One of the quietest treasures in Central Bucks County sits along the south shore of Lake Galena in New Britain Township — Peace Valley Nature Center. Most homeowners drive past it for years on the way to somewhere else before they actually stop, walk a trail, attend a Full Moon Walk, or sign their kid up for a summer nature camp. And then, almost universally, they wish they’d done it sooner. Peace Valley isn’t just a park. It’s a year-round nature center with some of the most thoughtful, accessible, family-friendly outdoor programming anywhere in the county. At Homeowners in the Know, we think the 2026 summer programming season is one of the strongest yet. Here’s a complete look at what Peace Valley actually offers and how to use it.
What Peace Valley Actually Is
Peace Valley Park is a 1,500-acre Bucks County park anchored by 365-acre Lake Galena, a reservoir created in the 1960s that’s now one of the most popular outdoor destinations in the county. The park itself is operated by Bucks County Parks & Recreation. Peace Valley Nature Center is a separate nonprofit organization that operates within the park, providing the educational programming, kids’ camps, guided walks, and the Wild Reads outdoor book club that turn the park from a nice place to walk into an actual learning environment.
The Nature Center building sits on the south side of the lake at 170 N. Chapman Road, New Britain. It includes indoor exhibits, a small gift shop, restrooms, and an event space used for indoor programming. The surrounding network of trails — including the popular 6-mile lakeside loop — connects the Nature Center to the rest of the park, with multiple access points, parking lots, and trail junctions throughout.
Full Moon Walks — A Bucks County Summer Tradition
Peace Valley Nature Center’s Full Moon Walks are one of the genuinely distinctive recurring programs in the county. The walks are scheduled to coincide with each summer’s full moons, with naturalist-led walks departing from the Nature Center at twilight and following a designated route around the park to experience the lake, woods, and meadows under moonlight rather than sunlight.
The experience is meaningfully different from a daytime walk. Wildlife behavior shifts at dusk and after dark — owls become active, bats emerge, deer move into the meadows. The naturalist guides know the park’s nocturnal patterns and time the walks to maximize the chances of meaningful encounters. Even when the wildlife is quiet, the experience of walking a familiar park under the full moon is something most adults haven’t done since childhood, and it lands powerfully in a way that’s hard to predict in advance.
Walks are typically free or low-cost, with advance registration required because of group size limits. The Nature Center’s website publishes the full Moon Walk schedule each season, with walks aligned to specific full moon dates. For 2026 summer, the relevant full moons fall in May, June, July, and August.
Wild Reads — The Outdoor Book Club
Wild Reads is Peace Valley Nature Center’s outdoor book club — meeting on the third Friday of each month, year-round. The format pairs each month’s selected book (typically nature writing, environmental nonfiction, or relevant fiction) with discussion held outdoors at the Nature Center, weather permitting. The book selections lean toward titles that resonate with the Peace Valley setting: works by writers like Robin Wall Kimmerer, Mary Oliver, Aldo Leopold, and contemporary nature essayists.
For homeowners who like the idea of a book club but find traditional indoor book clubs not quite right, Wild Reads is an excellent alternative. The outdoor setting changes the conversation. The book selections invite you to read more attentively to the natural world around you. And the third-Friday rhythm is consistent enough to actually build into your monthly schedule. Anyone is welcome to attend — you don’t need to be a Nature Center member or a regular Peace Valley user to join.
Summer Nature Camps for Kids
Peace Valley Nature Center’s summer nature camps are a strong specialty option in the broader Bucks County summer camp market. The camps run weekly through the summer, with age-appropriate programming for kids across the elementary and middle school range. Each week typically features a specific nature theme — water ecosystems, pollinators, birds, woodland exploration, citizen science — with hands-on field experiences anchoring each day.
The camp size is intentionally small, which means kids actually get to know the naturalist instructors over the course of a week. The location at Peace Valley itself means kids spend the whole day outdoors in real ecosystems, not just on a manicured camp lawn. For kids who love being outside — or for parents trying to give a more screen-bound kid a deliberate exposure to the natural world — the Peace Valley camps are one of the best options in the area. Registration opens in late winter and popular weeks fill up quickly.
Guided Bird Walks and Pollinator Programs
Throughout the summer, the Nature Center runs guided bird walks (typically early morning to catch the most active bird hours), pollinator-focused programs (especially around butterflies, bees, and the native wildflowers that support them), and themed family programs covering everything from frog identification to night-sky observation. The schedule is posted seasonally, with new programs added throughout the summer based on instructor availability and seasonal patterns.
For homeowners interested in actually learning the natural world around them — being able to identify the bird singing in your backyard, recognize which native flowers are supporting which pollinators, understand what kind of habitat you’re walking through on the towpath — these guided programs are the most efficient way to build that knowledge. The naturalists are excellent at meeting attendees at their current level of expertise, whether you’re a complete beginner or an advanced amateur.
