Ninth Annual Long Hunter Mega-Hike Set for Oct. 24, 2015

It's that time of year again: The Ninth Annual Long Hunter Mega-Hike is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 24th at Long Hunter State Park in Hermitage, TN.

As always, the plan is to hike all of the park's trails - about 26 miles - in a single day. This free event is sponsored by the Friends of Long Hunter State Park.

Participants should meet wilderness guide/hike leader Jason Allen at the Couchville Lake parking lot (in Area 2) at approximately 6:45 a.m. and be prepared to hit the trails at 7 a.m. sharp. The goal is to complete the hike by sunset, but there's a slight chance hikers could still be out on the trails after dark - so participants should bring a flashlight or light source just in case.

If you're unable to hike all 26 miles, or just aren't interested in hiking that many miles, no worries - you can stop whenever you please. The main objective is to have fun while enjoying the fall colors and variety of habitats that Long Hunter has to offer - whether you hike just two miles with us or all 26 miles.

Those who complete the hike will receive a frameable certificate of merit. There's also the possibility of your photo appearing in a newspaper or on a website. Two years ago The Tennessean showed up for the event, and the following day the paper featured a story about the mega-hike, along with a photo gallery.

As is tradition, those who feel up to it afterwards are invited to the after-hike dinner/celebration at Angelo's Pizza on Murfreesboro Road.

Remember to bring plenty of water, lunch and snacks -- and perhaps extra socks and clothes, depending on the weather.

Since Long Hunter's trails are spread out and many do not intersect, participants will return to their cars several times in order to drive to different areas of the park; in other words, you can leave food or extra clothes in your vehicle and get them later if you wish. You'll also have access to park restrooms at a couple of locations.

As for the weather, the hike will take place regardless of temperature. However, if it's raining or if the weather looks threatening, the event might be postponed since attempting to hike 26 miles in the rain might prove to be difficult and probably not much fun.

The plan is to hike the trails in the same order as previous years: Couchville Lake Arboretum Trail, Nature Loop, Inland Trail, Bluff Trail, Deer Trail, Group Camp Trail, Day Loop, Volunteer Trail, Couchville Glade Trail, Jones Mill Trail, Point Trail, Bryant-Grove Trail. The order is subject to change, but the hike will definitely start at Couchville Lake.

No pets, please. Kids are welcome.

Since this hike is being organized, led and sponsored by the non-profit Friends of Long Hunter State Park group, donations are welcome. 

Many of the park's hikes and events are organized and led by Friends of Long Hunter volunteers, and many supplies for the park's educational programs are purchased by the Friends group. To donate to the group or become a member, please go to http://www.friendsoflonghunter.com/membership.html

Directions to Couchville Lake parking lot: Enter Long Hunter State Park at the main park entrance (2910 Hobson Pike) and then take the first left (which is Area 2) and proceed to the parking lot beside Couchville Lake.

If you have further questions about the Long Hunter Mega-Hike, call the Long Hunter State Park office at 615-885-2422. You can also keep up with all the latest news on the Long Hunter Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/longhunterstatepark.

"This Dang Planet" festival set for April 11, 2015

"This Dang Planet" - Long Hunter State Park's spring nature festival - is set for April 11, 2015. 

This free event features nature-themed activities for the entire family: an edible plants demonstration, bird walk, live snakes (and other animals!), craft station for kids, butterfly program, artist sketching, natural movement workshop, a water/habitat assessment program, and much more.

At lunch time there will be food trucks and a musical guest with a nature theme.

See below for schedule of events, presenter bios, and more!

Main Track (All Main Track events take place or start at the park office except where noted):

8 a.m. - Welcome/Opening Remarks

8:15 a.m. - Morning Bird Walk - John Froeschauer: Take a short walk to view and hear local and migratory birds.

10 a.m. - Eating Wild - Sharen Bracy: Let's go outside to search for wild edible plants - and then come inside for samples.

11:30 to 1:15 - Food Trucks - Jones Press Sandwich Shop and Maggie Moos (located at parking lot beside picnic shelter in Area 2)

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. - Musical Guest Jerry Vandiver (located at picnic shelter in Area 2)

1:15 p.m. - Why Butterflies Need Trees - Rita Venable: Learn three good reasons why we should plant trees for butterflies. Rita will sign copies of her new book Butterflies of Tennessee after the presentation.

2:30 p.m. - Hiking With An Artist’s Eye - Fred Dickson: Try your hand at sketching the flora and fauna of Long Hunter. Attendees should bring a clipboard or other hard surface for drawing, as well as paper, favorite writing tools, and a camp chair if they don’t wish to sit on the ground.

Kids Track (All Kids Track events take place in or around picnic shelter in Area 2 except where noted):

10 - 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 - 3 p.m. - Learning About Cedar Glades Through Art - Liana Dranes - This is a craft station for kids who are welcome to come and go. Kids must be accompanied by an adult at all times. (Located under tent near picnic shelter)

10 a.m. - Water Water Everywhere But Not A Drop To Drink - Will Caplenor: Bring wading shoes for this water and habitat assessment program. Meet at Percy Priest Lake shoreline past Group Camp 2 at end of gravel road beside office.

11:15 a.m. - Rooted Movement: Natural Movement Workshop - Eric Newman: Participate in this physical education and fitness system based on the full range of natural human movement abilities. Meet beside playground in Area 2.

11:30 to 1:15 - Food Trucks - Jones Press Sandwich Shop and Maggie Moos (located at parking lot beside picnic shelter in Area 2)

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. - Musical Guest Jerry Vandiver (at picnic shelter in Area 2)

2:30 p.m. - Exotic & Invasive Animals - Josh Justice: Live animals courtesy of the Natural History Education Company of the MidSouth.

