Field Trips

COMMISSIONERS

Campfire ban in effect at Celebration Park, starting July 26

Campfire ban in effect at Marting Landing, starting August 5

Ready to Book?

Select A Field Trip:

To book in-person field trips please use the booking link provided above. You will be provided a calendar which displays available dates for you to choose from. Booking virtual field trips requires more detailed planning. Please email us so that we can best meet scheduling needs for you and your students. See you soon!

COVID-19 Information for Field Trips

In these challenging and ever changing times, we at Canyon County Parks want to continue to partner with teachers to provide quality, place-based education this fall. We will be reaching out to all teachers with a pre-scheduled field trip during the 2021-2022 school year to discuss program options. For schools who are able to visit in person, be assured that we are taking every precaution to ensure a safe environment for your on-site field trip. Our programs are designed to be conducted entirely outdoors, weather permitting. Surfaces that students may frequently be in contact with will be disinfected. We strongly encourage all visiting students and staff to follow the K-12 guidelines laid out by the CDC, found here, during the course of these field trips. If you are not able to visit in person this year, we have virtual field trip programs, featuring live teaching sessions with our Interpretive Specialists, as well as videos and other educational resources from our parks.

Digital Education Resources

In addition to our field trip programs, our staff have been working hard to develop virtual resources that teachers and parents can use to engage and educate students, at school or at home. Check out our new Digital Education Resources page for educational videos and fun learning activities focused on Celebration Park’s fascinating cultural and natural history!

During the 2021-2022 school year, we are offering both in-person and virtual versions of our field trip programs as options for students and teachers.

In-person programs at Celebration Park or Lake Lowell Park typically last about 4 hours, from 10 AM-2 PM.

Virtual programs are available on weekdays between the hours of 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. and run between 45 minutes and one hour. Please reach out to parksprograms@canyoncounty.id.gov to schedule a time. If these times do not work, let us know and we can try to accommodate you. For more details, please see the below section on 2021-2022 Field Trip Covid-19 information.

Types of Booking:
*Booking an in-person field trip?
You may use the ‘Ready to Book?’ link found at the top-right of this site to book in-person field trips for 2022 and 2023. To book virtual field trips please email us at parksprograms@canyoncounty.id.gov.

Changing an existing booking from in-person to Virtual?
If you have a field trip scheduled for the 2021-2022 school year, program staff will contact you with more information about our virtual programs, as well as to confirm or reschedule your field trip date and time as needed. These virtual programs will be designed to replicate the field trip experience as closely as possible. If you do not currently have a field trip scheduled for 2021-2022, feel free to reach out for more information about our virtual and in-person educational programs.

Please watch for more updates as the school year progresses!

photos from Celebration Park archaeology field trip

Our flagship field trip program, Stories in Stone is a place-based archaeological experience designed for 4th grade students who are studying Idaho History. Students engage with the rich cultural and natural history of southwest Idaho via guided tours and interpretive programs that allow students to immerse themselves in the landscape of Idaho’s first archaeological park—Celebration Park.

A highlight of this field trip is a hike through the Bonneville Flood melon gravel to explore the park’s unique petroglyph collection. Students learn about traditional Native American cultures during a Lifeways presentation in the Canyon Crossroads Museum and a hunting lesson on the atlatl range. Students also get a glimpse into the boom-and-bust of local mining towns and railroads during a scenic walk across the historic Guffey Railroad Bridge, built in 1897.

Directions to Celebration Park

Offered: Every weekday, March through June, and August through October

Timeframe: Approximately 10am to 2pm

Capacity: 120 students Recommended Grades: 4th and up

Student Workbooks Available: Yes

Teacher Resources:

Students in grades 5+ use the indoor and outdoor classrooms of Celebration Park as a lens for learning about wildfire and its relevance for their communities in southern Idaho.

