Hone your observational skills through journal writing, as we explore Floracliff and write a Valentine to Nature!Hone your observational skills through journal writing, as we use our words to explore Floracliff in different seasons. These hikes will give you permission to sit and soak in the life around you and open your senses to appreciate […]

Join us for a Birding for Beginners walk and sit. This program is for those ages 9 and up.If you’ve ever thought birdwatching would be fun or interesting but didn’t know how to start come join us for a Birding for Beginners walk and sit. We’ll discuss the use of binoculars (we have nice ones […]

Join us for a Birding for Beginners walk and sit. This program is for those ages 9 and up.If you’ve ever thought birdwatching would be fun or interesting but didn’t know how to start come join us for a Birding for Beginners walk and sit. We’ll discuss the use of binoculars (we have nice ones […]

Join us for birding with the Floracliff Ornithology Community (FLOC)!Start your day with an easy-paced bird walk. Experienced birders will guide you on a 1-2 mile loop through grassland and forested habitat. We'll take our time to document all the birds we see and hear during this community science based program. Bring binoculars or borrow […]

Join us for birding with the Floracliff Ornithology Community (FLOC)!Start your day with an easy-paced bird walk. Experienced birders will guide you on a 1-2 mile loop through grassland and forested habitat. We'll take our time to document all the birds we see and hear during this community science based program. Bring binoculars or borrow […]

Join us to learn about the invasive spotted lanternfly with UK's Carl HarperLearn about the impacts of the spotted lanternfly. Carl has been with the University of Kentucky for 28 years working to help slow the spread of invasives. He would ideally like to eradicate the invasive but that doesn’t always happen! Knowing that we […]

Join us to learn about the invasive spotted lanternfly with UK's Carl HarperLearn about the impacts of the spotted lanternfly. Carl has been with the University of Kentucky for 28 years working to help slow the spread of invasives. He would ideally like to eradicate the invasive but that doesn’t always happen! Knowing that we […]

Join us to kick off our spring hike season with this long hike featuring Elk Lick Creek and Elk Lick Falls.Join us to kick off our spring hike season with this long hike featuring Elk Lick Creek and Elk Lick Falls. We will also look for early blooming wildflowers along the way such as hepatica, […]

Join us to kick off our spring hike season with this long hike featuring Elk Lick Creek and Elk Lick Falls.Join us to kick off our spring hike season with this long hike featuring Elk Lick Creek and Elk Lick Falls. We will also look for early blooming wildflowers along the way such as hepatica, […]

End your day with a quiet and relaxing “golden hour” hike at Floracliff while the early evening sunset shines through the trees.End your day with a quiet and relaxing “golden hour” hike at Floracliff while the early evening sunset shines through the trees. This will feature Elk Lick Falls and one of Kentucky’s oldest known […]

Join us to see the first wildflowers of the season.Join us for an early spring wildflower hike to see the first blooms of the season. This hike will highlight identification, ecology, and pollinator relationships of our spring ephemerals.Hike Leader: Beverly James, Preserve DirectorHike distance and difficulty: 1.5-2.5 miles (route will be determined by wildflower activity); […]

Join us to see the first wildflowers of the season.Join us for an early spring wildflower hike to see the first blooms of the season. This hike will highlight identification, ecology, and pollinator relationships of our spring ephemerals.Hike Leader: Josie Miller, Stewardship DirectorHike distance and difficulty: 1.5-2.5 miles (route will be determined by wildflower activity); […]

Join us for a seminar at the Trail's End Lodge with Dr. Alice JonesPresenter: Dr. Alice Jones, Chair Emerita, EKU Department of Physics, Geosciences & AstronomyWendell Berry once said,"Our understandable wish to preserve the planet must somehow be reduced to the scale of our competence--that is to wish to preserve all of its humble households […]

Experience early spring at Floracliff on this wildflower hike.Join us for an early spring wildflower hike to see the first blooms of the season. This hike will highlight identification, ecology, and pollinator relationships of our spring ephemerals.Hike Leader: Beverly James, Preserve DirectorHike distance and difficulty: 2 miles; rated moderate to difficult, due to steep and […]

