The Butler County Conservation Board will host its Halloween Hike Tuesday, October 21st.
The Butler County Conservation Board, along with the conservation boards from Bremer and Chickasaw counties, offer free hikes every year. Butler County Naturalist, Annette Wittrock, says the hike is a non-scary, educational event that the entire family can enjoy.
“During the event, you get to walk around a trail through the nighttime woods that’s lit by candles, and you get to meet animals and learn about their lives. The naturalists from each county, along with volunteers, kind of transform into living things that match with our theme each year. And we do offer that hike, one night in each county, so everyone kind of has a chance to attend it.”
The Halloween Hike in Chickasaw County will be October 14th and the hike in Bremer County is scheduled for October 26th. The theme for this year’s hikes is “Nature’s Superheroes.” Wittrock says attendees will learn about animals that have the same, or similar, names as some of the superheroes you would see in movies and TV.
“This year you get to meet a wolverine, the wasp, spider man, bat man, and the black panther. I get to play the wolverine this year, which I believe is a step up from the skunk that I had to play last year. The two Bremer County naturalists are playing the wasp and the bat. The Chickasaw County naturalist is playing the black panther and our volunteer gets the part of the spider. Besides the actual event, the best part of the event for me is trying to create a costume and a script for the animal I get to play. This year, so far the Wolverine costume is stumping me. I’m hoping to figure that out, but I’ve at least started the script, so I call that a win.”
The Halloween Hike in Butler County is October 21st at Heery Woods State Park in Clarksville. The first hike will leave at 6:00 in the evening, followed by hikes at 6:15, 6:30 and 6:45.
Registration is required for the hikes. For the Butler County hike, you can register by calling 319-346-6551 or email awittrock@butlercounty.iowa.gov. You will need to provide your preferred hike time, the number of people in your group and a phone number.
More information below courtesy of the Butler County Conservation Board Facebook page;
