From December 15, 2012 to January 15, 2013, the Land Conservancy held our first ever Holiday Hike Challenge. This family-friendly event was intended to encourage people to get outside and spend some time in nature during the holiday season.
At 12 of our nature preserves, we selected one tree and decorated it with a big red bow. Participants in the Holiday Hike Challenge were tasked with visiting the preserves, locating the decorated trees, and sending us pictures of themselves or family members in front of the tree. As a bonus, we asked the participants to identify the decorated tree as well.
We were thrilled with the response that we received to this event! We really enjoyed the pictures, stories, and feedback that participants shared. Thank you to everyone who participated!
Breaking down the results
- 155 – total entries.
- 27 – families participated.
- 3 – dogs participated (with their families).
- 5 – entrants who visited all 12 nature preserves: (Anne Keller & Sarah Elliott, David Dornbos, Linda Glaza-Herrington, Carlyle & Marcia Miersma). Nice work!
- Lamberton Lake Fen and Wege Natural Area were the most visited nature preserves.
Prizes
Grand prize: A $100 gift certificate for Gilmore Collection Restaurants was awarded to the first participants to visit all 12 nature preserves. The winners are: Anne Keller & Sarah Elliot.
Drawing: All entrants were added into a drawing for additional prizes. Participants received one entry for each preserve they visited and each tree they correctly identified. The winners are as follows:
- Forest Hill Foods gift card (2): Linda Glaza-Herrington; Adam Kroon
- Bill and Paul’s Sporthaus gift card(2): Ashley Swainson; Sue Norman & Craig Ressler
- Wild Birds Unlimited gift card: Eric Smith
- Spare Time Designs hat (2): Carlyle & Marcia Miersma; Joel & Dana Lautenbach
- Meijer gift card (donated by John Fox): Lydia Henning
- Land Conservancy t-shirt (5): Chloe Hartman; Eric Lehman; Eric Dickinson; Suzanne Fedewa; Brett Nelson