The Great Falls Discovery Center hosts community programs and events, rotating art exhibits in our Great Hall and a Coffee House hosted by the Friends of the Great Falls Discovery Center.
Scott Strong Hawk Foster is a Native American photographer whose proud roots include Hassanamisco Nipmuc, Mohegan, and Cherokee lineage. His exhibit captures travels throughout the ancestral homelands of the Native American Peoples of New England. While attending powwows, cultural events, workshops, and Indigenous practices that span millennia, Scott’s passion highlights the rich, resilient, diverse cultures […]
Enjoy a story, fresh air, and exercise! Join us on the Discovery Center’s grounds for a free self-guided StoryWalk® featuring Bowwow Powwow by Brenda Child. For ages 3–7 and anyone who loves dogs and powwows! The StoryWalk® Project was created by Anne Ferguson of Montpelier, VT, and developed in collaboration with the Kellogg-Hubbard Library. Story Walk® is a registered […]
Come on inside and Chill Out with DCR! You can find “Cool” activities for kids and families inside, including indoor StoryWalk® all summer long! Meet at the welcome desk. Accessible during open hours. Enjoy the story Sploot by Sadonna Heathman. Two squirrels. One mission: stay cool! When the summer sun is blazing, two silly squirrels will try […]
Easy-paced, 1- to 2-mile guided walk, along the Canalside Rail Trail or downtown Turners Falls, geared for older adults, but open to all. Enjoy some natural and local history along the way. Dress for the weather with sturdy footwear and bring water. Inclement weather cancels. Meet at the main entrance.
Learn more about our wildlife neighbors in the Connecticut River Watershed. Program includes a story, activities, and crafts. Activities are indoors and outdoors, weather permitting. Siblings and friends are welcome. For ages 3-6, accompanied by an adult. Meet in the Great Hall.
For thousands of years people have gathered at the Great Falls to tell stories. Enjoy the self-guided StoryWalk ® Mosbas and the Magic Flute by Western Abenaki author Jesse Bruchac, at the Pocumtuck Homelands Festival at Unity Park on First Street along the river’s edge. Find out how Mosbas is changed forever when he finds […]
A free two-day celebration at Unity Park on First Street in Turners Falls, sponsored by the Nolumbeka Project and RiverCulture. This festival is the perfect combination of live music, drumming, dancing, storytelling, native crafts and food. On Saturday August 1, 10 am—5 pm, families may visit the Northfield Mountain and Great Falls Discovery Center tent […]
Easy-paced, 1- to 2-mile guided walk, along the Canalside Rail Trail or downtown Turners Falls, geared for older adults, but open to all. Enjoy some natural and local history along the way. Dress for the weather with sturdy footwear and bring water. Inclement weather cancels. Meet at the main entrance.
For ages 3-6, accompanied by an adult. Learn more about our wildlife neighbors in the Connecticut River Watershed. Program includes a story, activities, and crafts. Activities are indoors and outdoors, weather permitting. Siblings and friends are welcome. Meet in the Great Hall. 8/7: Bobcats 8/14: Ants 8/21: Who Lives in a River?* 8/28: Butterflies
Join us on a walk to the site of the former McLane Silk Company, which was near today’s Swanson’s Fabrics. Hear the stories of two creative businesses and what they have in common. After WWI, the McLane mill purchased millions of yards of surplus “cartridge silk” to repurpose into “Armistice Cloth” suitable for garments. Today, […]
Free and for all ages. Join Wildland Firefighters from the DCR Bureau of Fire Control & Forestry to hear a reading of The Smokey Bear Story and learn about campfire safety. Tour a Wildland Fire Engine and a Turners Falls Fire Department fire truck, try a scavenger hunt, and meet Smokey Bear himself who is […]
Come see the raptors up close and personal! Meet in the Great Hall for a free program for all ages. See birds of prey presented by Tom Ricardi, a licensed rehabilitator and wildlife biologist. Tom provides an educational presentation on their lives and habitats as well as conservation. You may see a variety of raptors […]
Enjoy a story, fresh air, and exercise! Join us on the Discovery Center’s grounds for a free self-guided Story Walk® featuring Honk! Honk! by Mick Manning. For ages 4–8 and everyone who wished they could fly! The StoryWalk® Project was created by Anne Ferguson of Montpelier, VT, and developed in collaboration with the Kellogg-Hubbard Library. […]
Enjoy the story Summer Song by Kevin Henke, a vibrant ode to nature and summer activities. For ages 4 – 8 and everyone who loves summer and changing seasons. Chill Out Indoor StoryWalks® Come on inside and Chill Out with DCR! You can find “COOL” activities for kids and families inside, including indoor StoryWalk® all […]
Easy-paced, 1- to 2-mile guided walk, along the Canalside Rail Trail or downtown Turners Falls, geared for older adults, but open to all. Enjoy some natural and local history along the way. Dress for the weather with sturdy footwear and bring water. Inclement weather cancels. Meet at the main entrance.
