Winnie Palmer Nature Reserve Programs and Summer Camps
Winnie Palmer Nature Reserve, 744 Walzer Way, Latrobe, PA 15650
About
Winnie Palmer Nature Reserve Programs and Summer Camps include field trips, summer camps, and time in the Nature Explore Classroom and Nature Playspaces. Children take part in activities such as Messy Materials, Music and Movement, Garden, Dirt Digging, Water, Action, Climbing, Sand, and Gathering areas. The program also offers chances to Borrow a Pond Pail or an Allagash Trail Pack during visits.
• Schedule: Barn open Tuesday–Friday 10 AM–4 PM; trails open daily dawn to dusk
Program spaces include the Learning Center Barn, Nature Explore Classroom, Nature Playspaces, Palmer Pond, Wetland Boardwalk, Honey Bee Yard, gardens, the Historic Lochry Blockhouse, WPNR Fairy Folk areas, pollinator gardens, and a Bug Hotel. The Nature Explore Classroom and Nature Playspaces are set up for long hours of unstructured play in different areas such as Messy Materials, Music and Movement, Garden, Dirt Digging, Water, Action, Climbing, Sand, and Gathering, with each space offering a specific experience with texture, shape, sound, or life found within the reserve grounds. A wayside exhibit for a Discover Card highlights topics including insects, birds, tracks, and the pond. Palmer Pond includes frogs, dragonflies, salamanders, ducks, and carp, with no fishing or swimming allowed, and families are encouraged to bring a net to gently explore the pond. The Wetland Boardwalk passes native marshes and red-winged blackbirds among cattails and jewelweed in bloom, and the Honey Bee Yard features wild honey bees in the pollinator gardens and the Bug Hotel. Gardens include heirloom vegetables and native flowers, and trails offer scenic walks with creative activity areas along the way. The Learning Center Barn focuses on educating and communicating with young people about the importance of nature.
Winnie Palmer Nature Reserve states its mission as: “We foster environmental stewardship through education, recreation, and conservation.” The reserve operates in accordance with Saint Vincent College’s short-term energy reduction initiative during the summer months and supports Saint Vincent’s commitment to sustainability and stewardship. Leadership includes Angela Belli, who is associated with the direction of Winnie Palmer Nature Reserve, and Amy Palmer Saunders, author of “My Mother’s Legacy.” The program also shares quotations such as “Happiness is a butterfly, which when pursued, is always just beyond your grasp, but which, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you.” – Nathaniel Hawthorne, and “Let Nature be your teacher.” – William Wordsworth.
Last updated July 15, 2026.
• Schedule: Barn open Tuesday–Friday 10 AM–4 PM; trails open daily dawn to dusk
Program spaces include the Learning Center Barn, Nature Explore Classroom, Nature Playspaces, Palmer Pond, Wetland Boardwalk, Honey Bee Yard, gardens, the Historic Lochry Blockhouse, WPNR Fairy Folk areas, pollinator gardens, and a Bug Hotel. The Nature Explore Classroom and Nature Playspaces are set up for long hours of unstructured play in different areas such as Messy Materials, Music and Movement, Garden, Dirt Digging, Water, Action, Climbing, Sand, and Gathering, with each space offering a specific experience with texture, shape, sound, or life found within the reserve grounds. A wayside exhibit for a Discover Card highlights topics including insects, birds, tracks, and the pond. Palmer Pond includes frogs, dragonflies, salamanders, ducks, and carp, with no fishing or swimming allowed, and families are encouraged to bring a net to gently explore the pond. The Wetland Boardwalk passes native marshes and red-winged blackbirds among cattails and jewelweed in bloom, and the Honey Bee Yard features wild honey bees in the pollinator gardens and the Bug Hotel. Gardens include heirloom vegetables and native flowers, and trails offer scenic walks with creative activity areas along the way. The Learning Center Barn focuses on educating and communicating with young people about the importance of nature.
Winnie Palmer Nature Reserve states its mission as: “We foster environmental stewardship through education, recreation, and conservation.” The reserve operates in accordance with Saint Vincent College’s short-term energy reduction initiative during the summer months and supports Saint Vincent’s commitment to sustainability and stewardship. Leadership includes Angela Belli, who is associated with the direction of Winnie Palmer Nature Reserve, and Amy Palmer Saunders, author of “My Mother’s Legacy.” The program also shares quotations such as “Happiness is a butterfly, which when pursued, is always just beyond your grasp, but which, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you.” – Nathaniel Hawthorne, and “Let Nature be your teacher.” – William Wordsworth.
Last updated July 15, 2026.
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