THE FOLLOWING IS A VERMILION COUNTY CONSERVATION DISTRICT RELEASE
Danville, Illinois – The Vermilion County Conservation District is excited to host the Outdoor School for Adults Program on April 20-23, 2026. Reconnect with your inner child as we learn about our natural world while exploring our VCCD parks with our education staff!
The four days will be modeled after our Outdoor School program that has been offered to 4th- and 5th- grade students since 1972. Program highlights will include special guest presenters, tours of Illinois Nature Preserves, forest “critter crawl” habitat exploration, macroinvertebrate pond dipping, spring ephemerals, and a hike to Illinois’ only National Wild and Scenic River, the Middle Fork. Hikes and explorations will be up to four miles each day, split between morning and afternoon.
The first three days will run from 9am-3pm at Forest Glen Preserve, Kennekuk County Park, or Heron County Park. The program will conclude on Thursday with a catered dinner, evening hike, and fancy s’mores at Forest Glen Preserve from 3-9pm. Participants will need to provide transportation to site locations and bring a sack lunch.
Pre-registration is required at https://OSforA2026.eventbrite.com. Snacks, a naturalist pack, and one catered meal are included in the registration cost of $100 for all four days. Early bird registration is only $75 before February 20, 2026! Registration is limited to 30 people.
For more information, please contact Lara Danzl, 217-442-1691, ldanzl@vccd.org.