Find us at the Millers Falls library (23 Bridge St., Millers Falls, MA, 01349) for a fun afternoon of stories, creativity, and salamanders at the Millers Falls Branch Library! We'll read The Salamander Room together, then make a salamander-themed craft inspired by the story. Along the way, you'll learn a little about these fascinating forest […]
Join MassWildlife to get started in this wonderful pastime. Learn about fly fishing gear, how to rig, and cast a fly rod, as well as tips on how to fly fish. This class is designed for beginner fly anglers (ages 15+). Bring your own fly-fishing gear or borrow ours. Pre-registration required via EventBrite. Registration details […]
For ages 3-6, accompanied by an adult. Learn more about our wildlife neighbors in the Connecticut River Watershed. Program includes a story, activities, and crafts. Activities are indoors and outdoors, weather permitting. Siblings and friends are welcome. Meet in the Great Hall. 8/14: Ants 8/21: Who Lives in a River?* 8/28: Butterflies
Join us for the Friends of the Great Falls Discovery Center’s concert series featuring local talent. Austin and Elliot offers songs about love gone wrong and death done right and The Boxcar Lilies play folk, country, blues and bluegrass-tinged Americana. Refreshments available. Sliding scale suggested donations, in support of educational programming at the Center. All ages. […]
Why does Turners Falls have a waterfall? Why are the rare Jurassic Armored Mud Balls found here? Why is the Connecticut River in Franklin County so strange? It has sharp 90-degree bends plus mysterious 100-foot-deep holes in its riverbed! Did you know the Connecticut used to flow into Greenfield? Join Prof. Richard Little, the discoverer […]
Discover nature through story, poetry and art in our series of free art programs. Create cyanotypes—or sun prints— to take home with sensitized paper, plants or stencils, glass, and the power of UV light. Rain or shine (we’ll use special light boxes if it rains). For adults, teens, and children ages 6 and up. All […]
An informal group of musicians gathers to play the enchanting traditional dance music from France and Brittany, commonly known as bal folk. This is not a performance but rather a coming together of musically minded friends. The event is free and open to the public to come and go at will. For all ages. Meet […]
Easy-paced, 1- to 2-mile guided walk, along the Canalside Rail Trail or downtown Turners Falls, geared for older adults, but open to all. Enjoy some natural and local history along the way. Dress for the weather with sturdy footwear and bring water. Inclement weather cancels. Meet at the main entrance.
For ages 3-6, accompanied by an adult. Learn more about our wildlife neighbors in the Connecticut River Watershed. Program includes a story, activities, and crafts. Activities are indoors and outdoors, weather permitting. Siblings and friends are welcome. Meet in the Great Hall. 8/21: Who Lives in a River?* 8/28: Butterflies
Join DCR staff for family activities at the Great Falls Farmers Market, located between 6th and 7th streets along Avenue A at Peskeompskut Park. For all ages.
Join us inside the Center for drop-in family-friendly activities and crafts all about how animals keep cool, including a story about splooting squirrels. What can we learn from animals during the heat of summer? What’s your plan to keep cool? Come on in and chill out and make your own Flat Squirrely to take on […]
Easy-paced, 1- to 2-mile guided walk, along the Canalside Rail Trail or downtown Turners Falls, geared for older adults, but open to all. Enjoy some natural and local history along the way. Dress for the weather with sturdy footwear and bring water. Inclement weather cancels. Meet at the main entrance.
For ages 3-6, accompanied by an adult. Learn more about our wildlife neighbors in the Connecticut River Watershed. Program includes a story, activities, and crafts. Activities are indoors and outdoors, weather permitting. Siblings and friends are welcome. Meet in the Great Hall. 8/28: Butterflies
Experience America’s longest log drive through the photos and stories of locals, laborers and the infamous River Baron, George Van Dyke. Join us for an easy 1.25-mile hike through downtown Turners Falls and along the Canalside Rail Trail. This walk is scheduled for rain or shine. For adults and children ages 9 and up. Meet […]
Discover nature through story, poetry and art in our series of free art programs. With instruction and technique, you create an art piece to take home from tile, pebbles, marble and glue, inspired by the Connecticut River’s annual Source to Sea Clean-up in September. For adults, teens, and children ages 6 and up (accompanied by […]