Marites D.
Yelp
Springs Preserve is located on Valley View and Alta. They were offering Free admission for local residents on Nevada Day, which is a legal holiday celebrated on the last Friday of October. Nevada is the only unique state who continuously celebrates its historical entry into the Union.
Pricing for General admission ($18.95 adults) still applies to out of state visitor. Children ages 2 and under are Free. They do offer senior and military discount. Free parking is available at the Preserve and at Meadows Mall.
Upon entrance, Carl was the person in charge of directing traffic flow pointing towards two pathways, locals stay on the left side and visitors go on the right. Check-in with Natalie was flawless.
The family fun day began around 10am. Activities include hands-on learning, arts and crafts, museum and garden explorations.
We experienced Nevada Ghost Town Storytime in the Majestic Theatre at Boomtown 1905, it's captivating listening to various stories of rough-and-tumble ghost towns. They had Live Trivia in the WaterWorks courtyard with Pub-style quiz on facts about Nevada. The Teaching Garden is a fun place to create a seed ball using native Nevada wildflower seeds.
Inside the Origen Museum, they had a craft activity to make the Nevada State Insect, which is the Vivid Dancer Damselfly. We even explored all the offerings in the museum including the exhibit for "Nevada Reflections: The Silver State in Black and White." They have a nice gift shop!
There's several activities happening, such as a Nevada Flag Game in the Cottonwood Room, where we pin the state's symbols in correct places on the flag and learn what the symbols mean. There's even a Nevada License Plate Gallery and we crafted our own license plate. They had a puzzle activity to learn about the different nicknames attributed to Nevada.
The Garden Classroom Amphitheater offered experience panning for gold (iron pyrite). It's like recreating the early days of Nevada where the territory started by placer mining for heavy metals near the Comstock Lode.
There's a Butterfly Habitat. At the Frame House, we learn about the endangered Mt. Charleston blue butterfly. Inside Nevada State Museum are additional crafts and discoveries, a surprise pop-up in the gallery, and a new exhibit called "Mapping Nevada: Tracing Nevada's Statehood Through Maps."
The event timeline is super useful! From 9am to 4pm in the Education Room is hands-on learning and activities, including the museum's collection of artifacts and fossils. At 11am in the Orientation Room, Maggie Gaspar offers insights from her book, "Past & Present: Las Vegas" and we learn about how Las Vegas has changed over the years. From 1pm to 3pm in the Education Room, local folk-artist Vanessa Maciel teaches us how to get crafty. We were able to create our own replica of the official Nevada state artifact, which is the Tule Duck Decoy, so fun!
In the Primrose Gallery, they had a Nevada Wildlife Art Exhibit with artist Shauna Walch on site. We explored the art exhibit for "What are the Species in Your Neighborhood?"
The special event had food trucks throughout the Botanical Garden and Desert Living Center area. Food options include Glo Cone Novelty, Waffle Cafe, Fruit Fusion, and Don Carnitas. Live entertainment from DJ So Hype was at the Springs Amphitheater, along with community vendors and informational booths.
Overall, the experience is truly educational and rewarding! It's definitely a fun-filled day of exploring and learning. It was nice meeting Mojave Max, who is a real live Desert Tortoise residing at Springs Preserve, he is the official mascot for Clark County Desert Conservation Program.