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April Open Lands Day

  • 84 4th Street Ashland, OR 97520 (map)

Explore, discover, and enjoy. Join us for a beautiful visit to the incredible Rogue River Preserve!

Please only register for one of the options listed below. Thanks!

Join us for a beautiful visit to the incredible Rogue River Preserve! The Rogue River Preserve includes two miles of riverfront along the Rogue River, a large floodplain forest, and oak woodlands with meadows. It is only open to the public during special events, work parties, and youth education programs. So, come and take advantage of this special opportunity and explore the trails at your own pace, attend a guided hike, bring a picnic lunch or thermos of tea to enjoy by the river, or all three.

To limit crowding on the trails, registration is free and required for hikes or self-guided exploration for the day. Guided hike participants are welcome to explore the property before or after their hike slot.

10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. - Self-Guided Explorations

Check out field guides, binoculars, and other gear from our lending library and chat with docents along the trail to learn as you explore. Alternatively, you can walk the trails at your own pace, take photos, go birding, draw, or relax on a bench. This is a wonderful opportunity for families.

10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. - Spring Wildflower Saunter with Kristi Mergenthaler

Join Kristi Mergenther, Stewardship Director, for a wildflower saunter with a focus on learning more about botany. Visitors will practice using botanical terms, learning family characteristics, and using The Oregon Flora to key out a few plants using a technical guide. This is perfect for beginners or those who want a refresher. Don't forget to bring a hand lens or borrow one from us. We also recommend bringing a lightweight chair if you don't want to sit on the ground or on your backpack.

12:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. - Spring Mushroom Stroll with Wyatt Stein

Join Wyatt Stein, Land Steward, to explore the spring fruiting fungi in the floodplain forest! This stroll is perfect for beginners and experts alike. While out and about, visitors will be moving at a snail pace while looking for and identifying different mushrooms in the Rogue Valley. Don't forget to bring a hand lens or borrow one from us.

Difficulty: Easy to Moderate: You can take a short stroll to the old garden along the river, walk the relatively flat one and a half mile loop trail, enjoy the benches, have a picnic in the grass, or all of the above. For more information about our trails, please click here. Bathrooms are available.

This property is protected to conserve special habitats. Therefore, we kindly ask that you leave your pets at home. Certified Assistance Dogs that have been certified at a training facility by an Assistance Dogs International, Inc. will be the only dogs that are allowed.

If you have any questions, please contact Paige Gerhard, Event and Volunteer Coordinator, at 541-482-3069 (Ext 107) or email events@landconserve.org.

Earlier Event: April 22
Explore the Bluff!
Later Event: April 29
Jacksonville Woodlands Bird Hike