Howard Christensen Nature Center

The Howard Christensen Nature Center - HCNC - has a convoluted history. The name comes from Howard Christensen, who died young, in 1961 - there is a plaque shown below, photo 25. The parents then bequeathed the land in parcels to the local school system for use for 99 years as a nature center. Some kind of political infighting ensued, and the facility, complete with buildings paid for by the federal gov't, sat idle for five years. The vandals went to work, but did not totally destroy the buildings. Now the HCNC operates the facility, and rents the buildings for a dollar a year. The facility is 90% manned by dedicated volunteers who clearly like their jobs.

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A 2013 pamphlet.

Below, some satellite views of features on the nature center.

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Interpretive center

Nature center

One can see in the left hand satellite image, above, that the area around Chrihaven Lake, itself 40 to 80 feet deep, is very spongy. Note the two floating pontoon observation area. The lake is not oxygen rich, so only shiners, catfish, and lots of turtles, live in the lake. Dredging would turn this into a lake that could support bass and other fish, but probably be very expensive.

August 23, 2013 visit - walking trails.

Some of the many miles of walking trails on the Howard Christensen Nature Center - HCNC - property were walked, and the photos below resulted. There's no particular theme to them. Comments under some of the photos.