The William D. McDowell Observatory is reopening on Wednesday, April 20. The Observatory will be open to the public every Wednesday evening for free stargazing from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. in April and 8:30 to 10:30 p.m. May through August, weather permitting. Our experts will help you see the moon, planets and constellations in all their splendor.
Please Note Before Planning Your Visit:
The Observatory closes promptly. It is best to arrive early to ensure your turn at the telescope and avoid a long wait. The Observatory holds 7 to 10 people at one time.
To access the Observatory telescope, a visitor must be able to climb 25 steps in spiral formation. The stairs have railings on either side, approximately 2 feet apart.
There are no public restrooms at the Observatory. There is a portable restroom located in the first parking lot on your right entering the park. (The Observatory lot is the second right).
For more information email info@njsea.com or call 201-460-4619
I am an unapologetic proud child of the Meadowlands and consider myself more fortunate than many other kids of my day. Although I grew up with very little in the way of material things, from 12 years of age I had the privilege of growing up wandering the fields, meadows and creeks of a unique and special place that will always be dear to my heart. Although my friends and I were made fun of at times for spending so many days exploring the natural world around us rather than playing baseball or just hanging out on the corner it forever became a part of who we are and what we understood in life to be important.
And yet even as a young boy I also was a witness to some of the worst possible crimes that could be committed against nature. Often my friends and I felt helpless as we saw the pollution, the endless dumping everywhere and anywhere, the filling in of wetlands, and places being lost to both wildlife and ourselves that still gives me a deep feeling of loss and what might have been.\
But then came a new movement, the first Earth Day in 1970, that brought a new understanding and concept of what natural wild places should be and how and why we should protect places like the New Jersey Meadowlands for future generations .
The Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act, the Endangered Species Act and many State laws born from the first Earth day are a major part of why we get to enjoy the Meadowlands as it is today. Add to that all the good people from elected officials from both parties to government agencies and ordinary folks like us that joined together to do the right thing when our environment needed it most, something we should never forget. Of course it was not easy, nothing that’s worth fighting for ever is.
Now at times I have been a harsh critic of issues in our Meadowlands that I feel are not right and needs to change but at the same time I am the biggest cheerleader. After all growing up back then there was no Richard DeKorte Park, no Mill creek Marsh Trail or any of the great places for wildlife that we all get to enjoy together. It has been a great privilege for me to be able to lead nature walks for these many years in such a wonderful place, something I never thought this Meadowlands kid would have the honor of doing.
Today there is actually more open water and it is cleaner than it has been in more than 100 years. Now, for the first time in many, many generations, we get to marvel at the Bald Eagle, Osprey and Peregrine Falcon. No Earth Day could ever be better than that.
Make no mistake, there will be battles, conflicts and challenges ahead when it comes to our Meadowlands, and we will all need to join together to make sure we have a healthy Meadowlands for future generations to come. But on this Earth Day let’s get outside and enjoy the Meadowlands and give some thanks to the many devoted people, especially the staff from the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority (NJSEA), that work hard ever day to make sure the Meadowlands continues to be the place that is close to all of our hearts forever.
I am still a very proud child of the Meadowlands and with everyone’s help I always will be. Thank you to everyone for caring for our Meadowlands
The Bergen County Audubon Society leads a special Easter Sunday nature walk on Sunday, April 17, from 10 a.m. to noon! They’ll be searching for spring migrants. Meet outside Meadowlands Environment Center.
As another Earth Day approaches, after so many years, I have to sit back and take a breath when I think about how long we have been coming together to celebrate our love for the planet.
Since 1970 great things have come from this very special grassroots day. The concept of clean air, clean water and saving endangered species evolved from regular everyday folks like us that chose to stand up for future generations and protect our environment.
This year may be even more special than most Earth Days in recent memory. We have come through great loss and tragedy in so many ways dealing with the wrath of Covid-19. And now with hopefully some light at the end of the tunnel we are waking up again, getting back to something that resembles normal and, with that cautious sigh of relief, there are many, many great Earth Day events scheduled in just about every community this year.
Our Earth Day themes for this year seem endless, from recycling plastic to discussions on green economies, from climate change to clean energy and saving the bees, organic farming and planting milkweed, just to name a few of the great number of environmental issues we need to bring attention to.
And yet however important all those issues are (and they are), unless we do one very simple thing all of those critical environmental challenges will never be won. And that one very important thing is so simple that many of us have sadly forgotten how to do it. It does not cost anything, no need to sign a petition or make a donation or even volunteer for anything. Yet unless we decide to do it and get our family friends and neighbors to do it, we will never really get a full understanding on why all those important issues we environmentalists preach about every day until you are sick of hearing us really even matter.
So what is the most important event that you can attend to help put an end to climate change, save endangered species and put us all on the road to a healthier, happier life for everyone on planet Earth? That single most important environmental practice is called, -are you ready? -GOING OUTSIDE!
I am often asked what the biggest threat to the environment really is. Habitat loss? Climate change? Pollution? Well, at least to me it’s none of the above. Sure, they are the major threats that need solutions and answers so that we can avoid environmental cataclysmic disaster. But how will we do that if we lose our basic connection with nature?
How can we expect to have the resolve of the people of our community and nation to do the right thing if they are not getting outside to actually see for themselves all the magnificence of the natural world we stand to lose? A world, by the way, just in case you forgot, that we need for our survival as well.
To witness the flight of a hummingbird or the migration of a Monarch butterfly is to grasp the concept of why we need to stand together to fight climate change. To watch a Bald Eagle hunting fish on the river or a Peregrine Falcon diving out of the sky is when you will feel the pounding in your heart that tells you saving threatened and endangered species is the right thing to do. Watching a Robin nest in the backyard, a Blue jay hide an acorn and bumble bee pollinating a flower will remind you that everything and all of us are connected to the natural world and that the only way to fully understand that and feel it in your soul is to get outside and witness all the wonders for yourself.
So when you visit your local Earth Day events, stop and look around, talk a walk, a stroll or even a hike into nature and take it in and connect with it all. Then grab your kids by the hand, call a friend and a neighbor, and ask them to join you outside. Only together will we remember for sure what we need to do and how we all need to come together to protect our environment for generations to come, just like we did at the very first Earth Day a long time ago.
Join the Bergen County Audubon Society and the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority for Native Plant Day on Sunday, May 15! The event runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and features walks through DeKorte Park spotlighting native plants and explaining why they are critical to the environment.
Contact: Don at greatauk4@gmail.com or 201-230-4983.
The NJSEA extends a great thank you to the Bergen County Audubon Society for its donation on Thursday (3/31) of 30 Tree Swallow boxes to the Authority to place in the impoundments and marshes of the Meadowlands. The Tree Swallow, per its name, needs hallowed out trees to nest in. As the tree population has diminished in the area, the nesting boxes make perfect homes for the fabulous, iridescent blue species that come to the region each spring. Above is Drew McQuade of the NJSEA’s Meadowlands Research and Restoration Institute. Drew will help install the nest boxes.