"This Dang Planet" is organized and sponsored by the Friends of Long Hunter State Park.

For more information on the Friends of Long Hunter, visit http://www.friendsoflonghunter.com/ and https://www.facebook.com/longhunterstatepark

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PRESENTER BIOGRAPHIES

Rita Venable - Why Butterflies Need Trees  

Rita Venable is a writer, photographer, and speaker whose much-loved subject is nature, especially butterflies. She is author of Butterflies of Tennessee (2014, Maywood Publishing). She was formerly an assistant biologist with the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation conducting biological surveys in state parks and natural areas with the All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory program. She developed butterfly checklists for individual parks, led field trips, conducted training sessions for seasonal naturalists, and spoke at wildflower festivals and other state park events.

Fred Dickson - Hiking With An Artist’s Eye   

Fred Dickson is a visual artist, harpist and actor from Nashville, Tennessee. In 2014 Tennessee's first lady, Crissy Haslam, asked him to create an ornament representing Long Hunter State Park for the Christmas tree on public display in the Governor’s Residence. Mr. Dickson also designed "The Flora and Fauna of Long Hunter State Park," a collection of hand-painted ceramic plates which sold for the benefit of Friends of Long Hunter State Park. Much of his art can now be found on display at Long Hunter. Dickson is also a noted hiker, having completed four Long Hunter Mega-Hikes, which consists of hiking all 26 miles of the park's trails in a single day.

John Froeschauer - Morning Bird Walk 

John Froeschauer is the Middle Tennessee Regional Interpretive Specialist for Tennessee State Parks. He is responsible for overseeing, planning and providing assistance with interpretive programming, exhibits and signage, resource management, regional seasonal interpreter management, and serves as statewide fund administrator of monies generated by sales of the environmental state parks license plate. For the past 20 years, the state parks environmental "Iris Plate" has had receipts earmarked for landscaping and related maintenance in state parks.

Jerry Vandiver - Musical Guest  

Since making the move from Kansas City to Nashville, Jerry Vandiver has seen his songs recorded by such artists as Tim McGraw, Phil Vassar, Lonestar, Barbara Mandrell, Lee Greenwood, and The Oak Ridge Boys. He scored a Top 5 single on Gene Watson's Don't Waste It On The Blues, a Top 20 on Wild Rose's Go Down Swingin', and #2 on Tim McGraw's For A Little While. Jerry can be heard regularly at Nashville's Bluebird Cafe, The Ford Theater at the Country Music Hall of Fame's Songwriter Series, and NSAI's Tin Pan South.

Sharen Bracy - Eating Wild 
  

Sharen Bracy is a freelance naturalist and author who specializes in wild edible foods. A native Tennessean, Sharen is a former interpretive specialist for Tennessee State Parks. Sharen has been teaching people about edible plants in Tennessee for many years. She hosts the annual Wild Foods Day at Fall Creek Falls State Park and also prepares edible plants for the annual Wildflower Pilgrimage at Cedars of Lebanon State Park. She is author of the cookbook Eating Wild, which features over 100 of Sharen's favorite recipes for preparing wild food and game.

Liana Dranes - Learning About Cedar Glades Through Art 
  

Liana Dranes works with State of Tennessee Department of Military as Natural Resources Manager with focus on keeping TNARNG lands available and suitable for mission activities while conducting responsible management of natural resources to ensure resources are used wisely and are protected. Previously she worked 24 years with ESC Lab Sciences in Mt. Juliet, TN. In 2010, Dranes was awarded Tennessee Recreation and Parks Association "Four-Star Programming Award" for her volunteer partnership with Tennessee State Parks bringing environmental science and nature education programs to children through "The Nature Circle" at Long Hunter State Park.

Josh Justice - Exotic & Invasive Animals

For almost 10 years, the Natural History Educational Co. of the Midsouth (NHECM) has been providing educational outreach wildlife programs to many schools, libraries, State and Federal Parks, conservation & youth-oriented groups and other learning institutions. NHECM programmer Josh Justice has worked with a variety of animals and wildlife providing outreach programs to local schools and youth organizations for almost 25 years, including volunteer work with the Tennessee Outdoors University and the Wildlife Society at UT-Martin.

Eric Newman - Rooted Movement: Natural Movement Workshop  

Eric Newman is a MovNat Certified Trainer in Middle Tennessee as well as a small business owner. He is beginning the journey of sharing his love of nature and the exploration of movement with others. He began his exploration of movement through the martial arts and dabbled in many systems, including Small Circle Jiu Jitsu, BJJ, Boxing, Ba Gua, KFM, Wing Chun, and Pencak Silat. He earned a 2nd dan in Hapkido through the USHF, and a 3rd dan in Jin Jung Kwan Hapkido. Fitness and healthy lifestyle have always been at the forefront, especially during his policing career. In 2008, Eric received the Physical Fitness Award from the Nashville Metropolitan Police Department.  


Will Caplenor - Water, Water Everywhere, But Not A Drop To Drink

Will Caplenor is a Watershed and Restoration Specialist at the Tennessee Environmental Council. He graduated from Middle Tennessee State University in 2013 with a B.S. in Geoscience and will be pursuing a Masters in an Environmental field in the fall.

Long Hunter State Park website:
http://www.tn.gov/environment/parks/LongHunter/

Long Hunter on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/730535187035717

Friends of Long Hunter website:
http://friendsoflonghunter.com/

Friends of Long Hunter on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/longhunterstatepark

Long Hunter State Park * 2910 Hobson Pike * Hermitage, TN 37076  615-885-2422