About the MK Nature Center
The Morrison Knudsen Nature Center offers a one-of-a-kind fish and wildlife experience on a 4.6-acre site along the Boise River Greenbelt near downtown Boise. The Nature Center's stream walk and education building provide a glimpse of Idaho's many landscapes and abundant wildlife. The underwater viewing windows along the stream walk give visitors a fish-eye view of the world.
The waterfall and alpine lake are the headwaters of the Nature Center stream,much like the Stanley Basin lakes are the headwaters of the Salmon River.
The Nature Center opened in July of 1990 and represents the cooperative work of private, public, state and federal contributors. Dedicated in 1990 as a Centennial gift to the state of Idaho, the area was conceived and developed by local volunteers working with the Idaho Department of Fish and Game. Although the Morrison Knudsen Corporation was a major contributor to the construction of the center, completion of the center would not have been possible without the donations and dedication of many other contributors.
The Nature Center is now owned and operated by the Idaho Department of Fish and Game with funding from hunting and fishing license dollars, nongame money, grants from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and donations from private individuals and businesses. Thanks to the cooperative efforts of the department and the community, the MK Nature Center welcomes about 300,000 visitors and provides tours for about 15,000 school children, annually.
The Nature Center is now an integral feature of the City of Trees, particularly the Greenbelt "neighborhood" that includes Zoo Boise, the Discovery Center, Kathryn Albertson and Julia Davis Parks, the Idaho State Historical Museum, the Boise Art Museum, the Idaho Botanical Gardens and the Idaho Shakespeare Theater.
