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Celebrate the Snowflake Festival in Jamestown NY

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This Saturday, February 5, 2011, is the return of the Snowflake Festival at the Audubon Center and Sanctuary. Located near the border of New York and Pennsylvania the Audubon captures the heart of soul of nature.

The Snowflake festival offers activities and demonstrations, indoors and out. It is set up as a family event and everyone will find an activity that will interest him or her.

The day’s activities include
· 10 am-2 pm: Face Painting
· 11 am: Snowshoe Hikes (snowshoes provided) begin and continue all day
· 11 am-3:30 pm: Horse Drawn Sleigh Rides
· 11:30 am: Birds of Prey (hawks and owls) presentation by Paul Fehringer, wildlife rehabilitator and founder of Wild Spirit Rehab and Release Center, followed by a meet-and-greet
· 1 pm: Owl Ecology presentation by Paul Fehringer, followed by a meet-and-greet
· 2:30 pm: Feeder Bird presentation by Audubon Program Director Jennifer Schlick
· 12, 1, 2, 3 and 4 pm: Kick sled Demonstrations outdoors by Tails of the Tundra Siberian Husky Rescue
· Warren County Master Gardeners giving a demonstration on starting seeds and answering any of your questions. The Warren Master Gardeners are also accepting applications for their upcoming class, which will begin March 3, 2011.

Door prizes, the raffle of a beautiful quilt handmade by Martha Danielson, including a Chinese auction and the raffle of a handmade quilt made by Martha Danielson will add to the festivity.

And as always Chili, hot dogs, sausages, brownies, kettle corn, hot chocolate and Stedman Corners coffee will be among the treats available.
This is the perfect time if you are new to the center to visit the Nature Store and view the selection of hand crafted items, bird seed, edible treats, and more.

Admission to the Snowflake Festival is $5 for adults and children under 12 are free. Sleigh rides are $5 for ages 13 and over and $2 for 5-12 year olds; $5 covers materials for building a bluebird house.

The Audubon Center and Sanctuary is at 1600 Riverside Road, off Route 62 between Jamestown and Warren. Winter hours are 10 am-4:30 pm Mondays and Saturdays, and 1-4:30 pm Sundays. The trails and Bald Eagle viewing are open dawn to dusk daily. For more information, call (716) 569-2345 or visit jamestownaudubon.org.


Dunkirk Dave delivers his Ground Hogs day prediction

February 2, Ground Hogs Day, holds significance in Chautauqua County as Dunkirk Dave will carry on tradition and match his wits against Pennsylvania’s Punxsutawney Phil and set his prediction for the rest of the winter.

The legend of winter prediction is a holdover from European folklore. Since early medieval times, people watched hedgehogs, badgers, bears or wolves to see if they saw their shadows on Candlemas, which is February 2. Many carried this tradition to America. The only difference is that before many animals predicted the weather. In America, the Ground Hog prevailed.

Dunkirk dave

According to the National Climate Data Center (NCDC), the tradition became publicized in 1887 when a newspaperman wrote about local hunters who celebrated February 2 by going on a groundhog hunt, followed by a festive groundhog barbecue. The reporter embellished the story with tales of the forecasting skills of Punxsutawney Phil. The rest is history and to this day Punxy Phil remains king of Ground Hogs day… but don’t tell Dunkirk Dave this.

Dunkirk Dave will be predicting his forecast at his residence at Farmlane drive in Dunkirk NY. For family photos and more Ground Hog trivia check out Dave’s homepage.

With the winter Chautauqua County, Warren County and the US east coast has experienced this winter everyone is rooting for an early spring.


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