Great Maine Bike Swap, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. today, University of Southern Maine’s Sullivan Gymnasium, 66 Falmouth St., Portland. Sponsored by Bicycle Coalition of Maine. Bikes for sale should be dropped off at that location between 8 and 9:30 a.m. today. Buy or sell a bike. There will be test riding, exhibits by local bike shops, food and drinks for sale and more. Admission is $3, free for students at the University of Maine, University of Southern Maine, University of New England and Southern Maine Community College, and for children 12 or younger. A small commission on all sales supports the coalition’s work to improve bicycling in Maine. For more information, visit www.BikeMaine.org or call 623-4511. 

Great Pond Mountain Wildlands, group walk, 1 p.m. today. Meet at the South Gate (Route 1 just south of Route 176 in East Orland) for this roughly 3-mile moderate walk to a beaver dam. We’ll be walking on gravel roads; bring sturdy footwear (you’ll encounter some mud) and snacks. All ages welcome. For more information, call Connie at 223-5039. 

Additional Photos

Learn about falcons, like the peregrine shown here, and owls at a talk by Patrick Keenan of the BioDiversity Research Institute, at noon on Tuesday at Merryspring Nature Center in Camden. Admission is free for Merryspring members and children, $5 for non-members. For more information, call 236-2239 or visit the website, www.merryspring.org. Courtesy photo

The Somerset Bowhunters will hold their monthly meeting at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Skowhegan Sports-men’s Club on River Road in Skowhegan. There will be work bees on Saturday and April 23, where preparations will be made for the state shoot in August. Also, the club will hold its 3-D shoots on May 15, June 4, Aug. 20 (night shoot) and Aug. 28 (Lester Corson Memorial Shoot). The state shoot will take place on Aug. 7. 

Maine Milfoil Summit, rescheduled to 8:30 a.m. to noon Friday at the Lewiston-Auburn campus of the University of Southern Maine. Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Darryl Brown will be the keynote speaker, discussing the Invasive Aquatic Plant Program beginning at 9:15 a.m. The summit is free and open to the public. Registration is required, even if you already registered for the previous date, which was postponed. Please email roberta@leamaine.org and give your name and affiliation. Directions to Lewiston-Auburn College are available at http://usm.maine.edu/lac/info/directions.html. For more information, contact Peter Lowell, 647-8580 or lakes@leamaine.org. 

Introduction to GPS and geocaching, 9 a.m. to noon Friday, Anderson Learning Center, Springvale. This workshop presented by the Maine Forest Service will cover all the basics and will include an outdoor session. GPS units will be provided for class use. Space is limited to 24 and the cost is $10. Light refreshments will be served. Bring your own bag lunch and join a walk to find nearby geocaches from noon to 1 p.m. To register, call Melissa at 324-0888, ext. 214, or email info@yorkswcd.org. Co-sponsored by York Count Soil & Water Conservation District and 3 Rivers Land Trust. 

Trail & Beach Cleanup Day at Craig Brook Hatchery in Orland, 9 a.m. to noon Saturday. Volunteers are invited to help tidy up trails and beaches of trash and winter debris at the fish hatchery. Bring gloves, clippers, loppers or handsaws, and meet at the hatchery parking lot. Friends of Craig Brook will provide refreshments. Groups are welcome — to register a group or for more information, please call Richard Hero at 359-8999 or email richardhero@midmaine.com.

Looking ahead

York County Audubon field trip, April 17, to Green Point Wildlife Management Area in Dresden with Mike Fahay. Meet at 7 a.m. at the Burger King in Saco to carpool, or meet at the green shed at the Green Point entrance at 8:30 a.m. This trip will focus on finding migrating waterfowl and will involve driving. For more information, call Pat Sanborn at 781-9837. 

Spring Nature Day Camp, offered by Friends of Cobbossee Watershed, will be held during April school vacation week at the YMCA Camp of Maine on Cobbossee Lake in East Winthrop. Two two-day sessions will be offered. The first is April 18-19, and the second is April 20-21. Both sessions are open to students in grades 3 to 5 and will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day. Cost for each two-day session is $75 per person and includes all equipment and a daily afternoon snack. Early registration is recommended. Registration forms can be downloaded at www.watershedfriends.com. Contact Tamara Whitmore at 621-4100 or tamara@watershedfriends.com. 

Science Week at the L.C. Bates Museum in Hinckley during April school vacation. Hands-on indoor and outdoor programs. For information about April vacation activities, call 238-4250, email lcbates@gwh.org or go to the website, www.gwh.org/lcbates/. 

From Cosmos to the Backyard, 7 p.m. April 19. Free presentation by photographer Kirk Rogers at the Mather Auditorium of the Wells Reserve at Laudholm Farm. Rogers will talk about birding with lenses and observing the heavens with cameras and telescopes. Visit his website at kiroastro.com. 

Handgun safety class, Gardiner Sportsmen’s Club, 6 to 9 p.m. April 20. Meets the requirements for a class to apply for a concealed firearms permit. Cost is $60. Please call 441-7870 to register. 

