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Recent Posts
- Sitka Sprouts session on Tuesday is all about planes, trains, and automobiles
- Sitka Sprouts session on Tuesday is all about patterns in nature
- Sitka Sprouts session on Tuesday is all about making costumes for the Parade of the Species
- Sitka Sprouts session on Tuesday is all about eggs
- Registration open for Sitka Spruce Tips/Alaska Way of Life 4-H summer camps
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Pages
This website has been updated and maintained on a volunteer basis for the past decade by Charles Bingham. Click the image below if you want to help keep this website operating.
Blogroll
- AK on the Go blog by Erin Kirkland (family fun in the 49th state)
- Alaska's Kids blog
- Dirt World blog by Rick Van Noy, author of "A Natural Sense of Wonder: Connecting Kids and Nature Through the Seasons"
- Kids In The Valley, Adventuring! (KIVA) blog (a free family nature club from the Roanoke Valley, Va., blog has lots of great ideas)
- Life on the Outer Coast/Natural History Sitka blog (unknown author)
- Lost Frenchman blog (nature blog by Sitka resident Paul Norwood)
- Old Duffer's Natural World (Sitka, Alaska, video blog)
- Sitka Gardening blog (local blog by unknown writer using the handle "Natural History of Sitka Sound")
- Sitka Nature blog (by Sitka resident Matt Goff)
- Skedaddle Kids blog: activities, giveaways and reviews to help your child get outside rain, sun or snow (Anchorage-based blog)
Sitka outdoors and recreation links
- "Encounters: Experiences in the North" site for radio show hosted by Sitka resident Richard Nelson
- Alaska Marine Safety Education Association (AMSEA)
- Alaska Raptor Center
- Baranof Barracuda Swim Club
- Castle Hill Archaeological Project (Sitka project by Alaska Office of History and Archaeology)
- City and Borough of Sitka Parks and Recreation Department (includes links to maps in PDF format)
- Fortress of the Bear (bear sanctuary that also has a small farm with pigs and chickens)
- Girls On The Run (running program for girls sponsored by Sitkans Against Family Violence)
- Hames Athletic and Wellness Center
- Island Fever Diving and Adventures/Sitka Bike and Hike (equipment sales, rentals)
- Kayaaní Commission (Sitka Tribe of Alaska group that focuses on the traditional use of plants)
- List of geocache sites in Sitka
- Running of the Boots (annual fundraiser for Sitka Local Foods Network)
- Sea Mountain Golf Course
- Sitka Adventure Racing (home of the Sitka Sound Ocean Adventure Race for kayaks, canoes and rowboats)
- Sitka Bicycle Friendly Community Coalition
- Sitka Community Resource Guide (compiled by Legislative Information Office, opens as PDF file)
- Sitka Community Schools
- Sitka Conservation Society (offers education programs)
- Sitka Cub Scout Pack No. 26, Boy Scouts of America
- Sitka Little League baseball and softball
- Sitka Local Foods Network (community gardens, Sitka Farmers Market, etc.)
- Sitka Mountain Rescue blog
- Sitka National Historical Park (totem trails, Sitka Cultural Center, etc.)
- Sitka Outdoor Kids (group that hosts Tuesday playground time and Friday hikes for kids and parents, Facebook group)
- Sitka page for Alaska State Parks
- Sitka Ranger District Tongass National Forest
- Sitka recreation links from Sitka Economic Development Association
- Sitka Running Routes from RunThePlanet.com
- Sitka Softball Association
- Sitka Sound Ocean Adventures (kayak tours, rental kayaks)
- Sitka Sound Science Center
- Sitka Sustainable Outdoor Recreation Action Plan
- Sitka Through Four Seasons (links to walking maps page from local travel guide)
- Sitka Trail Works (non-profit trail construction group in Sitka)
- Sitka Trails (site by Sitka resident Matt Goff, trails section has details about local trails, blog section has details and photos of his hikes)
- Southeast Alaska Swim Team (Sitka-based team)
- Tongass Clearinghouse (Sitka-based links page with lots of information on the Tongass National Forest)
- Yellow Jersey Cycle Shop (bike, skateboard sales)
Southeast outdoors and recreation links
- Association for the Education of Young Children-Southeast Alaska (AEYC-SEA)
- Discovery Southeast (Juneau-based outdoor discovery program for kids)
- Discovery Southeast blog (outdoors program for kids)
- Juneau Children Outdoors Community Coalition
- Ketchikan Outdoor Recreation and Trails Coalition
- Outdoor Recreation and Community Access (ORCA, recreation program of SAIL for disabled people)
- SEATrails (Southeast Alaska Trail System)
- Southeast Alaska Guidance Association (SAGA)
- Southeast Alaska Independent Living (SAIL)/Outdoor Recreation and Community Access (ORCA) combined site
- Southeast Alaska Independent Living (SAIL, a group helping disabled residents live active lives)
- Southeast Families (resources for parents of children ages 0-8)
- Trail Mix Inc. (Juneau trails maintenance and construction group)
Statewide outdoors and recreation links
- Alaska Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance
- Alaska Bicycle and Pedestrian Alliance
- Alaska Boater Kids (boat safety page from State of Alaska)
- Alaska Coast magazine (free outdoors magazine from Anchorage)
- Alaska Injury Prevention Center
- Alaska Kids page from State of Alaska
- Alaska Natural Resource and Outdoor Education (ANROE)
- Alaska Safe Routes To School page
- Alaska Sea Grant College Program (University of Alaska Fairbanks, bookstore has guidebooks for fishing and beachcombing)
- Alaska State 4-H program (run by University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service)
- Alaska's Kids: where parents connect for all things kid-friendly in Alaska
- Alaskan Kids and Nature (article from Alaska Fish and Wildlife News)
- Anchorage Park Foundation
- Arctic Family Outdoor Coalition (Kotzebue group trying to get kids outdoors)
- Arctic Orienteering Club (Anchorage-based club)
- Babes In The Woods (book by Jennifer Aist of Anchorage about taking young kids outdoors)
- Bears and You (bear safety page from State of Alaska)
- Children's Forest project at Chugach National Forest
- Geocache Alaska
- Get Outdoors Anchorage!
