Birthday party planned

By Sun Advocate

A birthday party to celebrate 100 years of the Manti-La Sal National Forest and its ties to local communities is happening July 24 at the Great Basin Environmental Education Center in Ephraim Canyon.
Together, with Snow College and the Shrub Science Laboratory, the U.S. Forest Service has planned a day filled with fun, learning and entertainment. The party runs from 2 to 8 p.m.
Guided tours of restored facilities and guided walks and hikes are available throughout the day. There will be cowboy poetry, music from local bands, activities for kids as well as free hotdogs and hamburgers. The evening will be topped off with professor, author, and historian Dr. Edward Geary and the Folk Music of Lincoln Highway, a quartet of Utah musicians..
A unique partnership between Snow College, USDA Forest Service and the City of Ephraim was formally launched in 1992. At this time, the Great Basin Research Station was rededicated as the Great Basin Environmental Education Center and management of the center was passed to Snow College.
After leading the nation for 60 years in watershed and rangeland research, researchers from the Great Basin Research Station needed more modern facilities.
The center’s purpose is to support educational institutions, natural resource agencies, and professional societies as they look for ways to preserve and enhance the environment.It continues to support research on the Wasatch Plateau by providing a home to scientists from universities in the United States and other countries while they conduct studies.
The July 24 Manti-La Sal National Forest birthday celebration at the Great Basin Environmental Education Center is offering the opportunity to take guided nature tours by noted scientists.
Half hour guided nature walks will take participants around the grounds of the center to different forest types, beaver ponds, and species test plots. Plants and animals will be identified as they are encountered or heard.
Professor Clyde Blauer of Snow College; Sherel Goodrich, Forest Ecologist; and Merril Webb, expert birder, will conduct these tours. These tours begin at 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. and are easy walking.