Turtle Care & Education

🐢 Join Us for a Turtle Adventure!

Option 1:  Hatchery Tour: An inside look at our incubation program! Have a chance to watch staff care for turtle eggs and see hatchlings as they learn to swim.

Option 2: Hatchling Release: Join GBB staff in the release of hatchling turtles to their home wetlands! 

These events are pay-what-you-can.

As a non-profit charity, we rely on community support for our programs - every contribution, big or small makes a difference. 

🐣 Turtle Hatchery Tours
Discover the world of turtle conservation!

• Learn about local turtles with our snapping turtle ambassador
• Tour our hatchery where we incubate eggs from at-risk nests
• See how we monitor their development—and maybe witness a live hatchling

🕒 Duration: ~1 hour
👨‍👩‍👧 Suitable for all ages
📍 Location: GBB Office (125 William Street, Parry Sound)

🐢 Turtle Releases
Help baby turtles return to their home wetlands!
Join our team at a release site and help release turtle hatchlings into the wild.

• Includes a short hike (~100 m) through forested terrain
• Staff will teach you how to safely handle and release hatchlings

 🕒 Duration: ~1.5 hours
🚶‍♂️ Participants must be able to walk on uneven ground
👧 Recommended for kids ages 3+
📍 Location: shared 24 hours in advance, sites are up to 30 minutes outside of Parry Sound

Please indicate the number of people who will be joining on your preferred event date.

Accessibility

We are committed to making our programs as accessible as possible. Please note that Hatchery Tours take place in a basement space accessed by stairs, and Turtle Releases are typically held in natural areas with uneven terrain. These locations may present barriers for some visitors.

 

Waitlist

Is your preferred date and time booked up already? We encourage you to add your name to the waitlist. If additional tours or release events are added, those on the waitlist will be the first to know!

Pay What You Can

Turtle events are offered on a pay what you can basis.

As a non-profit charity, the Georgian Bay Biosphere relies on community support for conservation, cultural, community, and education programs. The estimated value of these experiences is $30 per person.

We invite you to pay what you can—every contribution, big or small, makes a difference. Thank you for your support!