by August 15. We recommend earlier registration because this holiday weekend has historically been a popular date for outings.
General Meeting Program - Tuesday, September 12, 7:00 pm - Refreshments at 6:30
Fall/Winter Vegetable Gardening in North Texas
The best time for gardening in North Texas is from September until June. You can have fresh tomatoes from your garden for Christmas dinner! Dr. Larry Legg will present a scientific and observational approach for gardening during fall and winter. Larry is a Biology Professor, Master Gardener, Master Naturalist, Master Wellness Volunteer, and a Conflict Resolution Specialist. He is a country boy from the boondocks where if you did not have a successful garden, you went hungry.
Everyone is welcome. FREE! You don't have to be a Sierra Club member. Just show up. We'd love to meet you.
Our General Meeting starts at 7:00 pm, but come at 6:30 for snacks, information and fellowship. Click over to our General Meeting page for more information and a map.
General Meeting Program - Tuesday, October 10, 7:00 pm - Refreshments at 6:30
The Wave
Sand dunes, time, water, and wind have sculpted a surreal landscape along the border of Arizona and Utah. And one of the most famous examples of nature's artwork is The Wave, a colorful U-shaped trough etched into Jurassic era sandstone. Only 20 people per day are allowed to visit The Wave (via a lottery) and there is no formal trail or path across the 4 miles of terrain from the closest parking area. Paul Westbrook will discuss tips for the permit lottery and share some photos of his trip to The Wave in April of 2017.
Paul is a pioneer of energy efficiency and renewable energy. His solar home in Fairview (click here) has been toured by thousands of people since completion in 1996. He retired from Texas Instruments in 2016 after helping them build the first LEED Gold semiconductor factory in the world and double their global energy efficiency in nine years. He served for two years as a Senior Fellow for the US State Department's Energy and Climate Partnership for the Americas (ECPA) program. He assisted Honduras, Bolivia, Colombia, and Peru with energy efficiency and renewable energy policies and practices. Paul formed RE:source and is now doing consulting work on energy efficiency and renewable energy. Paul enjoys hiking, bicycling, running track, and playing saxophone.
Everyone is welcome. FREE! You don't have to be a Sierra Club member. Just show up. We'd love to meet you.
Our General Meeting starts at 7:00 pm, but come at 6:30 for snacks, information and fellowship. Click over to our General Meeting page for more information and a map.
General Meeting Program - Tuesday, November 14, 7:00 pm - Refreshments at 6:30
Wildflowers of North Texas
So many of our beautiful and once-common native wildflowers have been removed from our local landscapes that relatively few people today can recognize and name more than a handful. This colorful slideshow program will take you on a virtual tour through the seasons of some of our last undisturbed natural areas, and introduce some of the amazing plants that once dominated the region. We'll talk about unusual plant features that make them tough prairie survivors, and give you a sense of what the Tallgrass Prairie and its surrounding woodlands once looked like.
Carol Clark is an amateur botany enthusiast, a Texas Master Naturalist, and longtime member of the Native Plant Society of Texas. She and her husband own and operate Clark Haven, a wildlife preserve and custom wildflower seed business in Cooke County. Carol grew up with a nature photographer father and wildlife artist brother, and has spent much of her life looking around in the great outdoors. Her favorite things to do are leading discovery walks in local natural areas, and finding and photographing interesting plants.
Everyone is welcome. FREE! You don't have to be a Sierra Club member. Just show up. We'd love to meet you.
Our General Meeting starts at 7:00 pm, but come at 6:30 for snacks, information and fellowship. Click over to our General Meeting page for more information and a map.
More Outings
For a complete list of scheduled outings and outdoor service events, click here.
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Share Your Ride
We are making car pooling and using public transportation a little easier for our regular events. See our new Share Your Ride page.
