It’s no secret that I am a big fan of Rentschler Forest (See my original review here).
It’s a fun little playground with an absolutely beautiful backdrop and to encourage people to explore, they have set up a kid friendly challenge along one of the more popular trails here – The Cascades Trail.
This challenge is a joint effort by MetroParks and Cincinnati Children’s Hospital to get kids to not only be active but to enjoy and appreciate the world that we live – to notice the colors, the smells, the sounds that we can so easily overlook.
Along the Cascades trail, there are five different signs that you scan with your Smartphone. This will bring you to a short video clip (less than two minutes long) that will give instructions for what you should be doing at that particular stop. My kids had as much fun doing the tasks as they did looking for the next sign.
At the end of the challenges, there is a questionnaire to fill out and submit electronically for a chance at winning prizes!
A Few Helpful Hints Before You Go
- Download the App “iNaturalist” before you go. It is needed for one of the challenges. My cell reception was not great in the middle of the woods and it took quite awhile for the download to complete.
- Familiarize yourself with the app. Once it downloaded, my kids were ready to move on to the next item on the trail but I was still trying to figure out how to use the app. You have to use the app to be able to answer one of the questions on the questionnaire. I decided to just move on and we’d try again at our next visit to the park.
- Take a picture of your nature art that you complete on one of the challenges! There is an email address to submit your art to.
- One challenge requires a bit of creeking – so be prepared to get your feet wet.