- Girl Scouts of Alaska
- Great Alaska Council, Boy Scouts of America (note, Sitka is in Maritime District)
- International Year of the Forest site for Tongass and Chugach National Forests
- Kids Don't Float program (statewide boating safety for kids program)
- Kids Hooked On Fishing Alaska (includes new Sitka chapter)
- Nature Rocks Homer
- Recess At 20 Below (book by PE teacher Cindy Lou Aillaud of Delta Junction about how to get kids ready for outside play in cold weather)
- Taiga Trekkers hiking group for parents of young children (Anchorage)
- The Children in Nature Collaborative of Alaska (Get Outdoors! Alaska)
- Trailside Discovery — Environmental education camps and school outreach programs from the Alaska Center for the Environment
- University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service
- Youth Employment In Parks program (Anchorage)
U.S. outdoors and recreation links
- Adventure Tykes resources for hiking with your little tyke (for parents of young kids)
- America's Great Outdoors Initiative from the U.S. Department of Interior and President Obama
- American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (AAHPERD)
- American Trails resources for kids
- Become a Junior Forest Ranger (U.S. Forest Service program for kids)
- Children and Nature Network (national program to reconnect children with nature)
- Children, Nature and You (adding awe and wonder to children's lives)
- Discover the Forest — Our Forests & Parks: Where the other you lives
- Earthplay: Creating outdoor play environments for the soul
- Geocaching — the official global GPS cache hunt site (type in Sitka's zip code in the search bar and you'll get a two-page list of geocache sites in Sitka)
- Get Outdoors USA!
- Great Outdoors America page for the America's Great Outdoors Initiative
- Green Hour (National Wildlife Federation program to get kids outdoors for an hour a day)
- Head Start Body Start (activity resources for early childhood from the National Center for Physical Development and Outdoor Play)
- Hooked on Nature (reuniting people and nature)
- Izaak Walton League of America "How-To" page with info on how to build different projects
- Izaak Walton League of America main page
- Just for Kids page from U.S. Forest Service
- KaBOOM! (we help neighborhoods build playgrounds, note Juneau is only Alaska community on group's Playful City USA listings)
- Kids Gardening (helping young minds grow)
- Kids Outdoors e-zine
- Leave No Trace site from Center for Outdoor Ethics about how to enjoy the outdoors without damaging it
- Let's Go Outside page from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
- Let's Go Outside Revolution (join us on April 8)
- Let's Move Outside page from Michelle Obama's Let's Move program
- Make The Move (site about implementing the 2010-11 U.S. Physical Activity Plan, includes a lot of info about getting kids outdoors)
- Moving Outdoors In Nature Act (bill introduced in U.S. House by Rep. Ron Kind, D-Wis., to get more kids outside)
- National Environmental Education Foundation
- National Geographic for Kids
- National Parks Conservation Association (protecting our national parks for future generations)
- National Wildlife Federation Be Out There page
- National Wildlife Federation kids page (includes Ranger Rick magazine)
- National Wildlife Federation Nature Find page (national database of locations and events)
- Natural Learning Initiative
- Nature Circles (discussion cards for kids to take on the trails)
- Nature Rocks, for happier, healthier, smarter kids and families
- No Child Left Inside Coalition
- Outdoor Baby (news for families who enjoy the outdoors)
- Outdoor Foundation mentor toolkit to help leaders connect kids with the outdoors
- Outdoor Nation (has Outdoor Ambassadors ages 13-30 to help get people outdoors)
- Outdoor Recreation in America (American Recreation Coalition)
- Outdoors Alliance for Kids (OAK)
- Pathways for Play (venture of Natural Learning Initiative and PlayCore to create trails with pockets of play)
- Play Again movie site from Bullfrog Films
- Play Again movie site from Ground Productions (film follows six screen-addicted teens on their first wilderness adventure)
- Playborhood (let your kids go outside and play)
- Project Learning Tree (environmental education program from American Forest Foundation)
- REI (Recreational Equipment Inc.) family adventure program
- Richard Louv's resources for getting children in nature
- Richard Louv's site (author of "Last Child In The Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature-Deficit Disorder")
- Rick Van Noy's site (author of "A Natural Sense of Wonder: Connecting Kids and Nature Through the Seasons")
- Robert Bateman Get To Know Your Wild Neighbours program for kids in Canada and the U.S.
