North Lakeland Discovery Center

Celebrate 20 years of exploring the wildlife and natural beauty of the Wisconsin Northwoods at the 20th Annual Northwoods Bird & Wildlife Festival!  Participants are welcome to partake in a variety of guided hikes and tours, bird watching expeditions, bird banding demonstrations, and interactive workshops throughout the weekend's festivities.

Gather with us at the North Lakeland Discovery Center to celebrate environmental education resources in the Northwoods and attend our biggest fundraiser event of the year featuring delicious bites, a live auction and more!

Catered toward families of all ages, the Discovery Center's Family Play Day features outdoor activities including nature art, giant bubble making, lawn games, canoeing, fishing, a fish casting contest and more!

The architects of the landscape...beavers are incredible animals!  Learn about their adaptations as we dress someone up in a costume, explore beaver skulls and even smell what castor smells like- THEN we'll create beaver habitats in small buckets and learn what a beaver needs to survive.

Did you know that essential creatures inhabit the muck and leaves along lake shores? Come join us to explore these "macro-invertebrates" and sift through shoreline samples in search of these fascinating organisms. We'll discover how to identify them and understand their role in assessing lake water quality!

  Learn about the water cycle during this fun and and interactive activity. As you travel through the water cycle yourself you will see that every drop has a different story to tell.  

Come along for an exciting journey into the fascinating world of spiders! Uncover the distinctive traits of these creatures through engaging activities, exploration, and more.  We might even welcome a few spider pals to join us! Plus, we'll create a craft inspired by our eight-legged friends.

Using sustainably harvested birch bark, we will make magnets and frames out of this beautiful material.

Monday, Dec. 22 from 10am-11am Library Lower Level Join Naturalist Hannah for a fun, family-friendly adventure in search of birds that call the Northwoods home in the wintertime! We’ll learn about different types of birds, how to identify them, and go on a scavenger hunt to look for bird signs. This program is presented by…

Monday, December 29 from 10am-11am Library Lower Level We welcome families and curious adults alike to join us for a program exploring winter survival skills! Learn how to construct a shelter, build campfires (including campfire etiquette), and make handy fire-starters to take home with you! This program is presented by a Naturalist from the North…

Join the North Lakeland Discovery Center for free nature-themed, drip-in activities that are fun for the whole family, including winter scavenger hunts, a snowy obstacle course, indoor crafts and horse-drawn sleigh rides.

Bring a bag lunch to your favorite Northwoods libraries for a one-hour presentation exploring the natural world. Our naturalists will share insights on various nature topics. All ages are welcome! Midwesterners take pride in our access to the Great Lakes, especially Lake Superior as the world's largest freshwater lake by surface area. Learn about our…