"Spring Thing" 2024

• Time & Date: March 23 from 10 AM – 5 PM
• Location: Woodland Regional Park Preserve | 20179 County Road 102 Woodland, CA 
• Cost: Free

Tuleyome and the City of Woodland invite the community at large to attend a nature-centered celebration on Saturday, March 23 from 10 AM – 5 PM at the Woodland Regional Park Preserve (WRPP). For the past two years, Tuleyome held this annual event as a time to celebrate its programs and access to public lands. In its third year, the City has partnered to further support this objective. Visitors will have the opportunity to experience the beauty of this nature park and learn about the numerous projects that the City and its partners have taken on to prepare it for public access while enhancing and protecting the wetland, plants, and wildlife. 

The morning will kick off with a Welcome Address from City Manager Ken Hiatt and Mayor Tania Garcia-Cadena. For the remainder of the day, this free, family-friendly community event will feature guided walks through the preserve, kids adventures from Nature’s Theater, nature sketching activities with local author Robin Carlson, food from the Hefty Gyros food truck, and more. A dedicated “kids zone” will include games from the City of Woodland’s Rec2Go program, face painting, crafts, and fort building. Live music from various artists will be provided throughout the day as well as an ongoing campfire with s’mores and campfire activities.

Everyone is invited to bring their favorite snacks, a water bottle, a picnic, and a chair and come enjoy the start of spring in our beautiful preserve located just on the edge of town. This unique urban preserve is a special gem in our community and the Tuleyome Spring Thing is a wonderful opportunity to enjoy all it has to offer.

“I am a volunteer board member for Tuleyome because they are the most effective preservation organization in our region. I want my kids and their kids to have access to wild places, and Tuleyome makes that happen,” said Lyndsay Dawkins, Founder and CEO of Nature’s Theater. “My organization, Nature’s Theater, has reached thousands of kids with eco-themed theater over the years in partnership with Tuleyome. Kids care about what they're connected to, so these experiences are golden. The Spring Thing will offer a peak into an urban jewel, the soon-to-open Woodland Regional Park Preserve.  Its very existence was made possible because of Tuleyome's vision and collaboration with the City of Woodland and others.” 

“We look forward to welcoming the community to experience our City’s unique nature park at this event,” said Mayor Tania Garcia-Cadena. “For several years, the City and project partners, including Tuleyome, have raised over $1.5 million in grant funds, facilitating the roll-out of critical construction and enhancement projects. In addition, a Conservation Easement was recorded for the Park last year, securing the site as a home to its native plant and wildlife populations for years to come. The ‘Spring Thing’ will be a wonderful opportunity for our community to interact with City staff and project partners and learn more about the Park through a variety of walking tours and family-friendly activities.” 

For more information and a schedule of events, please check out Tuleyome’s website here.

About Tuleyome, the City of Woodland, and Woodland Regional Park Preserve

Tuleyome is a 501(c)(3) volunteer advocacy-oriented nonprofit conservation organization, founded in 2002 and based in Woodland. Tuleyome preserves and restores wild habitat, builds and repairs trails, educates the public about local conservation and environmental issues, engages young people through its youth program, demonstrates a good “land stewardship” ethic by maintaining the easements and properties they own under the scope of their land trust component, and runs campaigns that have a long-lasting positive effect on the region. Tuleyome has been a long-time and key project partner towards the advancement of projects at the WRPP. 

In April 2023, the City of Woodland accomplished a long-term City Council goal to record the Woodland Regional Park Preserve Conservation Easement. In parallel to this milestone, the City and its project partners have tackled numerous projects over the past several years in preparation for the Park’s opening to the public, planned for late 2024. The Woodland Regional Park Preserve's unique landscape will bring the enjoyment of the outdoors to our community and will advance our understanding of the many ways the environment shapes our agriculture, our communities, and our personal and planetary health.