 Trisa Tasca--Seasonal Ranger Hi there, my name is Trish Tasca. From a young age, I enjoyed being immersed in nature and took every opportunity to help with my family’s efforts to rehabilitate injured wildlife. Throughout high school, I worked as a camp counselor and volunteered often at the local youth camp. During my college years, I worked at DePauw University Nature Park maintaining trails, supervising the park, and assisting visitors during the evening hours. I studied Outdoor Recreation and Resource Management at Indiana University Bloomington and spent most of my time learning in a hands-on outdoor setting. While I was there, I gained over 400 hours of field experience. I am now working to finish up my Bachelor’s Degree by fulfilling my internship requirements working as a Seasonal Interpretive Ranger at Norris Dam State Park. I’m very excited to work with the wonderful people and exciting resources of the park, and I look forward to interacting with the public while doing interpretive programming. |
 Philip Hylen--Seasonal Ranger Hello, my name is Philip Otto Hylen. I am working for Norris Dam State Park this summer in Lake City, Tennessee. My true home is in Kingsport, Tennessee where I was born and raised for 22 years (my age). I attend university at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee. My major is Wildlife/Fisheries Science with a concentration in management. I am about to go into my last two semesters there and then I plan to apply for graduate school to get my masters in a biology related field. Before this job with Norris Dam State Park I worked the summers of 2009-10 at Bays Mountain City Park in Kingsport, Tennessee as a Naturalist Intern. I aim to work in or alongside the park system one day whether as a ranger or as a wildlife biologist of some sort. |
Here is this week’s Summer Program Schedule :
Wednesday, July 27th
3:00 pm Huntin’ through History-Meet up with Ranger Trish at the Lenoir Museum for a scavenger hunt. Afterwards, we’ll talk about some fun stories behind the items you will be asked to find!
4:00 pm Coal Miners Revolt-Meet up with Ranger Trish at the Lenoir Museum to learn about the Coal Creek War and about how local coal miners changed history.
6:30 pm Lovely Leaves-Join Trish at the Rice Grist Mill to create a beautiful, nature-inspired work of art using the leaves of trees. We’ll also learn to identify some trees just by looking at their leaves!
8:00 pm Sunset Walk-Meet up with Trish to go on a moderate, hour long hike to watch the sun set over the lake. Meet at the Tea Room.
Thursday, July 28th
1:00 pm Rice Gristmill Tour-Tour this 18th century gristmill with Lauren and find out how people got their food before grocery stores. Meet at the Rice Gristmill.
2:00 pm Critter Crime Scene-Meet Trish near the recreation center to do some detective work on animal bones. What can you tell just from looking at an animal’s skull?
3:00 pm Oh, Deer! Meet Trish near the recreation center to learn more about deer. Afterwards, we’ll
play a game and make take-home deer feeders.
Friday, July 29th
11:00 am Creatures of the Creek-Meet Phil at the Rice Gristmill to learn about life in Clear Creek and then try and catch some of the creatures dwelling in the stream.
1:00 pm What a Hoot!-Come and join Phil and one of the park owls at the recreation hall by the pool to learn about these feathery hunters of the night.
2:00 pm Scare Tactics-Meet Trish at the Rice Gristmill for a look at how animals scare away predators. We will play a fun game too!
3:00 pm Lenoir Museum Scavenger Hunt-Meet Phil at the Lenoir Museum to take a step back through time and learn the history of this area while searching for items from many different points in time.
4:00 pm Orient Yourself!-Meet Trish at the Threshing Barn for some fun with compasses. We’ll learn how to use a compass then test our skills with a neat activity.
5:00 pm Serpents at the Pool-Meet Phil and one of our native snakes at the recreation hall by the pool to learn about our reptilian friends and their importance to us.
7:00 pm Cruisin’ the Lake-Join Phil and Trish at the Marina to go on a 45 minute boat tour of Norris Lake, its history and the wildlife that inhabit the lake. Boat Tours are limited to 10 people and spots must be reserved by signing the list at the park office. Tickets are $6 for adults and $5 for children. People ages 16 and under will be provided with life jackets. Please arrive at the Marina at least 15 minutes early to purchase the ticket and check in.
8:30 pm Sundown at the Dam-Operating since 1936, Norris Dam holds hundreds of tales and stories about the history of the land and the park, tragedy, happiness, success and new beginnings.
Meet Trish on the east side of the dam to take a historical tour of this mighty structure.
Saturday, July 30th
2:00 pm Wildlife Mythbusters-Meet Phil at the Recreation Hall by the pool to become part of another episode of wildlife mythbusters! With all the myths of our local wildlife, there is sure to be something new to everyone.
3:00 pm Crosby Threshing Barn Scavenger Hunt-Meet Trish at the Crosby Threshing Barn
to see how many items you can find and learn about some neat historical artifacts.
4:00 pm Coyote Run-Coyotes span across our entire country and alter habitats in fascinating ways. Meet Phil by the recreation hall at the park pool to learn about these fascinating animals.
5:00 pm ID that Tree Hike-Meet Trish at the Tea Room to learn how to identify trees. We will go on an hour long hike and learn some cool stuff along the way.
6:00 pm Through the ages of Norris Dam-Come and join Phil at the east side of Norris Dam to go on a brief walk across the dam and learn about the many tales this amazing structure has to tell.
