Stay in Touch with MDC news, newsletters, events, and manage your subscription
Xplor reconnects kids to nature and helps them find adventure in their own backyard. Free to residents of Missouri.
A monthly publication about conservation in Missouri. Started in 1938, the printed magazine is free to residents of Missouri.
KIRKWOOD, Mo. — The average price for a gallon of gas was $1.14; Terminator 2: Judgement Day dominated the box office; George H. W. Bush was president of the United States, and Boyz II Men was just breaking into the music scene. The year was 1991, and something great was happening for St. Louis-area nature lovers too—the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) opened Powder Valley Conservation Nature Center.
MDC invites the public to help celebrate Powder Valley’s 30-year anniversary at an Anniversary Autumn Festival Friday, Oct. 29 from 6-9 p.m. This special event is free and open to the whole family. Enjoy a beautiful fall evening with plenty of autumn-inspired outdoor activities.
Visitors will be able to go for a hayride and enjoy a bonfire complete with s’mores. There will also be fall themed crafts, games, and other fun activities to celebrate Powder Valley’s anniversary. MDC will even provide free hotdogs, popcorns, s’mores, and drinks.
Crafty kids can decorate wooden leaves with their own choice of fall colors, create wooly bear caterpillars out of pipe cleaners, and magic leaves in the shape of a bowl.
Guests can also participate in fun and educational games, like deer antler ring toss and learn about duck migrations with the duck pull game. Young explorers can investigate an inflatable cave. Lots of other nature info like how to identify common mammal tracks in the fall will be on hand at the main front booth too.
Help Powder Valley Conservation Nature Center celebrate 30 years in style. Individual activities at the Anniversary Autumn Festival are first-come, first-serve, but online preregistration to attend is required at https://short.mdc.mo.gov/ZFN.
Visitors should note that most activities will take place outside and dress for the weather. The nature center building will be open, but capacity will be limited based on current COVID-19 guidance. MDC asks all participants to observe current local social distancing and masking guidelines. Bringing and wearing face coverings is encouraged when appropriate.
Powder Valley Conservation Nature Center is located at 11715 Cragwold Road in Kirkwood, near the intersection of I-44 and I-270.