Join Floracliff's Stewardship Director, Josie Miller, for a spring wildflower hike.Join us for an early spring wildflower hike to see the first blooms of the season. This hike will highlight identification, ecology, and pollinator relationships of our spring ephemerals.Hike Leader: Josie Miller, Stewardship DirectorHike distance and difficulty: 1.5 - 2.5 miles; rated moderate to difficult, […]

Celebrate spring’s beauty and explore some of the connections between spring wildflowers, their habitats, and us.Celebrate spring’s beauty and explore some of the connections between spring wildflowers, their habitats, and us.Hike Leader: Joyce Bender, retired from the Kentucky State Nature Preserves CommissionHike distance and difficulty: 1.5 miles; rated moderately difficult, due to steep and uneven […]

Join us for birding with the Floracliff Ornithology Community (FLOC)!Start your day with an easy-paced bird walk. Experienced birders will guide you on a 1-2 mile loop through grassland and forested habitat. We'll take our time to document all the birds we see and hear during this community science based program. Bring binoculars or borrow […]

Hike with a botanist at Floracliff during peak wildflower season.Join botanist Devin Rodgers for a spring wildflower hike to identify the charismatic native, early-flowering plants of the Kentucky River Palisades. A number of related topics will be discussed like floral morphology, plant families, ecological patterns, biogeography, and conservation. We also hope to observe pollination by […]

Join Floracliff's Stewardship Director, Josie Miller, for a spring wildflower hike.Join us for an early spring wildflower hike to see the first blooms of the season. This hike will highlight identification, ecology, and pollinator relationships of our spring ephemerals.Hike Leader: Josie Miller, Stewardship DirectorHike distance and difficulty: 1.5 - 2.5 miles; rated moderate to difficult, […]

End your day with a quiet and relaxing “golden hour” hike at Floracliff while the early evening sunset shines through the trees.End your day with a quiet and relaxing “golden hour” hike at Floracliff while the early evening sunset shines through the trees. This hike will head down to the Kentucky River floodplain, where setting […]

Join us to see Floracliff's spring wildflowers.Join us for a spring wildflower hike to see Floracliff's wildflowers at their peak. This hike will highlight identification, ecology, and pollinator relationships of our spring ephemerals.Hike Leader: Beverly James, Preserve DirectorHike distance and difficulty: 1.5-2.5 miles (route will be determined by wildflower activity); rated moderate due to steep […]

Join us for a Birding for Beginners walk and sit just as spring migration is underway. This program is for those ages 9 and up.If you’ve ever thought birdwatching would be fun or interesting but didn’t know how to start come join us for a Birding for Beginners walk and sit. We’ll discuss the use […]

Join us to see Floracliff during peak wildflower season.Join us for an early spring wildflower hike to see the first blooms of the season. This hike will highlight identification, ecology, and pollinator relationships of our spring ephemerals.Hike Leader: Dan Patrick, Volunteer NaturalistHike distance and difficulty: 1.5-2.5 miles (route will be determined by wildflower activity); rated […]

Hike with a botanist at Floracliff during peak wildflower season.More details coming soon!Hike Leader: Tyson Gregory, Trees LexingtonHike distance and difficulty: 1.5 - 2 miles; rated moderate to difficult, due to steep and uneven terrain; there may also be some slick spots near the creekBring: waterOptional: hiking poles, snack, cameraThe meeting location will be emailed […]

End your day with a quiet and relaxing “golden hour” hike at Floracliff while the early evening sunset shines through the trees.End your day with a quiet and relaxing “golden hour” hike at Floracliff while the early evening sunset shines through the trees. This will feature Elk Lick Falls and one of Kentucky’s oldest known […]

Join botanist Rob Paratley for a wildflower hike at Floracliff.Join botanist Rob Paratley for a close look at Floracliff's spring wildflowers. He'll discuss some basics of flower shape and structure, as well as their relationships to each other and how they fit into Floracliff's mesophytic forest.Hike Leader: Rob ParatleyHike distance and difficulty: 1.5-2 miles; rated […]

