The Flagstaff Festival of Science is a free annual 10-day event wholly designed to promote awareness and enthusiasm for science in and about northern Arizona and beyond and is fondly known as the Best 10 Days of the Year. Established in 1990, it is the longest, continuously running, entirely free science festival in the world.
This year, Flagstaff National Monuments is happy to host several events as part of the festival. The schedule of events is shown below. If you have some free time, come by, and say “hi”.
Saturday, September 23
Science Day at Walnut Canyon National Monument
9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. | Walnut Canyon National Monument Visitor Center
Join National Park Service archeologists and wildlife biologists on National Public Lands Day (free entrance) to learn about Walnut Canyon’s human and natural history. Learn about prehistoric hunting by visiting a flint knapping demonstration, trying your hand at throwing at an atlatl, and checking out real mammoth dung.
Cliffs Ranger Station Open House
9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. | Walnut Canyon National Monument Visitor Center
Visit the newly furnished Cliffs Ranger Station on National Public Lands Day (free entrance). Cliffs Ranger Station is one of Arizona’s oldest surviving log structures and Walnut Canyon National Monument’s original headquarters. NPS preservation staff will share the history of the ranger station and how the NPS preserves historic structures. Usually closed to the public, for this event the ranger station is accessed by an easy self-guided 1.5-mile roundtrip hike from the Walnut Canyon National Monument Visitors Center.
Science in the Park
10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. | Wheeler Park
Come by Wheeler Park to see our archeologists and biologists educating youth on our resources. Bring your kids! It is usually a fun-filled day at the Park with lots to do and see.
Tuesday, September 26
Learn about bats and be an archeologist at Bushmaster Park
3:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. | Bushmaster Park – Community Ramada 3150 N. Alta Vista Dr.
Join archeologists and wildlife biologists from Flagstaff Area National Monuments for a fun-filled afternoon learning about science in the NPS. Be an archeologist by screening for artifacts, identifying what you find, and drawing artifacts. Visit a wildlife biologist to learn about bats in northern Arizona.
For more information on the Flagstaff Festival of Science, visit https://scifest.org/. We hope you’ll join us!
