Update (2-22-21): We reached our goal, thanks to an incredible show of community support! Thank you to all of our participants and partners for another successful Challenge! $3,000 is headed to local food pantries, thanks to your support!
Welcome to the first-ever winter edition of the Second Nature Adventure Challenge!
From February 12-21, the Maine West collaborative invites you to “Give Back When You Get Outside!”
We’re looking for 100 people and to get out on a local trail for a walk, snowshoe, cross-country ski, fat bike ride or a run. Once we reach that goal, Maine West will donate $3,000 to food pantries serving the Oxford Hills, greater Bethel, and River Valley regions.
The Challenge is scheduled to take place during vacation week for local schools—a perfect chance for kids and families to get in on the action.
Our friends at Maine Trail Finder make participating easy! Visit www.mainetrailfinder.com/snac to get started.
As the pandemic continues to drive hunger in our communities, the Second Nature Adventure Challenges lets you combine the time you spend outside having fun and being healthy with raising funds to support local food pantries. Your participation in the 2021 Winter SNAC will help raise funds for:
- Bethel Area: Woodstock Food Pantry, Woodstock
- Oxford Hills: Daddy O’s Act of Kindness Foundation, Oxford
- River Valley: Dirigo Middle and High School food pantries, Dixfield
The outdoor playgrounds of the Maine West region are perfect for year-round healthy fun on local trails. There are just a couple of extra things to keep in mind to stay safe:
- Your safety during the pandemic is extremely important. Please continue to mask up and stay safely distanced when sharing the trail. You can find great guidelines for trail safety during COVID-19 here: www.mainetrailfinder.com/stories/post/trails-covid-19
- We want you to stay warm and safe out there in the snow. Here are some tips if you’re new to getting outside in the cold weather:
If you’re concerned about not having winter hiking experience or the right gear to get outside this time of year, we encourage you to check out both the trails and gear you can borrow from these Maine West partners:
- Bethel Village Trails has cross county skiing, fat bike, and snowshoe trails and rent gear for all of those activities. Check out their website for info about gear, passes, and lessons.
- Western Foothills Land Trust’s Roberts Farm Preserve in Norway also has great trails and lends snowshoes and cross-country skiing equipment. Visit www.wfltmaine.org for more info. They also provide snowshoes that may be borrowed from the Norway Memorial Library.
Wondering where to get out? Looking for an event where you can hit the trails with others? We’ll be sharing information regularly about trails, events and more through our Facebook and Instagram accounts. Follow us to stay in the loop!
