Mother Nature helped us out in the weeks leading up to our February 14-16, 2016 Great Maine Outdoor Weekend by gracing us with some fresh snow, but she also brought us frigid temperatures. Cold weather didn’t stop our hearty Mainers from heading out and enjoying all the outdoor opportunities our beautiful state has to offer!
Activities for the 9th Great Maine Outdoor Weekend were held in every corner of the state – from Bethel to Acadia, from Kittery to Fort Kent. Highlights included full moon snowshoe hikes, community festivals all across the state, ice fishing, ice skating, sledding, and so much more!
Our final results have us right on track – continuing to gain momentum with the Great Maine Outdoor Weekend:
- Over 7,250 total participants
- nearly 2,000 kids – 26% of our total participants
- 24% of participants were new to the host organization
- 32% of participants were new to the activity or the venue/trail
New this year, the Great Maine Outdoor Weekend organizing team was able to provide small grant funding to two organizations to support their efforts to involve local kids and families in their events. Both Blue Hill Heritage Trust and the Downeast Lakes Land Trust received support for their February events.
Colin Brown, DLLT Education & Outreach Manager, reported on his snowshoe hike with students from Princeton Elementary School in his own blog post – read all about it here!
Braving the below freezing wind chills, the Princeton Elementary School students had a GREAT time snowshoeing through the Farm Cove Community Forest. They learned some new tracking skills and enjoyed a warm fire and hot cocoa as a special treat! – Colin Brown, DLLT
The Blue Hill Heritage Trust used GMOW funding to purchase materials and hire a professional “constellation expert” for their event – “Constellations on the Mountain”. They partnered with Maine Maritime Academy Academy Professor Dan Parrott, for a night of star gazing at the base of Blue Hill Mountain – complete with a fire and marshmallows!
We’re now in planning mode for our September 16-18, 2016 Great Maine Outdoor Weekend! Mark your calendars now, folks. You won’t want to miss this one!
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