Experience the spring beauty of Floracliff on this wildflower hike to Elk Lick FallsExperience the spring beauty of Floracliff on this wildflower hike to Elk Lick Falls. This hike will highlight identification, ecology, and pollinator relationships of our spring ephemerals. We'll take a break at Elk Lick Falls.Hike Leader: Beverly James, Preserve DirectorHike distance and […]

Join fellow artists on a hike to visit Floracliff's old oak trees for a few hours of drawing and painting.Come together with fellow artists for a hike to spend a few hours drawing and painting while sitting with Floracliff's old oak trees. Artists provide their own materials and must pack in and out over varying […]

Join us for a seminar at the Trail's End Lodge with Rachael PeakePresenter: Rachael Peake, Frankfort Audubon SocietyDiscover how protecting our night skies can help migrating birds! This exciting presentation dives into the connection between bird migration, light pollution, and International Dark Sky Week. Learn how Kentuckians—including our first statewide Dark Sky chapter—are taking action […]

Join the 2025 City Nature Challenge – a global community science event to document nature in our cities.Join the 2025 City Nature Challenge in Lexington, KY! From April 25 through April 28, make observations of wild plants, animals, and fungi anywhere in Fayette County. Your observations will contribute to one of the largest community science […]

Join Floracliff's team of volunteers and help us protect, restore, and share nature in the Bluegrass.Now accepting Community Science and Garden Stewardship volunteers!Do you want to participate in community science or steward native plant gardens? Can you commit to working at least two Wednesday morning shifts each month? Join our team of volunteers!Garden stewards are […]

Learn about the birds of the Kentucky River Palisades during peak spring migration.Ben Leffew, Preserve Manager of Shaker Village, and Michael Patton, avian biologist with the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife, will lead this bird walk at Floracliff. Participants will learn to identify birds by sight, sound, behavior, and habitat. This program takes place […]

Join wildlife biologists Courtney and Michaela to learn more about Kentucky's snakes and meet a few of them in person.Join wildlife biologists Courtney and Michaela to learn more about Kentucky's snakes and meet a few of them in person.Presenters:Courtney Hayes, Wildlife Biologist, KY Department of Fish and Wildlife ResourcesMichaela Rogers, Wildlife Biologist, KY Department of […]

We'll focus on how to begin a drawing in a way that is easier and less scary than you might think!This is a workshop specifically for potential artists young and old who say: " I can't even draw a stick figure". We'll focus on how to begin a drawing in a way that is easier […]

End your day with a quiet and relaxing “golden hour” hike at Floracliff while the early evening sunset shines through the trees.End your day with a quiet and relaxing “golden hour” hike at Floracliff while the early evening sunset shines through the trees. This hike will head down to the Kentucky River floodplain, where setting […]

Join us for a seminar at the Trail's End Lodge with Dr. Dan PotterPresenter: Dr. Dan Potter, Professor Emeritus, Department of Entomology, University of KentuckyIn 2022, the International Union for Conservation of Nature added the monarch butterfly to its Red List of Threatened Species, classifying it as Endangered. This talk will help attendees to better […]

We're excited to be hosting Raptor Rehab of Kentucky for this live raptor program. This program is for participants 8 years old and up.We're excited to host Raptor Rehab of Kentucky for a 60-minute program with live raptors.Raptor Rehab of Kentucky Inc. is the largest raptor only rehab center in the state. They takein 350-400 […]

Join us for birding with the Floracliff Ornithology Community (FLOC)!Start your day with an easy-paced bird walk. Experienced birders will guide you on a 1-2 mile loop through grassland and forested habitat. We'll take our time to document all the birds we see and hear during this community science based program. Bring binoculars or borrow […]

Join fellow artists on a hike to visit Floracliff's old oak trees for a few hours of drawing and painting.Come together with fellow artists for a hike to spend a few hours drawing and painting while sitting with Floracliff's old oak trees. Artists provide their own materials and must pack in and out over varying […]