When the Donald D. Shipley Nature Center in Central Park's 18-acre forest in Huntington Beach was featured on Huell Howser's California Gold, the locals couldn't have been more delighted. They volunteered and spent years planning, planting, constructing, and bringing the wild forest back to a controllable native garden and woods. The educational facility offers enough urban "wild things" plus the sounds of automobiles zipping by at 50 mph just outside the forested fences that block such views.

Shipley Nature Center was built by "friends" and they call themselves, "Friends of Shipley Nature Center". Beloved by nearby neighbors, community friends, and thousands of families with children, and school kids who attend and learn in this urban retreat, the gated center has been carefully reconstructed and and filled with native plants, special gardens to attract Monarch butterflies, compost gardens, and educational information to teach and delight the public and school children alike.

Several Redwood trees are watered properly to keep them growing, and you'll find the habitat attracts migrating birds and native wildlife such as raccoons, snakes, turtles, opossums and coyotes.

Friends of Shipley Nature Center is a non-profit volunteer organization formed to manage Shipley Nature Center for the City of Huntington Beach. It is located in Huntington Central Park on Golden West Street between Slater and Central Library Drive. There is a large sign at the parking lot on Golden West Street. Shipley Nature Center is comprised of 18 acres of natural habitat. Four years or restoration by the Friends has involved many efforts that include removing non-native invasive plants and restoring them with native Southern California trees and plants.

There is a trail system that runs through 8 habitats that include: Oak woodland, Redwood grove, Meadow, Coastal Sage Scrub, Willow wetlands, pond, Riparian woodland and Torrey Pine grove. There is an interpretive center in a building that features educational displays, Demonstration Garden, and a Conservation/Education Yard with a nursery and recycle/ compost area. Volunteers to help manage these natural assets in some of the priciest land in Southern California just a few miles from the Pacific Ocean include trail work, maintaining structures, building projects, research and development of special projects, planting projects, etc. Call Carol Williams at (714) 842-4772 Postal: PO Box 1052, Huntington Beach, CA 92647 Donald D. Shipley Nature Center was named for a former HB mayor.

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