2024 Roving Talks
Roving Talks are FREE programs but donations are appreciated. Donations can be made via the signup platform. Sign ups are limited to one individual per program.
2024 Lydia Joukowsky: Low-tech Process-based Restoration
To RSVP, please sign up here.
Carpool from Escalante Visitor Center/Agency. No pets please.
In this roving talk, Lydia will show off a river system that has undergone natural renovations by two unique terra-reformers on our planet: humans and beavers. Process-based restoration is all about sending a ‘pulse’ of natural processes (chemical, physical, and biological) into a watershed basin. Using a suite of well-established scientific principles as defined by Wheaton et al. (2019), Low-tech Process-based Restoration (LTPBR) calls to action an ecological restoration approach that lets the river system do the work. Come roving to discuss riverscape evolution and geomorphic influences on headwater streams.
HIKE INFO:
- Carpool: Ideally vehicle with 4X4 capabilities (I will supply one vehicle, with seating for 4 people)
- Locations where program would be conducted: Near Bryce Canyon National Park
- Accessibility: Wading through water, hopping across streams, hiking uneven terrain with no trails
- At least 2 liters of water
- Lunch and snacks!
- Hiking shoes
- Sunscreen, sunglasses, and hat
- Shoes, pants, gear you can get wet
- Optional: waders, hand lens, binoculars, etc.
Lydia Joukowsky received a Master’s of Ecological Restoration from Utah State University in May and a Bachelor’s in Geology from Brown University over a decade ago. This summer, she has collected data on wetland and riparian ecosystems across Utah’s beautiful Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land. Fascinated by the earth’s long Hadean past, Lydia is passionate about geology, biology, and hydrology—three major drivers of the landscapes we enjoy every moment of every day.
2024 Bob Stevenson: Lightbulb Moments in the Circle Cliffs
Caravan and carpool from Anasazi State Park Museum parking lot. No pets please.
Backcountry Park Ranger Bob Stevenson will explore what happens when personal stories are sandwiched between geological stories and the geopolitics of the cold war.- Roads in the Circle Cliffs can be rough so high clearance vehicles are required (four-wheel drive recommended).
- Two-miles round-trip – hike is not universally accessible.
- At least 2 liters of water
- Lunch and snacks
- Hiking shoes
- Sunscreen, sunglasses, and hat
- Curiosity
- Imagination
Before Bob Stevenson was Bob, he was a rock. As Bob, he studied rocks, earned a degree in geology, had fun in the mountains and canyons and became a park ranger where he really enjoys sharing nature with everyone. Sometime in the distant future Bob expects to be a rock again.
2024 Bob Stevenson: Tracks Across Time
To RSVP, please sign up here.
Through science and imagination, you will travel across time, where present and past converge to cross paths with a dinosaur. - At least 2 liters of water
- Lunch and snack
- Sunscreen, sunglasses, and hat
Before Bob Stevenson was Bob, he was a rock. As Bob, he studied rocks, earned a degree in geology, had fun in the mountains and canyons and became a park ranger where he really enjoys sharing nature with everyone. Sometime in the distant future Bob expects to be a rock again.
2024 Escalante Historic Walking Tour – Thursday
No RSVP needed.
Tour begins at the Peoples Exchange, one of Escalante’s most photographed historic buildings. Come along to learn more about many of the historic structures throughout town. Escalante was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2013 as a National Historic District with areas of noted significance in architecture, social history, commerce, agriculture, and exploration/settlement.
Tour will be led by Dr. Larry Barnes, co-owner of the Peoples Exchange, an early (1901) co-op store on old Main Street, Escalante. His interest in Escalante history has led to several invitations to give lectures and to assist in preparation of the guide to the Escalante National Historic District.
2024 Constance Lynn: Medicine at our Feet
Meet at the Escalante River Trailhead at the Bridge (Hwy 12).On this walk along the Escalante River we will open our awareness to the plants as our relatives and allies in healing and discover what it means to truly have medicine at our feet.
This will be an easy river walk with maybe a crossing or two. Please bring something to sit upon, water, sunhat.
Constance Lynn was born with a soul fire in her heart, a passion for healing and a love for wild nature…threads that have braided together in service of life. Herbalist, farmer, yoga teacher, soul guide, seed keeper, water guardian, community activist and nature mystic are names for the stars that create her constellation.
Constance lives in the high desert of southern Utah amongst pinyon, juniper and sagebrush as well as a greater community of All Beings. She offers her medicine through Night Raven Holistic Health and The ReWilding Project.
You can learn more about Constance at https://www.nightravenholistichealth.com.
2024 Dr. Jackie Grant: Bats of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument (Night Walk)
To RSVP, please sign up here.
Spotted bat, Euderma maculatum
Did you know that at least 14 bat species make their home on the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument? Bats navigate and find food with their very loud “shouts.” Each type of bat has its own special shout, which, despite being very loud, is not heard by humans. However, we can use special microphones to hear the bats then identify each bat by the sound it makes. Join Dr. Grant to learn about the variety of bats in the area and maybe even record some as they fly overhead to look for their insect dinners.
Image property of Bat Conservation International and Minden Pictures, governed by this license.
Meet at the Escalante River Trailhead parking lot on Highway 12 at the bridge location just around the corner from Calf Creek campground. The bat discussion will take place in the parking lot, then we will walk to the cottonwoods to look for and listen to bats. This talk requires a walk of about a quarter mile through sandy trails along the river.
- Sturdy, comfortable shoes
- A portable chair if you want to sit
- Comfort items such as water and snacks
- Flashlight/headlamp
Dr. Jackie Grant taught biology and environmental science at Southern Utah University for 12 years before joining Grand Staircase Escalante Partners in 2024. She is the Vice President of the Utah Native Plant Society and served as the Vice President for Education and Outreach for the Society for Conservation Biology. Her expertise is in wildlife, native plants, and the Seeds of Success Protocol. Dr. Grant was a Fulbright Scholar to New Zealand in 2023, where she learned about seed preservation from an Indigenous (Māori) perspective. Jackie has surveyed for bats all across the United States and Colombia, South America!2024 Escalante Historic Walking Tour – Saturday
No RSVP needed.
Tour begins at the Peoples Exchange, one of Escalante’s most photographed historic buildings. Come along to learn more about many of the historic structures throughout town. Escalante was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2013 as a National Historic District with areas of noted significance in architecture, social history, commerce, agriculture, and exploration/settlement.
Tour will be led by Dr. Larry Barnes, co-owner of the Peoples Exchange, an early (1901) co-op store on old Main Street, Escalante. His interest in Escalante history has led to several invitations to give lectures and to assist in preparation of the guide to the Escalante National Historic District.