UNCOMMONLY FINE WRITING

By Coggin Heeringa, Interpretive Naturalist, Crossroads at Big Creek, Inc. Mushroom Day, Bird Club and a Master Gardener Lecture featuring Door County Parks are the public educational programs this week, while out in the preserves,  EarthWorks after school group, the Big Plant, […]

By Coggin Heeringa, Interpretive Naturalist, Crossroads at Big Creek, Inc. Question: What do you do if you catch a fish with a virus? Answer: Call the fish veterinarian. (And, really, you shouldn’t use a virus to catch a fish; you […]

By Coggin Heeringa, Interpretive Naturalist, Crossroads at Big Creek, Inc. Construction on the new bridge at Crossroads at Big Creek is on hold until June. The reason is revealed in the name of the bridge – Pike Passage. Big Creek […]

By Coggin Heeringa, Interpretive Naturalist, Crossroads at Big Creek, Inc. After extensive review of scientific research, we at Crossroads have determined that it is highly unlikely that rabbits deliver eggs to Crossroads at Big Creek. But other creatures, large and […]

By Coggin Heeringa, Interpretive Naturalist, Crossroads at Big Creek, Inc. To commemorate Women’s History Month, Crossroads at Big Creek’s Book Club has selected the book, “My Double Life, Memoirs of a Naturalist,” by Frances Hamerstrom. Fran Hamerstrom was among the […]

By Coggin Heeringa, Interpretive Naturalist, Crossroads at Big Creek, Inc. This is the week we return to Daylight Saving Time, and “losing an hour” makes us more aware of photoperiod—the hours each day that a plant or animal receives light. […]

By Coggin Heeringa, Interpretive Naturalist, Crossroads at Big Creek, Inc. Crossroads at Big Creek will honor the legacy of Aldo Leopold this weekend with two Leopold-themed hikes and a special guest lecture at our monthly Bird Club meeting. Back in […]

By Coggin Heeringa, Interpretive Naturalist, Crossroads at Big Creek, Inc. The big news at Crossroads is that (finally) we are replacing our Pike Passage Bridge. The original structure was removed last Wednesday, and, for the next few weeks, the sounds […]

By Coggin Heeringa, Interpretive Naturalist, Crossroads at Big Creek, Inc. Crossroads at Big Creek is proud to host the kick-off event for this year’s FIRE & ICE celebration in Sturgeon Bay. A luminary-lit hike, with bonfires and hot chocolate, will […]

It’s going to be a week of fun and games at Crossroads. If we have adequate snow in which to play, Ski-for-Free will be open on Saturday and Sunday, but whatever the weather, this week our Science Saturday program will […]

By Coggin Heeringa, Interpretive Naturalist, Crossroads at Big Creek, Inc. During the New Year’s Eve Hike to Crossroads’ Cove Estuary Preserve, we observed ice starting to form. During the December cold snap, the whole body of water was iced over, but […]

By Coggin Heeringa, Interpretive Naturalist, Crossroads at Big Creek, Inc. All over the world, people will celebrate on January 6. In many countries, January 6 is called Epiphany or Three Kings Day. At Crossroads at Big Creek, we will celebrate the […]

By Coggin Heeringa, Interpretive Naturalist, Crossroads at Big Creek, Inc. We at Crossroads are dreaming of a white Christmas so we can share the gift of walking (and maybe even skiing) in a winter wonderland. Nick’s Workshop (not to be […]

By Coggin HeeringaInterpretive Naturalist, Crossroads at Big Creek, Inc. “There’s is no place like home for the holidays,” and for many folks who make Door County their home or who come home for the holidays, the traditions at Crossroads are […]

By Coggin Heeringa “Night Tree,” which is based on the children’s book by Eve Bunting, is a beloved tradition at Crossroads. It started years ago as a Sawyer School first grade field trip, but it has grown over the years […]

By Coggin Heeringa, Interpretive Naturalist, Crossroads at Big Creek, Inc. This week, we are thankful for recreation, which includes a host of activities which are, according to Google’s English dictionary, “done for enjoyment when one is not working.” We at Crossroads […]

By Coggin Heeringa, Interpretive Naturalist, Crossroads at Big Creek, Inc. During Thanksgiving Week, we at Crossroads express our heartfelt gratitude for the privilege of caring for our preserves. In a way, “preserves” isn’t quite accurate. When we acquired our land, […]

We at Crossroads at Big Creek have much for which to be thankful, so we are dedicating November to celebrating the wonderful environmental services from which we benefit and which we endeavor to protect. This week (and always) we are […]

By Coggin Heeringa, Interpretive Naturalist, Crossroads at Big Creek, Inc. The first of October will be a very special day for Crossroads and the Door Peninsula Astronomical Society (DPAS) and people across the globe who will participate in a celebration of lunar […]

By Coggin Heeringa, Interpretive Naturalist, Crossroads at Big Creek, Inc. At Crossroads at Big Creek, the fall archaeology and astronomy programs are underway, and curiously, the dissimilar initiatives have a great deal in common. Our team of professional archaeologists and […]

By Coggin Heeringa, Interpretive Naturalist, Crossroads at Big Creek, Inc. Crossroads at Big Creek kicks off the 2022 Fall Archaeological Experience with “IDA BAY DAY, A Celebration at the Trailhead” on Saturday, September 17, from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at our […]

By Coggin Heeringa, Interpretive Naturalist, Crossroads at Big Creek, Inc. A few, but not many, monarch butterflies have been fluttering above the meadows and fields at Crossroads. That may change soon. So Crossroads is collaborating with the Wild Ones of […]

By Coggin HeeringaInterpretive Naturalist, Crossroads at Big Creek, Inc. With August winding down and the sun setting a bit earlier each day, members of the Door Peninsula Astronomical Society are increasing their efforts in KEEPING THE DOOR DARK. Their monthly […]

By Coggin Heeringa, Interpretive Naturalist, Crossroads at Big Creek, Inc. This time of year at Crossroads at Big Creek, any time of day, but especially in the evening, the cricket chorus can be quite musical. And folks who participate in upcoming […]

By Coggin Heeringa, Program Director/Naturalist, Crossroads at Big Creek, Inc. On July 3 back in 1776, John Adams wrote to his wife Abigail, “I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary […]