Festival Time is coming!!

It’s that time again! Thanksgiving Festival Time! October 8-11 is the 36^th annual Ball’s Falls Thanksgiving Festival. Each day the festival will run next weekend from 10am to 5pm and the admission is $6 a person, children under 14 are free when accompanied by an adult and seniors are $4 on Friday October 8. Or if you think you may come for a few days a weekend long pass is $14. 

There is plenty for all to do and see. High quality, handcrafted merchandise booths will be set up for you to enjoy. Also an assortment of food and beverages, including a gourmet food tent will be ready to tempt your tastebuds. There will be live entertainment as well as children’s activities daily. Don’t forget the heritage buildings are open during the festival and demonstrations will be set up.  There is a live raptor display that includes owls.   And that reminds me of something cool after you see the live birds you can check out the Northern Owls exhibit up at my favourite building which will be open the whole weekend, the Centre for Conservation! Let me tell you they have a great weekend planned up there. There will be wine tastings in the main room and the museum exhibits will be open for visitors. The “Northern Owls” exhibit will be in full swing at this time with many special events happening over the weekend, Wildlife artist Mark Ricker will be demonstrating his owl paintings on feathers and displaying his amazing work, there are owl children’s crafts and activities, Warner Brothers Canada Legend of the Guardians: the Owls of Ga’hoole giveaways and a prize drawing of an Owl magazine gift bag! So be sure to stop by Ball’s Falls on festival weekend and have a memorable day! Maybe I will see you there! For more information please call 905-562-5235 ext. 26.

It's Northern Owls Opening Day!!

The Northern Owls have arrived! Join us today, Saturday September 18th, for a special opening day to celebrate this unique exhibit. The main event will happen from 1-3 pm on Saturday, but the exhibit is open from 9am to 4pm. There will be a guided nature walk starting at 12 noon which will show you the local habitat of these owls. Then at 1pm come inside to talk to Annick Gionet a zoologist specializing in owls. Also check out great owl art by local artist Mark Ricker and join in a staff lead owl craft! There will be super cute cupcakes throughout the day, compliments of Sweetcakes Cupcakery and giveaways for all who attend, compliments of Owl magazine and Warner Brothers Canada! Two amazing prize drawings will be happening at 1pm and 3pm so be sure to get your ballot on the way in! Today will surely be a HOOT hope to see you there!

Daredevil Ducks!!

Even though I am a Bluebird I appreciate the over 350 species of birds that fly around at Ball’s Falls! We have a family of ducks living here that I see often and I wanted to share something remarkable about them with you. These are Mallard ducks and the mother often takes her babies out swimming, you should come soon to try to spot them as they will soon grow big and have adventures of their own.

Now take a look at these pictures….notice they are a family of daredevils! The red circles in the big picture show you where the ducks are! The ducklings were just feet from the edge of the waterfall! But the mother was carefully watching her babies and training them to swim hard and fast.

So come by Ball’s Falls when you have a chance and maybe you can spot this family of daredevil ducks!

Nesting Box Draw!!

Hello there, I just had share with you the latest news! You have a chance to win my nesting box! Well, not mine exactly but a new, real bluebird nesting box that the NPCA is giving away at Ball’s Falls. If you want a chance to win it all you have to do is print out the Bluebird Box Ballot from my blog page (that you are on right now!), fill it out and drop it off at the Centre for Conservation at Ball’s Falls. You can will need to put your ballot into the actual box you can win. But you can only get the Ballot here on the blog, so don’t forget to print it out! Once at Ball’s Falls why not spend the day with friends or family but if you are in a hurry don’t worry you can simply drop off the ballot for free.  Just let the person at the front desk know you are here to drop off your ballot and they can let you out of the gate when you are done.  Come on out and get that ballot in so next year you may have your own Boomer in your backyard! The draw will be held on October 21^st and we will post the winner right here so be sure to check back! Good Luck! 

Ball's Falls Conservation Area Trail

Ball's Falls Conservation Area Trail

Reflections from Muskoka: MTM - Balls Falls in Niagara

Reflections from Muskoka: MTM - Balls Falls in Niagara

How the Settlers Lived....

I was flying by the historic buildings on site yesterday and thought I should tell you about them a bit more! These buildings are really ancient; many were actually built by the Ball family. Some were moved or reproduced to look like those from the past. The original Ball home is here! This is a large house that doubled for the family as a store and office. The Grist Mill was the first industry the Ball family built and the mill ground grain for flour. The original grinding stones are still inside and when you visit you can take a tour and see how the flour was made.

A carriage house displays transportation and agricultural vehicles, but there are more of these on display in the barn. Sometimes you can hear the church bell ringing when a wedding or church services is happening. On the site there is a small log cabin which is similar to the first home for the Ball family The blacksmith shop still operates with blacksmithing workshops and demonstrations held some Sundays, just call 905-562-5235 to sign up for the workshops. There is another large barn which now doubles as a place to hold events, especially those weddings, they always end with a great feast here. An old white house was originally a house for one of the many employees that worked for the Ball Family. It is now where a lot of children play in the Adventure Daycamp. Finally there are a few small buildings such as the fruit drying shed, lime kiln and bake oven which were necessary to the daily lives over a hundred years ago. All of these buildings can be toured with a guide who can share with you the exciting stories from the past, but if you like you can also just look through screen doors into most of them. Times for the tours are on the hour from 10am to 3pm. So why not come out and see these unique, old buildings and meet some of the engaging staff ready to chat about the past.

A Day of Adventure!

Calling all kids and parents! Have you heard of Ball’s Falls Conservation Area’s Adventure Camp? Well I flew down to check it out this week and let me tell you it is amazing! There is tons of stuff to do everyday! The camp counselors have fun activities planned and they do a great job engaging the children. Some of the exciting things they do are hikes, water games, scavenger hunts, crafts, experiments and games.

Each week they have a theme and do unique activities, such as Time travelers, Mad Eco-Scientists, Woodland Wonders, and Water Wizards.

If you are interested and are or have a child between the ages of 6-10, just call 905-562-5235, ext. 26 to register. Registration can be done for one day, a whole week, or more! The regular hours of camp are 9-3 with extended hours available 8-4:30. The cost is $30 a day or $100 for a 5 day session, extended hours are $5 additional per day. If more than one child comes a family discount applies! So join us for some summer fun at our Adventure Daycamp, you might even see me flying around!

You Wanted to Know!

Hello everyone, Boomer here, over the past few days flying around Ball's Falls Conservation Area I have observed people with some questions. So I thought I could help out by giving you some basics about Ball's Falls. Ball's Falls is located at 3292 Sixth Avenue in Jordan, Ontario the postal code is L0R 1S0, for those human GPS units, although I do not need that since I have a bird GPS built in! The phone number is 905-562-5235; hope you have an easier time dialing a phone than I do! The website link is here, I have done the hard work pecking it in http://www.npca.ca/conservation-areas/balls-falls/default.htm and the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority's is http://www.npca.ca/ they are the wonderful team who manage Ball's Falls so you can check out that site for information on the many other conservation areas in the Niagara Peninsula. I like to fly to them all every year on my summer vacation.

Ball's Falls is open year round and the hours are 9am to 8pm until Labour Day when it closes at 4 p.m. At the top of the hill is the Centre for Conservation. Outside this beautiful building are wonderful nesting boxes for bluebirds like me. This is also the place where you park and start your visit. Inside is the admission desk and gift shop where you can pick up some extra supplies if you need. A good starting place for your visit is the exhibit gallery which about Balls' Falls with interactive exhibits. There is also a spot for rotating exhibits that changes every few months, here you can learn about different things. From the Centre for Conservation you can see the Heritage Buildings or have a tour on the hour from 9am to 3pm. If you arrive before a tour begins you can enjoy the display barn and look in the doors of some of the buildings. The tour guides are truly fantastic and have a lot of information about the Ball family and what life was like back then. These tours are included in the price of admission! After all of that you could hike on one of the many trails that surround the conservation area. Oh and don't forget to check out both waterfalls! There is a smaller one up a short trail and a bigger one below near the Heritage Buildings. The creek in between is a perfect place for a quick birdbath….if you're a bird that is! So you can see there are many things to do here at Ball's Falls and with picnic tables and washrooms available you could easily spend the day here with friends or family.

Remember to check for upcoming events through me, on the website http://www.npca.ca/events.htm or call 905-562-5235 since there are special events going on which you would not want to miss!

Count Your Pennies at Ball’s Falls!

