Kits & Cubs: Winter Pause & What Comes Next

Winter is a season of slowing down, not just for bears, woodchucks, and chipmunks, but for us, too. As the forest settles into its quieter rhythms, Kits & Cubs will take its first winter pause since the program began three years ago. Below you’ll find everything you need to know: why we’re pausing, when we’ll be back, and how you can keep exploring Merck Forest in the meantime.

Why We’re Taking a Winter Pause

Across the landscape, animals are tucking in for the season. Bears and woodchucks settle into deep sleep. Chipmunks dip in and out of torpor. Frogs and turtles brumate beneath the ice. And voles? They’re cozied up in their warm subnivean tunnels, going about their winter routines under the snow.

This time of year naturally encourages a slower pace, and we’re embracing it. Kits & Cubs will pause regular programming to reflect, refresh, and plan for the exciting year ahead!

Winter Dates to Know

We’ll have two special Kits & Cubs sessions this winter:

• February 25

• February 27

After that, the program will tuck back in until our regular weekly sessions resume on Wednesday, March 18, 2026

What We’re Working On Behind the Scenes

While the program rests, we’re:

• Updating and expanding our preschool curriculum

• Dreaming up new ways to explore familiar trails

• Preparing for four Little Sprouts day camps in 2026 (three more than last summer!)

This pause gives us room to think big and build a stronger experience for your families.

How to Keep Exploring This Winter

Even with Kits & Cubs on break, Merck Forest is very much alive and open for discovery. Bring your kids, meet up with friends, and enjoy the places you’ve grown to love:

• Wander the new Lower Farm Trail and test the balance beams or music room

• Cook up snow-day masterpieces in the Snow Kitchen by the Cub House

• Snowshoe or hike from dawn to dusk (always free)

• Follow fresh tracks left by foxes, deer, rabbits...and yes, those tunnel-dwelling voles

• Build a snow fort on the Cub House meadow

• Visit the farm animals, who never turn down winter company

• Make snow angels and spot last summer’s bird nests in bare branches

Winter here may be quiet, but it's never still!

See You in March

Whether you’re exploring the trails on your own, chasing tiny footprints in new snow, or revisiting favorite play spaces, Merck Forest is still full of wonder and wide open to you.

We’ll be ready to welcome you back to Kits & Cubs on March 18. Until then, we hope you enjoy winter’s gentle pause.