Rick Lee's Nature Awareness School est.1992

08/31/2026

WOW!! Registration has been filling up so fast... and now we only have room for 2 more camper kids!!
Please, register now!
The Last day to register is Saturday, September 12.
Thank you!🍁🌿

08/29/2026

🍂AFTER-SCHOOL NATURE CAMP🍂
Hey Folks,
It's that time again to register your child/ children for our 8-weeks of continual Nature Connecting Fun & Adventure, at our Fall 2026 After-School NATURE CAMP classes!🎃
LOCATION: At the beautiful Amazon Beach Park and Lake Lodge in Mohegan Lake, NY
WHEN: September 25 thru November 11
DAY & TIMES: Fridays 3:30 to 5:30
COST: $30.00 a child for each 2 hour class.
(sibling discounts are available)
REGISTRATION & INFORMATION:
Please text / call me at 914-806-7910 or PRIVATE MESSAGE me here. 🍁
Thank you!!🌿
***The last day to register is September 12***

07/28/2026

06/12/2026

Well, Hello There!!

06/01/2026

Lookie who just had a happy meal!
I sighted this beautiful Eastern Garter Snake out on the Nabby Nature Trail, obviously after chowing down on a Green frog, or Juvenile Bull frog, maybe a Wood Frog, or a Pickeral frog or possibly a Toad. They don't fancy furry mice etc... unless they are pinkies (new borns)
Eastern Garter Snakes are the most common snake here in the East. They eat frogs, toads , salamanders, certian insects and good news for the home gardner... they love eating slugs!! Occasionally they will take to water, like ponds or lakes and streams... as they are very good swimmers and will chow down on small fish, tadpoles...
In the East here. the garter snake is usually the fist snake we see in early Spring and the last we see in the Fall. The reason being they adapt very well to colder temperature then the other local snake species.
A harmless snake which "may" give you a little bite if scared, but worse is the very smelly liquid they expell from a gland inside their vent which acts as a deterent for keeping a predator away. A scared or threatened Garter Snake will whip its tail around and over its whole body to get the stinky fluid to cover itself.. (If it stinks who wants to eat it??)
So be gentle, slow and aware when you are handling a wild Garter Snake, because you may not get bit, but you may get hit with that liquid stink bomb! If you have a good encounter you will not get bit nor sprayed.😊
Garter snakes are not the only snake in North America who have this smelly defense tactic. King Snakes and Northern Water Snakes do to name a couple, but most in NA do not have this .

05/26/2026

🌲This Fridays after-school NATURE CAMP was spent around our forest campfire with our cast iron Dutch Oven and coconut oil, Popping Corn and chowing down! There was also plenty of forest and stream exploration, discovery and free-play. Then it was back to the Nabby Nature Center for some "let's hang out with some critters time!"
Thank you to my excellent assistants, Connie & Sophia for helping make it happen safely and with a lot of fun!!

05/20/2026

Last Friday's After-School NATURE CAMP class was gifted by a great sighting of a juvenile Barred Owl while out on the Nature Trail... yet before that, we all gathered inside the Nabby Nature Center to greet & meet a few of our beautiful rescued/ adopted Snakes, (Ball Pythons, California King Snake & our shy Nigerian Sand Boa) because It was SNAKE DAY!!!🐍🌿
( much thanks to my assistant Connie for all these pics!)

05/17/2026

At this past Fridays after-school NATURE CAMP class while we were all out on the Nature trail and exploring the woods,... we were gifted with a wonderful sighting of a Barred Owl fledgling!! This young Barred Owl perched itself just a few feet above us! We were all so awwwed and so excited to see this calm & fearless beauty!
The pics speak for themselves!
We thank my young intern Brendan for his keen eyes for seeing it first!🦉🌿
** photos by my assistant Connie and myself**

05/04/2026

☀️ Here are a few pics from the past couple of weeks during our After-School NATURE CAMP Classes. We had BIRD DAY with a special emphasis of BACKYARD CHICKENS and the awesome world of SNAPPING TURTLES with special help from our Snapping Turtle Ambassador, Bojangles!
There was plenty of fun time well spent out in our beautiful outdoor classroom on the lake, for lake exploration, games and much free-play!🐢🌿🐓
Thank you to my great assistants Connie & Sophia, and to my young intern Brendan, and to the Amazon Beach Park Association!!🌿

04/24/2026

PART HELP WANTED 🌿 Light trail work...
Great for a local High Schooler,, but any age works for us as long as you can do the work.!