Nature Explorations and Stargazing Offered This Weekend At Rush Ranch

invites all to come to their monthly Get the Rush event this
Saturday. This free event, located at the Suisun Marsh, has been providing great opportunities for families to explore nature and learn its history for the last two years.

“It’s the third Saturday of every month and its entirely volunteer run, so there’s some really dedicated volunteers,” said Natalie Dumont, Volunteer and Outreach Coordinator.

Visitors are welcome to start their day with a nature walk at 9 a.m. around Suisun Marsh. Immediately following the walk, find out about life for the Native American tribes that once lived in the area. Additionally, the ranch’s Blacksmith Shop demonstrates traditional blacksmithing tools and equipment. Finally, attendees have an opportunity to ride horse-drawn wagon. The wagons are wheelchair accessible and use solar powered lifts.

"Rush Ranch is off the grid, so everything is run by our windmill and solar panels,” Dumont said.

Volunteers for the wagon rides are provided by Access Adventure, an organization that specializes in providing outdoor recreation for disabled and underserved members of the community.

"Their tag line is ‘Challenge the limits of disability,’ and their mission is around helping those who are limited in their mobility be able to still experience movement and horses through horse drawn wagon rides and, in some cases, in riding on the horses.”

The blacksmith shop and Native American display is sponsored by the Rush
Ranch Educational Council, who has provided materials and services to the ranch now for years.

“The Rush Ranch Educational Council has been really dedicated to Rush
Ranch since the early 1990s,” Dumont said. “They’ve been putting on fieldtrips for third and fourth graders to learn about the local Native Americans.”

Get the Rush will be held from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., but that doesn’t mean
all the fun over at that time. Visitors are also encouraged to “Unleash Your
Inner Astronomer” and join Rush Ranch for stargazing at 7:30 p.m.

“That’s unusual that they coincide in one day, so it's nice” Dumont said.

Stargazing begins at 7:30 p.m. and includes a short presentation at the ranch’s Nature Center with knowledgeable astronomy enthusiasts, according to the website. Children are welcome but must be supervised.  

Visitors arriving for stargazing are encouraged to bring personal scopes and binoculars, though telescopes will be available. Flashlights can be usedif covered with red cellophane.  Latecomers are asked to turn off their headlights upon entering the parking lot.

For more information about Get the Rush and other Rush Ranch events,
visit their website.