Lake Galena — Kayaking, Fishing, and Paddleboating
Beyond the Nature Center’s programming, Lake Galena itself offers a range of summer water activities. Kayaks, paddleboats, and rowboats are available for rent through the Bucks County Parks & Recreation system at the lake’s boat rental facility. Fishing is permitted with appropriate Pennsylvania licenses, and the lake is regularly stocked with bass, sunfish, catfish, and other species. Sailing and stand-up paddleboarding are popular on the lake’s calmer mornings, particularly with members of local sailing clubs that base out of the lake.
For families with kids, an afternoon kayaking on Lake Galena is one of the most easily executed Bucks County outdoor experiences — bring sunscreen, water, and snacks, rent a kayak or two, and spend two or three hours on the lake. The lake is large enough to feel genuinely natural, but small enough to never feel intimidating. The shoreline mixes wooded sections with open meadow areas, and the wildlife (herons, turtles, the occasional bald eagle) makes every paddle different.
Membership and Supporting the Nature Center
Peace Valley Nature Center operates as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, distinct from the Bucks County Parks & Recreation system that manages the broader park. The Nature Center’s programming, naturalist staff, exhibits, and educational outreach are funded primarily through memberships, donations, program fees, and grants — not through county tax dollars. Membership at the Nature Center is reasonably priced (typical family memberships run roughly $50 to $75 per year) and includes program discounts, advance registration windows, and the satisfaction of supporting one of the strongest small environmental education organizations in the region.
For homeowners who use Peace Valley regularly — even just for trail walks and Lake Galena visits — Nature Center membership pays back in program access alone within a single year for most active families. And the broader benefit is supporting the local infrastructure that makes the park more than just a place to walk. Without the Nature Center, you’d have the trails and the lake, but none of the programming, education, camps, or naturalist expertise that turn the park into an actual learning environment.
How to Build Peace Valley Into Your Summer
The honest framework for getting the most out of Peace Valley is to pick one anchor activity and use it consistently throughout the summer. Maybe that’s a Saturday morning walk on the lakeside loop. Maybe it’s the Wild Reads book club on the third Friday of each month. Maybe it’s signing up for the next two Full Moon Walks. Maybe it’s enrolling your kid in a single week of nature camp. The activity itself matters less than the consistency — Peace Valley rewards repeat visits in a way that one-time tourism doesn’t capture.
For Central Bucks homeowners specifically, Peace Valley is also one of the most reliable rainy-day backup destinations. The Nature Center’s indoor exhibits and programming continue regardless of weather, and even on overcast days the trail walks are pleasant and uncrowded. Built into your weekly summer rhythm, Peace Valley becomes a quiet, reliable, restorative anchor — the kind of place you start to think of as your park rather than just a park you visit.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Peace Valley Nature Center?
Peace Valley Nature Center is at 170 N. Chapman Road, New Britain, PA, on the south side of Lake Galena within Peace Valley Park. The park itself spans 1,500 acres in New Britain Township and Doylestown Township, with multiple access points around the lake.
Is admission to Peace Valley free?
Yes — admission to the park, including parking, trail access, and Nature Center building access, is free. Specific programs (Full Moon Walks, summer camps, guided programming) may have registration fees. Boat rentals on Lake Galena are paid hourly through the Bucks County Parks & Recreation rental system.
When are the Full Moon Walks at Peace Valley?
Full Moon Walks are scheduled to align with each month’s full moon date through the summer season. Walks are naturalist-led, depart from the Nature Center at twilight, and require advance registration due to group size limits. The current schedule and registration links are posted at peacevalleynaturecenter.org.
When does Wild Reads meet?
Wild Reads, Peace Valley Nature Center’s outdoor book club, meets the third Friday of each month, year-round. The book selections are posted monthly on the Nature Center’s website. Anyone is welcome to attend; no membership or pre-registration is required for most meetings.
Can I rent a kayak at Lake Galena?
Yes — kayaks, paddleboats, and rowboats are available for rent through the Bucks County Parks & Recreation rental facility at Lake Galena. Rentals are typically priced hourly. Hours and current rental rates are posted on the Bucks County Parks & Recreation website.
A Bucks County Treasure Worth Actually Using
Peace Valley Nature Center is one of the most consistently underused resources in Central Bucks County. Most homeowners know it exists. Far fewer actually take advantage of the Full Moon Walks, the Wild Reads book club, the summer camps, or the year-round programming that turns this park into something more than just a place to walk. At Homeowners in the Know, we think 2026 is the year to actually use it. Pick one program, make it your habit, and let Peace Valley become a real part of your summer.
For more on the parks, trails, and lifestyle resources that make Bucks County such a great place to call home, explore our Bucks County living guides — and the full Peace Valley programming calendar lives at the Peace Valley Nature Center website, with broader park information at the Bucks County Parks & Recreation page.