In past years, Centred Outdoors offered a chance for people to get outside and explore the many outdoor opportunities in Centre County with guided tours on Wednesdays and Sundays throughout summer.
Now, while it may be more important than ever to get outside, the program established by ClearWater Conservancy is “keeping the adventure going” by providing online guidance for folks to get up and outside to explore the bountiful natural resources in our own backyard.
Project leader Dan Trew said the program ties right in with ClearWater Conservancy’s desire to engage people in the conservation and protection of natural resources here in the heart of central Pennsylvania. He said getting outside is good for the mind, body and spirit.
“The main component of the program looks at physical activity and mental health and how they benefit from the outdoors,” said Trew. “Right now, when we are all kind of cooped up, it is especially beneficial to find some time to get outside.”
Trew said they had a great reception to a weekly newsletter call with Adventure Alternative, which focuses on one of the topics that would have been covered during Centred Outdoors.
“The newsletter usually includes an in-depth dive into a specific topic (reptiles, history, birds, rocks, etc.), a related activity for the whole family — eco-friendly chalk, recyclable bird feeder, worm composting bin — and a couple places to explore in our region that visitors can see the topic we cover that week first-hand,” said Trew.
“We’ve had about 5,000 people read our articles and help us keep the energy of Centred Outdoors going, even if we can’t offer direct guided tours. We have plans to expand into some videos for tours of areas in our region that offer exciting topics, rare sightings, or interesting history. Like everybody, we’re moving forward doing what we can and staying true to our goals to promote all the cool outdoor destinations we can enjoy in central Pennsylvania and help our neighbors live happy and healthy lives.”
Online, adventurers can find information about the many different locations to explore. Adventure sites include Greenwood Furnace State Park, Talleyrand Park, Black Moshannon State Park, Bald Eagle State Park, Scotia Barrens, Mount Nittany, Lower Trail, Alan Seeger, Colyer Lake, Poe Paddy State Park, Barrens to Bald Eagle Wildlife Corridor, Rhoneymeade Arboretum & Sculpture Garden, Millbrook Marsh Nature Center, The Arboretum at Penn State-Hartley Wood, Spring Creek Canyon and a downtown urban art hike.
Learn more at centredoutdoors.org.