Fire Science, a hands-on laboratory in the Crossroads Museum, introduces students to the physics and chemistry of fire.
Students explore the plants and animals of the sagebrush-steppe landscape and learn how they are adapted to wildfire in an ecology hike.
On the atlatl range, students hone their dart-throwing skills and learn about how prehistoric cultures used fire.
Finally, students learn about the history of wildland fires and their management our region.

Directions to Celebration Park

Offered: Every weekday, March through June, and August through October

Timeframe: Approximately 10am to 2pm

Capacity: 120 students

Recommended Grades: 5th and up

Student Workbooks Available: Yes

Teacher Resources: Wildland Fire Teacher Information

Aquatic and riparian habitats are the centerpiece of this 2nd and 3rd grade field trip at Lake Lowell Park in Nampa. Students learn about Lake Lowell and the types of fish that live in it. An active game of Feeding Frenzy teaches about habitat, and how water quality impacts both fish and an important prey source–aquatic macroinvertebrates. Students learn more about macroinvertebrate identification and water quality parameters during a hands-on scientific investigation activity. We explore the relationships among hunting and fishing and wildlife conservation against the backdrop of the Deer Flat National Wildlife Refuge at Lake Lowell. Students also practice their archery and atlatl skills to compare two tools that revolutionized the culture of hunting.

Offered: Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays in April and May

Timeframe: Approximately 10am to 2pm

Capacity: 100 students

Recommended Grades: 2nd – 3rd

Student Workbooks Available: Yes

Teacher Resources:

Photo from Lake Lowell field trip

Summer Stories/Archaeology Adventures is the summer version of our classic archaeology field trip program, geared towards younger students and summer weather. Students explore the petroglyphs, learn how Native Americans drilled holes using pump drills, and play a traditional Native American hoop-and-dart game using hand-tossed darts on the atlatl range. Students also get to make and take home their own artwork during an investigation of Native American ceramics!

Directions to Celebration Park

Offered: Weekdays in June, July and August

Timeframe: Approximately 10am to 1:30pm

Capacity: 40 students Recommended Grades: Kindergarten and up

Student Workbooks Available: No

Teacher Resources: Summer Programs Teacher Information

Winter Desert Ecology is once again being offered IN-PERSON as well as VIRTUALLY for the 2021-2022 school year!

IN-PERSON Winter Desert Ecology flyer 2021-2022

Virtual Winter Desert Ecology flyer 2021-2022

Brought to you by Canyon County Parks and the Bureau of Land Management’s Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area, the Winter Desert program is an immersive experience of the Celebration Park landscape in winter. The field trip is offered on Thursdays and Fridays in November, January and February, to groups that do not exceed 50 students total. The program combines themes of natural and cultural history and is structured so that students are indoors for 2 of our 45-minute programs and are outside during the 2 remaining 45-minute programs. Highlights include an indoor program about native birds of prey and a winter ecology hike that introduces students to the plants of Celebration Park and how they are adapted to winter in the high desert.

Directions to Celebration Park

Offered: Thursdays and Fridays in November, January and February

Timeframe: Approximately 10am to 2pm

Capacity: 50 students

Recommended Grades: 5th and up

Student Workbooks Available: No

Teacher Resources: Winter Desert Program Teacher Information

This program, available upon reservation to Boy and Girl Scout groups, partially fulfills the requirements of the Indian Lore Merit Badge. The full program lasts approximately two hours, and includes a Native American Lifeways presentation, instruction on the park’s atlatl range, and a petroglyph tour.

Directions to Celebration Park

Offered: Saturdays year-round

Timeframe: Approximately 10am to noon

Capacity: 40 students

Recommended Grades: 4th and up

Student Workbooks Available: No

Bus scholarships in the amount of $100 are available to help defray the cost of transporting students to and from Canyon County Parks field trip locations. Scholarships are intended for schools that would otherwise be unable to attend. We award scholarships each September via a random drawing. To enter your school for a chance to win, simply reserve your field trip for an upcoming school year using our online booking system and make sure to select “Yes” under “Interested in Bus Scholarship Drawing.” For more information on the bus scholarship program, see below. Bus Scholarship Flyer