Moose Mountains Regional Greenways
Box 191, Union, NH 03887
(603) 473-2020
info@mmrg.info
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date submitted: July 21, 2017
15th Annual Woods, Water & Wildlife Festival Features Fun for the Whole Family
The highly-anticipated 15th annual Woods, Water & Wildlife Festival will take place on Saturday, August 12 from 10 am to 3 pm at Branch Hill Farm, 307 Applebee Road, Milton Mills, NH. Presented by Moose Mountains Regional Greenways and Branch Hill Farm, this day-long celebration of the great outdoors is an occasion for families to have fun, explore and learn about the natural world together.
The WWW Festival will appeal to all animal and wildlife lovers, with many opportunities for both children and adults to get up close and personal with a variety of living creatures. Families can feed and pet barnyard animals or observe and learn about rescued wildlife. There are fish to be caught in the farm pond, draft horses to watch at work, animal pelts to touch in the Mountain Man’s Hut, and a tunnel that gives kids a worm’s view of life in the soil.
All the favorite Festival activities will be back this year. Kids Discover the Forest and Nature’s Playground allow families to explore and play amongst the ferns and tall trees. Two differently-themed Hayrides run all day, giving everyone a choice and chance to ride. Volunteer instructors from NH Fish & Game provide poles and bait to kids for Let’s Go Fishing! in the pond. A Guided Family Forest Walk is a fun discovery adventure led by MMRG Education Coordinator Kari Lygren. Nature experts display rescued wild animals at the Squam Lakes Wildlife Workshop and Ruth Scruton’s Traveling Barnyard brings their petting zoo. Volunteers from the NH Farm Museum, local craftsmen, and a horse logging operation demonstrate traditional rural skills. Kids can try out their craft skills and get creative in Build a Bee House and the Tree Cookie Craft Corner. The York River Ramblers will also be back with their toe-tapping tunes on guitar and fiddle.
Repeat Festival-goers may be interested to know of several new Festival events this year. Families can stroll along winding paths between raised bed gardens and learn about composting and growing heirloom vegetables in the new Festival Permaculture Garden. Here Comes the Sun focuses on the amazing potential of solar energy and how solar panels work. Education Coordinator Lygren expects another first-time activity, Fairy Houses and Gnome Homes, to be very popular with kids. Using natural materials, without disturbing growing plants, children will learn how to sustainably create lovely wee abodes sized for gnomes and fairies.
The festival takes place rain or shine. Homemade salads, desserts, hot grilled food, and cold smoothies will be on sale along with T-shirts and raffle baskets of local fresh produce and other items. Rest rooms and most events are wheelchair accessible. No pets please. The cost is $5/person or $10/family and free to ages 12 and under and to MMRG members; all events are included in the admission price. For more information, including a tentative program of events, visit www.mmrg.info/festival.
Festival proceeds and business sponsorships support MMRG’s land conservation and educational outreach mission. MMRG is grateful to its festival underwriters, the Siemon Company and Branch Hill Farm/Carl Siemon Family Charitable Trust. MMRG would like to thank the following major sponsors: Bruce and Jennifer Rich, the Hays-Dombrower Family, Carl and Beth Siemon, and the Wyatt Family.
Thanks are also due to many more business, organizational, and individual sponsors and supporters and to the dedicated volunteers who have already signed up to help out. More volunteers are needed; please call Kari Lygren at 603-978-7125 or email info@mmrg.info. A few business sponsorships of festival events are still available; please contact Amy Gardner at amy.mmrg@gmail.com.
Moose Mountains Regional Greenway is a non-profit land trust serving Brookfield, Farmington, Middleton, Milton, New Durham, Wakefield, and Wolfeboro (see www.mmrg.info). Branch Hill Farm/Carl Siemon Family Charitable Trust is a private operating foundation (see www.branchhillfarm.org).
A NH Fish & Game volunteer helps a boy learn to fish in the Branch Hill farm pond at last year’s festival. (Photo David O’Connor )
Squam Lakes Natural Science Center presents rescued great horned owl at the 2016 Woods, Water & Wildlife Festival. (Photo Kate Wilcox )
A full haywagon heads across the Branch Hill Farm field at the 2016 Woods, Water & Wildlife Festival. (Photo David O’Connor)
A family enjoys petting a sheep brought by Ruth Scruton’s Traveling Barnyard. (Photo David O’Connor)
