With your help, we’ve protected over 25,000 acres of Bog for future generations!
We are excited for yet another field trip season in the Sax-Zim Bog! Accessibility notes are offered on the list of trips below. Carpooling during field trips will be done at the comfort level of participants. Field Trip attendance is free for members (those who have donated $25 or more within the past year). If you are interested in membership, the $25 fee covers membership and free entry to any field trip or program in a 12-month period!
Friday Afternoon Speaker programs do not require registration. Minnesota Master Naturalist field trips require registration through the Minnesota Master Naturalist online portal.
To give everyone better expectations of rigor for each field trip, we have included relative activity levels for each field trip this season. The approximate ratings are as follows:
Field Trip Activity Level Ratings
1- Easy (travel over even terrain on roadways/boardwalks or limited hiking up to ½ mile total)
2- Moderate (travel over even or uneven terrain, dry to wet conditions, or hiking over ½ mile total)
3- Average (travel over even or uneven terrain, hiking off trail possible, or hiking up to 1 mile total)
4- Difficult (travel primarily over uneven terrain, wet conditions, or hiking over 1 mile total)
5-Strenuous (mostly off trail with travel primarily over uneven and wet terrain or hiking up to 2 miles)
If you have any questions about any of the field trips listed, field trip registration process, questions about the accessibility of a field trip, or feedback on our activity rating scale please contact Head Naturalist Clinton Dexter-Nienhaus via email at naturalist@saxzim.buildingthedreamduluth.com.
Sax-Zim Bog Fall Colors Field Trip
10:00 am-2:00pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center
Activity Rating: 1-2
Mid-October seems to be the prime time to experience peak tamarack colors in the Sax-Zim Bog! This field trip will have a special focus on the biology behind the change of color we see by trees in Minnesota as the seasons change. We will also spend some time in the field, looking at a wide range of non-tree species that change from green to brilliant reds, oranges, or yellows in the fall. Depending on the timing of color change, the exact date of this field trip may be pushed back one week and all registrants will be apprised of any changes to the field trip date!
Register for this field trip here: Sax-Zim Bog Fall Colors
Night-sky Watching Field Trip w/Starry Skies North
6:00-10:00pm Meeting at the Lois King Education Center
Activity Rating: 1-2
Last winter, we enjoyed a great program from Todd Burlet with Starry Skies North about the benefits of dark skies and impacts of light on the landscape. This got us thinking: why not have a field trip that address the night sky, as opposed to the critters that call the night home. The Sax-Zim Bog is uniquely situated away from the light pollution of Duluth and the Iron Range and still has nearly unimpacted dark sky! We have lots of folks ask when to come to the Sax-Zim Bog to see auroras, so it makes sense there are a few folks interested in learning more about starts, constellations, and beyond. Join us for this evening program and stick around for warm drinks and S’mores while viewing the dark skies of the Sax-Zim Bog!
Register for this field trip here: Night-sky Watching Field Trip
Winter 2025-26 Field Trips will be uploaded by November! Please check back for updates on Friday Afternoon Speaker topics, workshop updates, and updates on field trip attendance.
ADDRESS: The address is Sax-Zim Bog Welcome Center 8793 Owl Avenue, Toivola, MN 55765
[NOTE: THIS IS NOT A MAILING ADDRESS…but put this address into Google Maps or Apple Maps.]
Directions from Cotton, MN on US HWY 53:
*Go West from Cotton on CR52/Arkola for 11 miles
*Turn South (left) on Owl Avenue
*Go 1.75 miles (second curve) to Welcome Center
Directions from Meadowlands, on CR133…
*Go East on CR133 to CR229/29
*Turn North (left) on CR229/29
*Go North to T at Correction Line Rd
*Turn West (left) on Correction Line Rd
*Road curves North and becomes Owl Ave
*Go North on Owl Avenue for 2.5 miles to Welcome Center
