Free 'Discover Wild Heritage' series highlights Mat-Su history, wildlife
The free, family-friendly Friday evening event is held weekly in Matanuska River Park in Palmer.
What you need to know:
- The Matanuska-Susitna Borough's "Discover Wild Heritage" series offers free, family-friendly presentations every Friday at 6 p.m. at Matanuska River Park on topics including local history, wildlife and outdoor education.
- Presenters include the Palmer Museum, Chickaloon Village Traditional Council, Eagle River Nature Center and Alaska WildBird Rehabilitation Center, covering subjects ranging from Indigenous and settler history to birding, foraging and live raptor demonstrations.
- Organizers say attendance has grown after a slow start and hope to continue the series next summer, with the possibility of adding a winter version at Government Peak Recreation Area if interest remains strong.
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At a small park on the outskirts of Palmer, organizers of a new cultural and historical lecture series hope to add something "wild" to the weekend entertainment scene.
At Matanuska River Park, Friday night's all right for citing.
"It's an opportunity on Friday evenings to give campers — and anybody else who wants to attend — something neat to do on a Friday evening that's informational and instructional," said Andy Mergens, division manager of Parks, Recreation and Libraries for the Mat-Su Borough.
Mergens said the borough's ongoing "Discover Wild Heritage" series at the park's outdoor amphitheater features speakers on topics such as local history, area wildlife and outdoor education. The series began in late May and has featured presentations from the Palmer Museum, the Chickaloon Village Traditional Council, the Eagle River Nature Center and the Alaska WildBird Rehabilitation Center.
"It's just different folks out there that we think might be of interest to people in the community and at the campground," Mergens said.
The park is at Mile 17 of the Old Glenn Highway, just outside downtown Palmer. The small outdoor amphitheater is at the end of a short trail on the north side of the park's day-use field, adjacent to the public parking area.
Mergens said the talks are held rain or shine but could be called off if "it's pouring down rain."
Local history is a major focus of the presentations. Both the Palmer Museum and the Chickaloon Village Traditional Council cover area history, with the museum focusing on the 1935 government project that brought colonists to the area and Chickaloon focusing on the history of the area before the 1930s.
Chickaloon Tribal Historic Preservation Officer Angie Wade said the presentations are informal and "conversational" in nature. While the colonists' story is vital to local history, Wade said it's also important to understand the history of the Indigenous people and even white settlers — such as area pioneer and Palmer namesake George Palmer — who predated the colonists.
"The timeline started much earlier than that," she said.
Wade said the "Discover Wild Heritage" talks mesh well with Chickaloon's mission to share and preserve Athabascan history.
"We're always looking at our history and things we can bring forward," she said.
The bird rehabilitation center also will bring live birds for its presentations, including at this Friday's event, when a kestrel will be the guest of honor.
"The WildBird Rehabilitation Center is bringing a kestrel out that will astound and amaze everybody," Mergens said.
Mergens said attendance was spotty at early events, but recent talks have attracted more than a dozen people. If interest remains strong, he'd like to continue the program next summer and possibly offer a winter version at Government Peak Recreation Area.
"If the numbers stay up where they've been for the last couple of weeks, I think that's a good indication that people find it interesting," he said. "And if that's so, then we're gonna keep doing it next year."
The free presentations begin at 6 p.m. and are open to all. The family-friendly talks are relaxed, informal and last about an hour, he said.
"Bring the kids."
Upcoming Discover Wild Heritage presentations at the Matanuska River Park Amphitheater:
July 3
Alaska WildBird Rehabilitation Center presentation on the American kestrel
July 10
Chickaloon Village Traditional Council presentation on local history
July 17
Eagle River Nature Center presents: Birding 101
July 24
Food for Thought: Foraging From One Hungry Hiker to the Next
July 31
Palmer Museum presentation on local history and the 1935 project
Aug. 7
Eagle River Nature Center presents: Wildlife Safety Tips or Glacial History of the Matanuska
Aug. 14
Alaska WildBird Rehabilitation Center presentation on the red-tailed hawk
Aug. 21
Chickaloon Village Traditional Council presentation on local history
Aug. 28
Palmer Museum presentation on local history and the 1935 project
Sept. 4
Chickaloon Village Traditional Council presentation on local history