Meadows & Trails run returns for its fifth year
The Hudson Highlands Nature Museum is partnering with Run Wild, Inc., for the fifth annual Meadows & Trails 5K on Oct. 23 at the Outdoor Discovery Center. Run Wild is a brand new group whose goal is to connect youth, particularly underserved youth, with nature. The non-profit will be contributing a grant to cover the registration fee of 100 children 18-years-old and under.
“It’s a great opportunity for kids who may not be able to do this sort of event to do so at no expense,” said museum board member Laura Hromadka.
“Both organizations would like to help the next generation discover their connection to nature, their inner strength, and the benefits of exercise through trail running or walking,” added Joanna Marvel, the museum’s communications and marketing manager. “This is a great way to introduce them to that.”
The race was started by Hromadka after a Cornwall -on-Hudson resident told her they were unaware of the museum’s 178 acres of conserved property, which is open to anyone from dawn to dusk.
“I was thinking to myself, ‘this is a crime.’ This is such an opportunity, in a semi urban area, for people to make use of nature. Of course that’s our goal-to connect people with nature. I thought, ‘we need to pull in a different age group – young adults, people who are out jogging throughout town.’ We decided to give it a go and it’s been growing in popularity each year.”
The entire race is confined to the museum’s property, so there is no street running or police escort. The run, which offers a slight degree of difficulty due to some of the rocky trails and wooden bridges rather than steep slopes, offers “majestic scenery and gorgeous autumn color.” Run, or walk, past muskrat ponds, through tall grass meadows, along wide grassy paths, elevated berm views, and clearly marked wooded trails.
Following the race, Grasshopper Grove will be open. The museum also released an itinerary of other activities, to promote the community, based on age group and demographics. The information can be found on the museum’s social media pages, as well as the website – hhnm.org/meadows-and-trails-5k.
Packet pickup and same-day registration will be held from 7:30 to 8:45 with the race beginning at 9 a.m. Pre-registration is encouraged by visiting the website above.
