Friends of Chester Woods
Friends’ long-term interventions to manage invasive buckthorn
From Friends of Chester Woods Much of Chester Woods is infiltrated with buckthorn and other woody invasive specis, especially in the undeveloped areas of our park. We have forested areas where buckthorn is almost the exclusive species on the forest floor. The Friends of Chester ...
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Friends are committed to addressing invasive plants
From Friends of Chester Woods There is a never-ending battle going on in Olmsted County Parks to limit the spread of invasive plants. This effort is under the direction of park staff with the help of the Friends of Chester Woods (FOCW) and other volunteers. ...
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Grantees begin restoring habitat with in-person events
Grantees have begun restoring habitat at parks across Minnesota. Under P&TC's habitat restoration grant program, friends groups are planting trees, removing invasive species, and helping to establish native woodland species. See the albums below for a sneak peak into some of these projects. Friends of ...
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P&TC issues 9 grants to friends groups for habitat restoration projects
Nine volunteer-led friends groups will implement habitat restoration projects at Minnesota parks and trails this year with funds issued by Parks & Trails Council of Minnesota (P&TC). The projects include planting and protecting trees, removing invasive species, and collecting native plant seeds. The projects will ...
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Meet the Friends of Chester Woods Park
This is a park that wholeheartedly welcomes volunteers. “There’s a whole culture of embracing volunteers within all Olmstead County Parks,” says Joel Dunette, one of the founding members of the friends group. In fact, the number of hours that volunteers contribute toward the park is equal to the staff hours.
Exploring the Nature Play Areas at Chester Woods Park
From Friends of Chester Woods After participating in P&TC's webinar about nature play areas, Ernie with the Friends of Chester Woods decided to put together a video that highlights the nature play areas at Chester Woods Park. Tune in to the video below to learn ...
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Connecting with the Community through the Radio
Friends of Chester Woods found an interesting way to connect with their broader community—through the radio. We'll take a journey through the behind-the-scenes process that brought them on air. KRPR 89.9 is a Classic Rock radio station in Rochester, and every two weeks they host ...
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Friends groups creatively connect people to their parks through activities
Friends groups thrive on bringing people together within the park or trail they support. They organize educational events, volunteer work days, and social gatherings. Now, within the context of social distancing guidelines, friends groups are getting creative in how they are connecting their community with ...
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Goats are Taking Over Chester Woods Park
From Friends of Chester Woods What’s more fun than watching goats at play? How about watching goats accomplishing much needed work for the parks while they do their goat ‘thing’? Faced with overwhelming amounts of invasive buckthorn, honeysuckle and overgrown brush in the park, Friends ...
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Spring 2020 News at Chester Woods Park
From Friends of Chester Woods In This Issue Goats for invasive species Bridge decking Volunteer hours in 2019 25th Anniversary of park Photo by: Friends of Chester Woods Click to view full story Go to friends' main page
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Eagle Scout Creates Two Canoe-In Campsites at Chester Woods Park
From Friends of Chester Woods It's no longer necessary to travel all the way to the Boundary Waters to experience primitive camping with your canoe. On a Saturday in September 2019, Preston Satzke along with family and friends installed two canoe in campsites on the ...
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Creative Income for Chester Woods Park
From Friends of Chester Woods When the Friends of Chester Woods board was considering possible projects for generating income and enhancing the park, a Friends volunteer, Georgia Northdurf, came up with the idea of having private watercraft racks available for rent. We immediately realized that ...
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Fat bikes and groomed winter trails at Chester Woods Park
From Friends of Chester Woods Are you a fan of fat biking on winter trails? New this winter at Chester Woods Park, friends members were able to pack about 11 miles of multi-use winter trails! Of those, about 8 miles have also been specially groomed ...
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Friends of Chester Woods finds a unique way to raise money
From Friends of Chester Woods While the Friends of Chester Woods has a strong membership base, we struggle to grow that membership. The main reason we believe people are reluctant to become members is because park visitors must pay to enter the park. Because of this ...
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