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5 Tips for a Better Wildlife Experience

Sometimes you just need to get away.

Leave the wild life of the city, with its traffic, crowded shopping centers, and constant noise behind.

You need to get away to a different kind of wildlife.

The kind found in places with hiking trails and remote campgrounds for a night under the stars.

Places where you’ll see a variety of nature’s wildlife — reptiles, waterfowl, amphibians, and mammals — in their natural habitats.

Wildlife found away from the city in nature preserves and state and national parks.

Before you jump in the car and head out, we want to share five ideas to help you see more wildlife, stay safe and have a good time exploring the outdoors.

Research Your Trail

Whether you decide to travel to the nearest wildlife preserve for a day hike or to another state for a weekend trip, spend time researching the trails you plan to hike.

The National Parks Service has over 21,000 total miles of trails to choose from. On their website, you can find trails and the animals you may see on your hike.

If you plan to stay local and see wildlife native to your area, check your state park and nearby wildlife preserve websites.

Here’s a few things to look for when researching trails:

• Difficulty level: trails can be rated from Very East to Extremely Difficult. You’ll want to consider your hiking ability and the trail rating when planning your hike.
• Recent statistics on the active wildlife: The majority of parks and preserves will post the numbers of each species present, based on the time of day and season.
• Trail closures: often trails are closed due to weather, maintenance, and certain species’ breeding seasons.

Timing Your Hike

The season and time of day will affect what wildlife you’ll see.

Early mornings in the spring and summer are a great time to hike. The wildlife will be stirring and getting out of their burrows, nests, and undergrowth.

In the afternoon heat, you’ll see birds, but larger animals will be hiding out in the shade. And don’t forget to bring water if you’ll be hiking in the heat.

You may also see some wildlife you want to avoid — snakes are more active in the heat.

Typically, you’ll also see more activity at dusk feeding times. But, you should plan to be off the trail before dark.

If you plan to see migratory waterfowl, be sure your trail takes you along a shoreline. If you’re there at dusk, you should see and hear them as they fly in for the evening.

Refer to the website for the trail you will be exploring and see what wildlife you can expect to see based on the timing of your visit.

Walk Softly and Listen

Hiking with a speaker blasting out your favorite tunes will NOT help you see or hear wildlife on the trail. And, neither will your cell phone’s ringing and buzzing, so silence your devices and enjoy the sounds of nature.

Hike as quietly as you can and speak softly to your trail buddies. This is especially important when you spot wildlife.

And when you spot them, keep your distance. Depending on the animal, you may scare it off or encourage it to attack.

There’s an exception to the quiet rule. If you are hiking in bear county during the summer months, be loud. You want the bear to know you’re there, so they can avoid you. Check this article for more safety tips in bear country.

Look for Signs Along the Trail

Keep a look out for signs of animals while you hike.

Such as paw prints in the dirt, scat, and patches of grass that have been flattened by an animal resting.

Sometimes you’ll even see burrow holes, patches of tree bark scraped off, and low-hanging branches that have been chewed.

Don’t forget to look up.

Depending on your location, you could see raccoons, birds of prey, or even a bear!

Many parks have guides in their visitor center that include information to help hikers identify animal tracks along the trail. You can also find guides on most park websites.

Bring the Right Equipment

If you don’t have a pair or you’re not happy with your current binocs, here are some things to look for when shopping:

• Wide field of view: You’ll want a magnification greater than 8 and less than 10 because the greater the magnification, the narrower the field of view. With a narrow field of vision, finding the animal you’ve spotted is harder.
• Durability: The lens quality and coating are essential. Also, see how the binoculars handle humidity and dust. They need some degree of waterproofing.
• Comfortable grip: Binoculars come in various shapes, sizes, and weights. The pair you select must feel comfortable in your hands and be easy for you to look through the lenses and adjust the focus. If possible, try before you buy.

If you have any questions or would like to recommend your favorite trail for seeing wildlife, please leave us a comment below.

One last ‘bonus’ tip: Before heading off on your hiking adventure, check your equipment to be sure you have everything you need.

And check out Outdoor Gear Lovers Flash Sale for deep discounts on hiking boots, poles, backpacks, and camping supplies.

Even RV Parks need Covid-19 Banners on Their Website

As Covid-19 spread across the United States, many campgrounds and resorts either closed or had limited access to amenities.

In mid-March, I was staying at a resort in Mesa, Arizona. Overnight, everything changed—limited access to laundry and restroom facilities. The pools closed, and all organized activities stopped.

 It was hard, but we knew it was happening—the resort communicated with their guests.

As a full-time RV’er and copywriter, I do quick website audits on every RV park, resort, or campground website I view when searching for our next ‘home.’

