Activities at park, farm include kayaking, wagon rides, chores

Naturalists will lead kayak trips on lakes Glacier and Newport next month.
CANFIELD -- Mill Creek MetroParks officials are launching a kayaking program in Mill Creek Park and a series of activities at the MetroParks Farm in Canfield this summer.
From June 1 through Labor Day, individual and tandem kayaks will be available for rent from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Wednesday through Sunday, at the boathouses at lakes Glacier and Newport. Renters must be at least 18 years old with a valid driver's license. Minors must be accompanied by an adult.
Park commissioners set kayak rental fees Monday at $6 per hour for Mahoning County residents, and $10 for nonresidents, with an additional $3 or $5 charge, respectively, for a second person in a tandem kayak.
Kayak trips
The park is also launching naturalist-led kayak trips with fees of $12 per person for Mahoning County residents; $15 for nonresidents. A second person in the kayak goes for half price. Minors must be accompanied by an adult. Those interested are urged to make reservations through the park's Ford Nature Education Center.
Ninety-minute naturalist-led trips depart as follows: 10:30 a.m. June 4 from the East Newport Boat Launch for a tour of the Newport Wetlands; 10:30 a.m. June 18 from Lake Glacier Boathouse; 7 p.m. June 21 from the East Newport Boat Launch for an evening tour of the Newport Wetlands on the longest day of the year; and 1 p.m. June 29 from the Newport Wetlands parking lot for a close-up look at a beaver lodge.
Adults also are invited to go on test rides during a canoe and kayak expo from noon to 4 p.m. June 28 at the East Newport Boat Launch.
Chore time
At the MetroParks Farm, the public is invited to participate in chore time in the barns from 9 a.m. to noon each Saturday in June.
The farm and its barns also will be open from 1 to 5 p.m. on all summer Sundays with different activities each week. On June 1, wagon rides will depart every half-hour, and the public is invited to celebrate Dairy Month by milking the goats. June 8 will feature leisurely horse-drawn wagon rides around the farm.
On June 15, visitors may sample homemade butter and ice cream. June 22 will feature 4-H members showing their goats, and June 29 will feature 4-H'ers and breeders showing rabbits, all in preparation for the Canfield Fair.