8:00 pm Native Crafts-Join Trish at the west campground water tower to make your own, Native American inspired dream journal. We’ll learn about why dreams were so important to native people and get creative!
9:00 pm Ghosts and Goo Campfire- Join Trish and Phil for some ghost stories and gooey marshmallows aroun the campfire. Meet at the west campground water tower!
Sunday,July 31st
11:00 am Rice Gristmill Tour-Join Trish at the gristmill for an educational tour of one of the park’s historical treasures.
1:00 pm Oh, Deer!-Join Trish at the Crosby Threshing Barn to learn all about our furry friend, the deer. Afterwards, we will make deer feeders that you can take home!
3:00 pm Trash to Treasure-Meet Trish at the Rice Gristmill to learn how you can turn your trash into treasure. We’ll make some very cool crafts for you to take home!
5:00 pm Crosby Threshing Barn Tour-Meet up with Trish at the Threshing Barn for a look back in time.
9:00 pm Oh, Starry Night! Sometimes the most fascinating things lay directly above us in the sky. Join Ranger Phil at the Park office to learn the constellations of our night sky and the mythology behind them.
Monday, August 1st
8:30 pm Going Batty-Meet Phil at the Park Office to learn about these flying mammals and view our own colony of little brown bats fly out for breakfast.
Thursday, August 4th
7:00 pm Native Crafts-Join Trish at the west campground water tower for some Native American inspired craft projects. You’ll be sure to take something home!
8:30 pm Firefly Fun-Come join Trish at the west campground water tower for some fun firefly facts and let’s see who can catch the most fire crickets!
Friday, August 5th
2:00 pm Slithering Snakes-Meet Phil and one of the park snakes at the recreation hall by the pool to learn about these reptiles and how they affect us.
3:00 pm Coal Miners of Tennessee-Meet up with Ranger Trish at the Lenoir Museum to learn about the Coal Creek War and about how local coal miners changed history.
4:00 pm Rice Grist ill Tour-Meet Phil at the Rice Gristmill to learn the history of this structure as well
as our land before the introduction of TVA.
5:00 pm Lovely Leaves-Join Trish at the Rice Grist Mill to create a beautiful, nature-inspired work of art using the leaves of trees. We’ll also learn to identify some trees just by looking at their leaves!
6:00 pm Orienteering-Come along with Trish to learn all about using a compass. We’ll test our skills with a fun treasure hunt afterwards! Meet at the Crosby Threshing Barn.
7:00 pm Cruisin’ the Lake-Join Phil and Trish at the Marina to go on a 45 minute boat tour of Norris Lake, its history and the wildlife that inhabit the lake. Boat Tours are limited to 10 people and spots must be reserved by signing the list at the park office. Tickets are $6 for adults and $5 for children. People ages 16 and under will be provided with life jackets. Please arrive at the Marina at least 15 minutes early to purchase the ticket and check in.
8:30 pm Owl Prowl-Meet Phil by the West Campground water tower to have a hoot of a good time hunting for our wild park owls. After a brief overview of our owls, we will take a short, 1 mile hike trying to get owls to call back to us.
Saturday, August 6th
2:00 pm On the Prowl-Join Phil at Picnic Shelter 1 on the east side of the park to learn about our native predator animals found in the park and how they benefit our world.
3:00 pm Trash to Treasure-Join Trish outside the recreation center to learn how to turn your trash into treasure. We’ll create some very cool crafts you can take home!
4:00 pm Awesome Owls-Join Phil at the recreation hall by the park pool to meet one of our park owls and learn about how they survive.
5:00 pm Dream Journals-Join Trish outside the recreation center to make your own, Native American inspired dream journal. We’ll learn about why dreams were so important to native people and get creative!
7:00 pm Through the ages of Norris Dam-Come and join Phil at the east side of Norris Dam to go on a brief walk across the dam and learn about the many ales this amazing structure has to tell.
8:00 pm Oh, Deer!-Meet Trish at the west campground water tower to learn all about our furry friend, the deer. Afterwards, we’ll play a fun game and make deer feeders!
9:00 pm Campfire Program-Join Trish and Phil to join in on some campfire fun. We’ll tell some ghost stories and bring some gooey marshmallows for roasting! Meet at the west campground water tower.
10:00 pm Pictures in the Sky-Join Phil at the park office to view some of the night constellations and learn the stories behind them.
Sunday, August 7
2:00 pm Creek Walk-Meet up with Trish at the Rice Gristmill to go on a hike up Clear Creek. We’ll learn about animals and plants that call the creek home.
4:00 pm Scare Tactics-Meet Trish at the Rice Gristmill for a look at how animals scare away predators. We will play a fun game too!
5:00 pm ID that Tree-Go on a hike with Trish to learn your trees. Meet at the Tea Room.
7:00 pm Evening Snakes-Meet at the park office to join Phil and one of the park snakes to learn about our reptile friends and how they are helpful to people.
8:00 pm Evening Dam Walk-Meet up with Trish at the TVA Norris Dam welcome center parking lot for a nice, leisurely stroll across the dam. We’ll discuss some history of the park and the dam while enjoying the sunset.
9:00 pm Can You See the Moon?-Join the Knoxville Observer’s Astronomy Club in the pool parking lot to enjoy the night sky and the moon. Telescopes will be provided. The program will only be held if the weather permits.
