Explore DeLaveaga Park and learn how to identify local salamander species and use iNaturalist to support your discoveries. We’ll hike the park’s scenic trails, carefully flip logs and rocks to search for wildlife, and practice safe field techniques while keeping track of the species we find. Perfect for curious naturalists of all ages.
Nature Club
Nature Club takes young explorers (6th-8th grade) into local habitats to learn about the amazing living world around us while making discoveries along the way.
Club Members join us for seasonal Saturday meetups where we venture into local habitats—from rocky tidepools to forested trails—to uncover the biodiversity in our own backyard.
Guided by Education Specialist Chris Soriano, club members are encouraged to learn new skills while building meaningful connections with nature, themselves, and their community.
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For a one-time payment of $100, explorers can join four adventures throughout the season.
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Upcoming Adventures
The tide pools at The Hook are some of the best in Santa Cruz, and they are teeming with living creatures. Explore tide pools and nearby coastal prairie habitat and learn about the amazing plants and animals that live there.
Learn to recognize the wide variety of local wildflowers of Moore Creek Preserve while discovering how grazing animals help maintain healthy landscapes. We’ll also discuss how grazing compares to prescribed fire and why one method may offer greater ecological benefits.
Limited Scholarships Available
We believe that every young explorer should have the opportunity to connect with nature. To help make The Nature Club accessible, we offer a limited number of scholarships for families who may need financial assistance. If cost is a barrier, we encourage you to apply!
Our goal is to ensure that curiosity and passion for the natural world are never out of reach.
Inclusivity and Accessibility
Most meetups are wheelchair accessible, but not The Hook due to the uneven nature of the tide pools, or Moore Creek due to the trails (this would warrant a discounted registration fee of $25 per session). DeLaveaga Park and the Pogonip Spring Trail to the limekilns have a mix of accessible areas and steep trails. Neary Lagoon/wharf/Sanctuary Exploration Center locations are accessible with one steep hill at the pollinator garden; this can be solved by changing the meeting location to the Blackburn Street entrance instead of the California/Bay entrance.
Please reach out to education@santacruzmuseum.org if you have questions about specific locations.