2/27/23 update: SUCCESS! The Winter 2023 event closed out last night with a final count of 806 outdoor adventures! Thanks to your incredible support, it’s time to give some money away to our beneficiaries. It’s amazing to see so many people working together to make sure we hit our goals and deliver well-deserved funding to great community organizations. Thank you.
2/23/23 update: Due to the incredible progress, we’ve decided to up the ante! Maine West will now provide $1,200 to EACH of the three great organizations we’re partnered with if we can hit a “stretch goal” of 600 outdoor adventures. Let’s do this!
2/22/23 update: 319 adventures as of this afternoon = 80% of the way there!!!
2/21/23 update: Another huge opening weekend is in the books for the Winter SNAC! An incredible 260 adventures were logged, getting us 65% of the way to our goal! Let’s keep up the great momentum!
GIVE BACK WHEN YOU GET OUTSIDE!
You’re invited to join the Winter 2023 Second Nature Adventure Challenge to help raise money for outdoor youth programming in the Maine West region.
THE COMMUNITY CHALLENGE
Because we know people sometimes need a little extra incentive to make time to get out and enjoy local trails and outdoor activities, the Maine West initiative is challenging people across the Oxford Hills, Bethel/Mahoosuc region, and the River Valley to earn cash rewards for local youth organizations. We are challenging people get out for a total of 400 outdoor adventures between February 17-26 to help our local youth and after school programs get kids outside and enjoying nature.
THE COMMUNITY REWARD
Once we meet the goals, Maine West will contribute $1,500 ($500 each) to help three local programs pay for supplies, equipment, and more to help kids enjoy outdoor adventures. Beneficiaries of the Winter 2023 Second Nature Adventure Challenge include:
- Bethel Area: Bethel Recreation Department
- Oxford Hills: Oxford Hills Outing Club/Bill Koch Youth Ski Club
- River Valley: Chisholm Ski Club
If you participated in the Challenge in the past year, you’ll know we’ve made a bunch of improvements, which include:
- You can now participate by getting outside and active ANYWHERE in Maine school districts 10, 56, 44 or 17 (the Maine West area). It doesn’t have to be on a trail anymore–although we still encourage you to check out the many excellent trails in our area. Our friends at Maine Trail Finder provide a great way to find the right trail in the right place for you.
- We’re counting all sorts of outdoor activities, including the usual stuff like walking, hiking, fatbiking, skiing and snowshoeing. We’re also including things like sledding, ice skating, and building snow forts with your kids. We just want people to get out in nature and moving!
- We’ve made signing up and participating in the Challenge easier than ever. It’s as simple as filling out a quick form to let us know when you’ve gotten outside, which takes about a minute. Seriously–just a minute! The form will be active for the dates of the Challenge, but you can sneak a look at it below. You’ll also be able to access it via QR codes at trail heads and other popular outdoor places, and we’ll share it via social media as well.
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!