- Sharing Nature With Children, Dawn Publications page for the 20th anniversary of the classic nature education book by Joseph Cornell
- Sharing Nature With Children, Dawn Publications Squidoo page (has videos of author Joseph Cornell teaching games to children and an interview)
- Sharing Nature Worldwide (site of nature educator Joseph Cornell, author of "Sharing Nature With Children, Volumes 1 and 2")
- Sierra Club Trails
- Where Do The Children Play? (one-hour documentary from Michigan public television)
- Winter Feels Good site (has lots of info on winter play for kids)
- Winter Trails Day link from SnowLink site (info on winter play with kids)
- YMCA's BOLD program (Boys Outdoors Leadership Development)
- YMCA's BOLD program for girls
- Youth In The Great Outdoors page from the U.S. Department of the Interior
Meta
Monthly Archives: April 2014
Girls On The Run closes out school year with Tutu Trot 5K run
The Sitka Girls On The Run program will host celebrate the end of the season with the 2014 Tutu Trot five-kilometer run from 3-5 p.m. on Sunday, May 11, with the start-finish line at Crescent Harbor Shelter. The fun run … Continue reading
Posted in Kids and nature, Outdoor events, Outdoor programs, Training
Tagged 2014 Tutu Trot, Aiding Women in Abuse and Rape Emergencies (AWARE), Crescent Harbor shelter, Elena Gustafson, fresh air, get more kids outdoors, Get Out, Get Out Sitka!, Girls On The Run, Have you been outdoors today?, healthy exercise, healthy physical activity, Julia Smith, Keet Gooshi Heen Elementary School, Outdoor programming, programs, recreation opportunities, Sitka National Historical Park, Sitka Sea Walk, Sitka!, Sitkans Against Family Violence (SAFV), Southeast Alaska, totem trails, Women In Safe Homes (WISH)
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Application deadline extended to May 2 for REBOUND teen kayak trip to Glacier Bay
Teens ages 15-18 have have an extra week, until Friday, May 2, to get their applications in for the REBOUND kayak expedition to Glacier Bay National Park. REBOUND is a week-long kayak trip for teens ages 15-18 interested in developing leadership … Continue reading
Posted in Kids and nature, Outdoor programs
Tagged Aiding Women in Abuse and Rape Emergencies (AWARE), Alaska Department of Health and Social Services, Alaska Network on Domestic Violence and Sexual Abuse (ANDVSA), AWARE (Aiding Women in Abuse and Rape Emergencies), Glacier Bay National Park, Julia Smith, Juneau, Juneau LeadOn! youth activists, Juneau's Violence Prevention Coalition, REBOUND, Sitka Youth Leadership Committee, Sitka's Prevention Coalition, Sitkans Against Family Violence (SAFV), teen kayak expedition
Comments Off on Application deadline extended to May 2 for REBOUND teen kayak trip to Glacier Bay
Sitka Bike Rodeo, National Bike to School Day, other events put spotlight on kids’ cycling and safety
As the temperatures warm up, two events this week will highlight kids’ cycling and safety in Sitka — the Sitka Bike Rodeo on Saturday, May 3, and the second annual National Bike to School Day on Wednesday, May 7. These two events … Continue reading
Posted in Kids and nature, Outdoor events, Training
Tagged Alaska, bicycling, bike helmets, Bike safety, Daily Sitka Sentinel, education, encouragement, get more kids outdoors, healthy physical activity, James Poulson, Keet Gooshi Heen Elementary School, League of American Bicyclists, National Bike Month, National Bike to School Day, Pacific High School, Patrick Hughes, Shannon Haugland, Sharon Bergman, Sitka Bike Rodeo, Sitka Community Hospital, Sitka Community Hospital Injury Prevention Program, Sitka Police Department, Sitka Rotary Club, Sitka School District's Live-Well Program, Sitka!, U.S. Coast Guard-Air Station Sitka, University of Alaska Southeast-Sitka Campus
Comments Off on Sitka Bike Rodeo, National Bike to School Day, other events put spotlight on kids’ cycling and safety
Next Discovery Days program at Sitka Sound Science Center to be about Earth Week
The Sitka Sound Science Center recently introduced Discovery Days, a free program for annual pass holders that takes place from 10 a.m. to noon on various Saturdays. This week is Earth Week, and the Sitka Sound Science Center will host two extra activities … Continue reading