Hello everybody, looking for something to do this weekend? I just took a little trip through the new "Count Your Pennies" exhibit at the Centre for Conservation. Wow it is amazing! Did you know how much shopping has changed from the 1900s? The exhibit shows you what it was like to do your grocery shopping in the 1900s, 1930s, and 1950s.

1. Shop in the 1900s 2. Shop in the 1930s 3. Shop in the 1950s

There are examples of what you would find in the stores and what prices you would pay. Also a really neat feature is the audio centre at each time period, where you can listen to what a typical grocery store would sound like! In each time there are examples of what the money looked like as well.

1. 1900s Money 2. 1930s Money 3. 1950s Money

There is a checkout centre where you can scan your own groceries; there is one for the kiddies too with plenty of small food for them to play with.

1. Kids grocery Area 2. Kids Check Out

Along with this interesting exhibit are plenty of activities to keep the kids busy, like puzzles, colouring, games, and crafts.

1. Activity Area 2. Coin Rubbing Area 3. Puzzle Area

Don't forget to get your scavenger hunt forms as you come in, there is a prize for returning it complete! I almost forgot a real exciting thing! The Raffle! When you come in you can pick up a raffle ticket to fill out and you could win a really cool prize pack. So why not come and "check out" the exhibit while it is here. I know you will enjoy it! http://www.npca.ca/events.htm

A Little About Me, Boomer, and my fellow Bluebirds!

Hello everybody! Welcome to my blog, my name is Boomer the Bluebird and I live at Ball’s Falls Conservation Area http://npca.ca/conservation-areas/balls-falls/default.htm. I am the unofficial mascot for Ball’s Falls and I will be letting you in on all the fun and exciting things to do and see there this summer! Today I am going to tell you a bit about myself and I hope you follow me in my adventures; I sure am excited to show you! That’s me below on the left, and that’s one of my real bluebird buddies on the right. Since I have superior typing skills I will be writing to you and using them to give you a bird’s eye view throughout the conservation area.


1.Boomer the bluebird frolicking at Ball’s Falls 2.Bluebird Outside the Centre for Conservation

I am an Eastern bluebird or Sialia sialis in Latin. You can recognize me and my family by our white bellies. The males of our species have a bright blue back and a reddish brown throat and breast while the females have a lighter blue and grey back and a brown throat and breast with a grey crown. Bluebirds are found in forest edges and open country east of the Rockies from Southern Canada to the Gulf of the United States.
Most of my diet is insects; and I know how they bother humans so I do my part to keep them in check. The rest of what I eat is fruits and berries, which is what I mostly eat in wintertime. I perch on a high fence or post and look for yummy insects to eat and when I see the right one I just swoop down and catch my snack.
When I do stay in one place for the winter I choose a heavy thicket or orchard which provides me with enough food and coverage for the winter. For the rest of the year I like to live in nests in tree holes and of course birdhouses made by our great human friends!
Unfortunately in the past few decades the number of bluebirds has been declining. There are a couple of reasons for that, first loss of habitat; trees and meadows that I need to live in are disappearing. Sometimes trees are cut down or cleared to make room for houses or dead trees are just removed (which I don’t mind living in). Another problem for bluebirds is the non-native bird species which have been introduced and have entered these areas, such as House Sparrows and European Starlings. They take over bluebird nests which leaves me homeless.
But not to worry, I have some wonderful human friends on my side who are helping me live here by improving my habitat and building me bluebird nesting boxes, like those around the Centre for Conservation at Ball’s Falls. With humans helping to make sure that other birds do not make a home in my bluebird box, bluebirds are slowly making a comeback! I hope everyone will help me and my family because we really love living here with all of our wonderful human neighbours. If you are interested in a great weekend activity, here is a link to show you how to make your own Bluebird nesting box http://www.oebs.ca/nestboxes/index.html or you can always find one at a store already made for you. Once you have a nesting box here is a link on how to attract us to it, http://www.ehow.com/how_5602838_attract-eastern-bluebirds-nesting-boxes.html. We certainly would appreciate the help!


1.Bluebird Nesting Box outside the Centre for Conservation 2.Boomer by his nesting box at Ball’s Falls

So that is a bit about me and remember I live at Ball’s Falls Conservation Area so come on by and see me sometime. Also stay tuned for exciting events that will be happening at Ball’s Falls this summer! Talk to you soon! http://www.npca.ca/conservation-areas/balls-falls/default.htm