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Mill Creek Park scavenger hunters discover nature’s bounty
By Sean Barron
YOUNGSTOWN
Marlene Roch relished taking her three teenage children for a fun-filled nature-related event that challenged them to find a variety of animals and objects on or near the ground. For her, however, the most gratifying aspect of the outing was its deeper meanings that lay under the surface.
“This fosters family togetherness. I like that it’s something to do and that we have common time with them and can hear their ideas,” the Sharpsville, Pa., woman explained. “We only have so many more years before they’re out on their own, so the time with them is precious.”
Roch was referring to what she felt was the underlying value of Sunday afternoon’s Winter Scavenger Hunt in and around Mill Creek MetroParks’ Ford Nature Center on Old Furnace Road.
The five-hour friendly competition, which also consisted of a separate scavenger hunt in FNC, allowed attendees to “learn more about nature and the nature center itself,” said Nick Parish, a Mill Creek Park naturalist.
Some people used cameras or iPhones to photograph and document the hidden treasures they found.
Few overt signs of winter, however, greeted participants, as they enjoyed sunny skies and temperatures in the low 40s while scouring the trails and wooded areas near the center to find a variety of items on a list that included a hollow log, a squirrel’s nest, seed pods, moss, berries, woodpecker holes and three types of birds.
Roch’s three children, Daniel and Cory, both 13, and Amelia, 14, busily and carefully searched under leaves and next to a creek’s bank off Slippery Rock Trail for the items on their lists.
After nearly an hour on and off the beaten path, Amelia made significant progress, having found 15 of the 20 items on the outdoor list. Suffice it to say that an icicle was the most challenging, courtesy of the recent mild weather.
“This is pretty cool and fascinating,” Daniel said in summing up his reaction to having visited Mill Creek Park for the first time.
Many teenagers today have interests that can be expensive, as well as antithetical to spending quality time with family members, so another positive aspect of the scavenger hunt was that it provided an enjoyable opportunity for everyone to be together, said Roch, who also came with her husband, Bob Roch, a heavy-equipment operator who aided Amelia, Daniel and Cory in their quest to complete the hunt.
Also enjoying quality family time with her father and brother while diligently trying to finish her checklist of 19 items was Allie Nigh, 9, of Poland, who opted to try her luck in the Ford Nature Center.
“We found a wild turkey, deer tracks, mushrooms, a bird’s nest …” Allie said as she ticked off one by one a number of items she found that also included a raccoon pelt, a box turtle and a great-horned owl, along with garter and black-rat snakes.
The only undiscovered item on her list was a turtle egg, Allie said after having gone through the FNC’s Habitat, Kids Discovery and Live Animal rooms with her father, Brad Nigh, and brother Ryan, 12.
In addition, the scavenger hunt marked the family’s first visit to the nature center, Brad added.
The gathering also wrapped up the park’s monthlong “Winter Celebration: Frozen in Time,” which began Dec. 1 at Fellows Riverside Gardens. The family-oriented set of special events included holiday tree walks and seasonal blooms.