Posted in Kids and nature, Outdoor programs
Tagged Alaska, Alaska Raptor Center, animal tracks, Ashley Bolwerk, birds, discovery and exploration, Discovery Days, Dr. Alex Werth, Earth Day, Earth Week, education, encouragement, Family Science Day, fossils, Get Out Sitka!, Harrigan Centennial Hall, hearts, herring, ice, Jessica Gill, Keet Gooshi Heen Elementary School, overnight aquarium sleepover, Parade of the Species, plankton, plant kingdom, plants, Scientists In Residency Fellowships (SIRF), Sitka Conservation Society, Sitka High School National Honor Society, Sitka Sound Science Center, Sitka Sprouts, Sitka Tribe of Alaska, Sitka!, Starlab, structures, tracks, U.S. Forest Service
Comments Off on Next Discovery Days program at Sitka Sound Science Center to be about Earth Week
Next Discovery Days program at Sitka Sound Science Center to be about herring
The Sitka Sound Science Center recently introduced Discovery Days, a free program for annual pass holders that takes place from 10 a.m. to noon on various Saturdays. The next Discovery Days event is Saturday, April 12, and the theme for the day is … Continue reading
Posted in Kids and nature, Outdoor programs
Tagged Alaska, Alaska Raptor Center, animal tracks, Ashley Bolwerk, birds, discovery and exploration, Discovery Days, education, encouragement, Family Science Day, fossils, Get Out Sitka!, hearts, herring, ice, Jessica Gill, Keet Gooshi Heen Elementary School, overnight aquarium sleepover, plankton, plant kingdom, plants, Sitka Conservation Society, Sitka High School National Honor Society, Sitka Sound Science Center, Sitka Sprouts, Sitka Tribe of Alaska, Sitka!, Starlab, structures, tracks, U.S. Forest Service
Comments Off on Next Discovery Days program at Sitka Sound Science Center to be about herring
Earth Week activities include gardening classes, a youth eco-challenge, and the Parade of the Species
Earth Day is on Tuesday, April 22, and Earth Week is April 20-26. Sitka will host a variety of activities for Earth Week, including some gardening classes, a youth eco-challenge, free bus rides all month, spring clean-up events, and the 13th annual Parade … Continue reading
Posted in Kids and nature, Outdoor events
Tagged Bob Gorman, City and Borough of Sitka Public Works Department, Earth Day, Earth Week, gardening classes, Lauren Oakes, Mary Wood, Natural History Seminar Series, Parade of Species, Sawmill Cove Scrap Yard, Sitka Community Ride, Sitka Conservation Society, Sitka National Historical Park, spring clean-up events, University of Alaska Southeast-Sitka Campus, youth eco-challenge
Comments Off on Earth Week activities include gardening classes, a youth eco-challenge, and the Parade of the Species
Alaska Way of Life 4-H club seeks local gardeners to serve as program mentors
The Alaska Way of Life 4-H club would like to get its hands dirty and grow some food this summer. We would love some mentorship and modeling to help us out and build community between our youth and gardeners. If you are … Continue reading
Posted in Kids and nature, Outdoor programs
Tagged 4-H program, Alaska, Alaska Way Of Life 4-H Project, Amy Sweeney, discovery and exploration, education, encouragement, fresh air, garden mentors, get more kids outdoors, Get Out Sitka!, healthy physical activity, Leave No Trace, Mary Wood, Paul Rioux, Sitka Conservation Society, St. Peter's Fellowship Farm, Tongass National Forest, too much time indoors
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North American Outdoor Institute to offer Be Wilderness Smart class April 23 in Sitka
Do you enjoy getting out into the outdoors near Sitka for recreation? Then you should check out the Be Wilderness Smart class offered from 6-8 p.m. on Wednesday, April 23, at Harrigan Centennial Hall. This free, two-hour class is offered … Continue reading
Posted in Outdoor events, Outdoor programs, Training
Tagged Alaska, Alaska backcountry, Alaska State Troopers, Be Wilderness Smart class, education, Get Out, Get Out Sitka!, Harrigan Centennial Hall, North America Outdoor Institute, Wilderness emergency preparedness, wilderness safety
Comments Off on North American Outdoor Institute to offer Be Wilderness Smart class April 23 in Sitka
Get Out, Sitka! 