Kennebec Messalonskee Trails Annual Meeting and Social Hour, 5:30 to 7p.m. April 26, REM’s Forum at The Center, 93 Main St., Waterville. Peter Garrett, KMTrails president, will give an update on the many KMTrails projects under way and review plans for trails in Waterville and surrounding communities. Light refreshments will be served. FMI: www.kmtrails.org. 

Wilderness first aid training course, from April 29 to May 1 at the College of the Atlantic, Bar Harbor. This 16-hour, hands-on course is targeted to the outdoor enthusiast on day trips or short adventures. Graduates receive WFA certification by the Maine-based Wilderness Medical Associates, valid for three years, as well as basic life support-level CPR and anaphylaxis certification. Cost is $190. Participants will be expected to complete homework assignments in the evening. For more information, visit the website http://www.wildmed.com/outdoor-professionals-and-enthusiasts/wilderness-first-aid.html. To register, call Tonia Kittelson at 801-5672 or email tkittelson@coa.edu. 

Handgun safety course, Maine-ly Outdoors Ministry of Daystar Chapel in Madison, 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. April 30. This course satisfies the state’s requirement to apply for a concealed weapons permit. Call Dell at 399-9717 to register. 

Firearms permit classes offered by Western Maine Property Protection include an NRA basic pistol class from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. April 30 at Cabela’s in Scarborough, and from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. May 1 at Lake Thompson Fish & Game Club in Oxford. Cost is $125. To register or for more information on these and other upcoming classes, call 739-9774, email westernmaineproperty protection@yahoo.com or go to www.wmepropertyprotection.com. 

Hiking with Joy: Trail Games and Activities for Families of All Ages, 7 p.m. May 5, Curtis Memorial Library, Brunswick. Sponsored by Maine Chapter of the Appalachian Mountain Club. Joy Norkin will describe and demonstrate a variety of trail games and activities for children, families and everyone to make your outdoor activities more fun. A potluck dinner begins at 6 p.m., followed by Norkin’s presentation. Bring a potluck item to share and your own dinnerware (plate, utensils, etc.). Drinks will be available. Free and open to the public. For more information, go online to www.amcmaine.org/calendar/ or email education@amcmaine.org.

Bowhunter safety course, sponsored by the Winslow Fire Department, May 7. Call Don Perrine at 660-6382 to register and for details. 

Chainsaw training classes, hosted by David Jenney and Mike Maines. The first will take place at 9 a.m. May 14 at Jenney’s woodlot in Vassalboro. The rain date is May 21. This class is a basic introduction to using your chainsaw, which will be similar to the Level 1 Game of Logging training. The second class is at 9 a.m. June 4, also at Jenney’s woodlot. The rain date is June 11. This class will focus on reduced downtime maintenance and filing. Both classes cost $75, with a minimum of seven people required for the class to take place. Advance registration and payment required. Contact Jenney at dgjenney@gmail.com or 923-3483. 

Hunter safety course, Winslow Fire Department. This is a 12-hour course. Classes are held 6-9 p.m. May 31 and June 2, and 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. on June 4. Call Don Perrine at 660-6382 to register and for details. 

Ongoing

Clean Water for Clams, children’s activity series sponsored by the Kennebec Estuary Land Trust at the Patten Free Library in Bath from 3:30 to 4:40 p.m. each Thursday in April. For ages 6 to 11. Environmental educator Becky Kolak will offer water experiments, discussion and crafts on the importance of clean water for shellfish and for people. No registration is necessary. Contact Kolak at 442-8400 or visit www.kennebecestuary.org. 

The Portland Water District invites preschoolers to join it for environmentally themed stories, activities and crafts. Fun with Frogs, 10 a.m. to noon Friday at the Sebago Lake Ecology Center in Standish. To register, email sebagolake@pwd.org or call 774-5961, ext. 3319 or 3320. Donations support loon preservation. 

The Kennebec Estuary Land Trust is offering a series of explorations to learn about a watershed from its source to its merger with the sea. Four field trips will investigate Nequasset Brook in Woolwich, from its clear waters that filter through forest soil to the reservoir that supplies Bath’s drinking water, to a historic fish ladder and out to Hanson Bay and the sea. The field trips will take place from 9:30-11:30 a.m. Saturday and April 30, 10 a.m.-noon May 7; and 9:30-11:30 a.m. May 21. Registration is required. Call 442-8400 or email aheyburn@ kennebecestuary.org. 

Weekly Bird Walk, 7 a.m. Thursdays at Gilsland Farm, off Route 1, Falmouth, $5 for Maine Audubon members, $8 for nonmembers. Bring binoculars and a field guide and meet in the visitor center parking lot. For more information, call 781-2330, ext. 209. 

Spring Hawk Watch, Bradbury Mountain State Park, Pownal. Freeport Wild Bird Supply teams up with Nikon Sport Optics to sponsor the project that collects valuable data while providing an enjoyable and educational experience for visitors. Andy Northrup, official counter, will be stationed at the Bradbury summit from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily until May 15. The hawk watch is free, but there is an entry fee to the park: $3 for Maine residents ages 12-64, $1 for ages 5-11, free for those over 64 and under 5. Go online to www.freeportwildbirdsupply.com for more information. 

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