Cayuga Nature Center facts for kids
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| Established | 1981 |
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| Location | 1420 Taughannock Blvd, Ithaca, New York |
| Visitors | 25,000 |
| Ithaca Discovery Trail | |
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The Cayuga Nature Center (CNC) is a cool place that teaches people about nature and the environment. It's located on the west side of Cayuga Lake in Tompkins County, New York. It's a great spot to learn about local wildlife and how to protect our planet.
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A Look Back: History of the Cayuga Nature Center
The Cayuga Nature Center has a long history! It started way back in 1914 as the Cayuga Preventorium. This was a non-profit group that ran a summer camp for kids. The camp was on the east side of Cayuga Lake. It helped children who had been around people with tuberculosis, a serious lung illness.
As tuberculosis became less common, the Preventorium started helping kids with heart problems. In 1936, a kind person named Ernest T. Paine gave 75 acres of land. This land is where the Cayuga Nature Center is now. He wanted it to be used "for the health and welfare of the children of Tompkins County."
The main building, called the Cayuga Preventorium Lodge, was finished in 1939. It was built by the Works Progress Administration, a government program that created jobs during tough times. The summer camp ran until 1942. It closed because there were fewer tuberculosis cases and World War II made it hard to find staff. The lodge was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2021. This means it's a special historical building.
After the war, Cornell University used the lodge for student housing. In the 1960s, it became a conference center that was open all year. Later, a group called the Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) started outdoor education programs there. These programs were very popular!
Because of this success, BOCES, Onondaga Nature Centers, Inc., and the Ithaca City School District worked together. They opened the Preventorium as a Nature Center in 1975. Four years later, it was officially named the Cayuga Nature Center. In 1981, it became its own private non-profit organization.
In 2011, the Cayuga Nature Center joined forces with the Paleontological Research Institution. This helped them continue their programs at both locations.
What You Can Find There: Facilities
The Cayuga Nature Center is about three miles south of Taughannock Falls State Park. It's right on the west shore of Cayuga Lake. The main building, the CNC Lodge, is heated by a special biomass furnace. This furnace was designed by Cornell engineering students. It uses natural materials for fuel, which is good for the environment!
Inside the lodge, you'll find cool exhibits. They have live animals, mounted specimens, and fossils. There are also interactive stations. These exhibits teach you about the plants and animals that live in the Cayuga Basin area.
The Nature Center has lots of other exciting things to explore:
- Smith Woods: This is an old-growth forest, which means it's a very old forest that hasn't been cut down.
- TreeTops: Imagine a six-story tree house! It was built by students from Ithaca High School in 2000.
- Animal Collection: They have about 30 animals that you can learn about.
- Butterfly Garden: A beautiful garden where you can see butterflies during certain seasons.
- Turtle Pond: A home for turtles!
- Hiking Trails: The campus covers 120 acres and has five miles of trails for you to explore.
Smith Woods: An Ancient Forest
Henry A. Smith Woods is a special 32-acre old-growth forest. It's located in Trumansburg, New York. A businessman from New York City, Henry Atterbury Smith, used to own this forest. He used it as a summer home sometimes. In 1909, his sons gave the property to the Village of Trumansburg. They wanted it to be a public park for everyone to enjoy.
In 2007, the forest's ownership moved to the Cayuga Nature Center. It is still protected and used for learning and fun activities today.
Fun and Learning: Programs
The Cayuga Nature Center offers many exciting programs! They have summer day camps and "school's out" day camps. They also have classes and programs all year long. These programs teach you about environmental issues and natural history.
There are programs for all ages. You can have "animal encounters" where you meet some of the center's animals. They also have outdoor education programs. You can learn survival skills, ecology (how living things interact with their environment), and geology (about the Earth's rocks and land).
The CNC also has special seasonal programs. You can learn about making maple syrup, pressing apples to make cider, and studying butterflies and moths in the Butterfly Garden. They even have programs about winter ecology!
Explore More: Discovery Trail
The Cayuga Nature Center is part of something called Ithaca’s Discovery Trail. This trail connects the Nature Center with seven other amazing educational places in the area. It's like a path of learning and discovery!
The other places on the Discovery Trail include:
- The Museum of the Earth
- The Cornell Lab of Ornithology
- The Cornell Botanic Gardens
- The History Center
- The Johnson Museum of Art
- The Sciencenter
- The Tompkins County Public Library
