FLAT ROCK: CHRIS MONROE; OBSERVATORY: ANNE-MARIE CARUSO; IKEA: TARIQ ZEHAWI/THE RECORD
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FLAT ROCK BROOK NATURE CENTER ENGLEWOOD
443 Van Nostrand Ave., Englewood, (201) 567-1265, flatrockbrook.org
This 150-acre nature center on the western slope of the Palisades
has loads of events and programs for kids, many of which are free,
like family hikes and turtle parades. You can also go when there’s
no event running and choose from 3.6 miles of self-guided trails.
It’s a natural sanctuary for plant and animal life, which means
you’ll be surrounded by a beautiful natural landscape. Walk slowly
so everyone in your group can revel in the scenery of cascading
streams, quarry cliffs, wetlands, ponds and wildflower meadows.
Possible sightings include a great horned owl, turtles, bullfrogs,
migrating birds and animal tracks.
EMIL BUEHLER TRUST OBSERVATORY PARAMUS
Bergen Community College, 400 Paramus Road, Paramus
(201) 447-7100, bergen.edu
Did you know there’s a major astronomy observatory right here in
Bergen County? It’s on the campus of Bergen Community College and
it’s not just for students. Every Friday evening, unless it’s a holiday or
inclement weather, the observatory hosts a public night, where families
can gaze up at the stars with the help of the observatory’s three 16-foot
Meade LX telescopes, two of which are permanently mounted in twin
domes atop the college’s Technology Education Center. (The third is on
a mobile tripod.) Budding scientists and those just looking for a little
nighttime magic will have plenty to bedazzle them. Park in lot B and go
through the east side door of the technical building.
IKEA PARAMUS
100 IKEA Drive, Paramus, 888-888-4532
We know what you’re thinking: Shopping isn’t quite my idea of family fun. But
at IKEA, you can check your preschoolers and grade-schoolers into its playzone
(for free!) for up to an hour while you leisurely walk through this mega-store’s
showroom maze. Don’t feel like shopping? Spend your free hour sipping coffee
in the café with a friend. When you sign in, the playroom supervisors will give
you a beeper so if there’s a problem or if your time is up, you will be notified.
Note that there are sometimes long wait times, which means you might need to
kill some time before checking your child in. And kids must be toilet trained.
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(201) WELCOME | 2017 EDITION
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