I am looking for relevant information to decide to book a reservation.

Are they open-year round? What amenities do they provide? Is electricity included in the monthly rate? Is there a dog park?

When it was time to move on and make reservations elsewhere, we found some RV parks with information on their site regarding their current status in response to Covid-19. Information on closures, limited check-in times, office hours, etc.

Unfortunately, other RV park websites had no Covid-19 banner, updated landing page content, or relevant information for a potential guest to know their status.

We called a few parks and learned they were either closed, open, but not taking new guests, or open, with limited facilities.

It was frustrating!

Keeping your business website current is essential – even if that business is an RV park.

Let your potential guest know that you care about them. The more information you can provide on your website, the more likely you will receive a reservation inquiry. 

PS If you are looking to update your website, I would be happy to assist. Contact me at peggy@pscopywriting.com

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/even-rv-parks-need-covid-19-banners-peggy-staver

Did you see this article?

More than 100,000 NYC students are homeless, new report finds*

According to the New York Department of Education, children are the highest homeless demographic in New York City!

Homelessness is hard enough without the extra burden of navigating the school system.

Time in the classroom is vital for all children. It’s a time to connect with others and learn with their peers

School is also where students enrolled in the NYC School District Students in Temporary Housing (STH) division get much-needed services. Services are guaranteed under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act.

The sad truth is children living in unstable and temporary housing struggle just trying to enroll in school.

Parents enrolling their children in STH often face obstacles and delays, especially if they need to move to a different shelter.

In fact, it can take between 5 and 7 days to complete the process!

That’s over a week outside the classroom – time that could be spent learning.

Why is enrollment so hard for K-12 children in temporary housing?

A significant hurdle to enrollment is the outdated technology and manual processes used by the STH division of the NYC DOE.

One computer system has been in place for 30+ years!

The older technology and manual process cannot keep up with the growing number of students enrolled in STH.

A process that involves six city departments and several disconnected systems within the city, including the Department of Homeless Services and the Department of Social Services.

This out-of-date intake system requires multiple paper copies of the necessary forms to be filed and shared between the various agencies and departments.

Increasing the potential for delays. And errors.

Paper forms can be lost, delayed or even, misread.

These delays and errors cause students to miss out on classroom time and necessary services. Services like transportation to and from school. Services like meals and school supplies.

What if technology and generosity worked together to improve the system?

My name is Sean Kvignedal, and I am the founder and president of FuseChange.org.

Our nonprofit’s primary mission is building technology solutions to accelerate social and environmental change. We are designers, developers, product specialists, and domain experts passionate about solving complex problems for good.

We are excited to share that the STH division of the NYC DOE has engaged our nonprofit to build a new K-12 Homeless Intake & Services Integration Management System.

This new technology platform will be a central place for the caseworkers to serve the students enrolled in their program. It will streamline the case worker’s daily tasks with automated data processes for intake, tracking, and reporting.

The disconnected systems throughout the workflow will be integrated.

No more multiple copies of paper forms to distribute to the Department of Homeless Services, the Department of Social Services, and other departments in the city.

Students will no longer be out of the classroom for up to a week, waiting for the paperwork to flow through the older paper-based system.

The new system will connect the student to all the services they need at the same time. No more waiting for forms to travel from one department to the next.

The Family Assistant Case Workers, the primary contact for the students and families in the STH, will have more time to work WITH the families. The time that is now spent submitting forms, waiting for responses, and following up.

In fact, the new intake system is projected to shorten the process by 80%.

Families will receive needed services quicker when circumstances require a transfer to a different shelter because the records will be stored electronically in connected systems – not in multiple systems and paper binders.

The students will get needed transportation sooner. They will miss less classroom time and will receive nutritional meals and other benefits much quicker.

Our mission is to expand and share our knowledge with others.

This project’s ultimate goal goes beyond New York City.

Because we believe that knowledge should be shared.

We also believe that all children should have equal access to education and the services they are entitled to under the law.

Developing the new intake system as open source technology will allow FuseChange.org to offer it to departments of education and NGOs across the country – at cost!

Your help is needed

If you are still with me, thank you.

FuseChange.org needs your help to solve this problem for the students, families, and caseworkers.

As a nonprofit, we depend on organizations like yours to help us develop these life-changing solutions.

If you would like to help the homeless children enrolled in the NYC school system, we would like to send you more detailed information regarding our project.

You would not only be helping these children, but you would also be helping the homeless children in other school districts across the country.

Click this link for more information and ways that you can change the lives of children.

Sincerely,

Sean Kvignedal
President and Founder
FuseChange.org
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PS: Thank you in advance for responding to this request and making a difference in the lives of future generations.

*ny.chalkbeat.org/2021/11/8