Have you heard about the changes at Lonesome Lake Hut? They’re family oriented, educationally based and lots of fun. Last year Emma Ansara (HM) and Pete Chipman (AHM) led the effort to get the new programs off the ground and they were enormously successful. Nancy Ritger, Volunteer Education Coordinator and Lonesome’s Summer Coordinator, describes the goals of the changes as wanting to give kids a sense of place in the landscape of the hut. The activities are meant to enhance families’ visits so that when they leave, they are taking new information and ideas along with the usual fun memories.

Some of the most popular programs from last year took advantage of the lake and got the kids playing with meat-eating plants like sundew, sphagnum and blatterwort or using dip nets to catch nymphs, pollywogs and the occasional leech. These often had creative, eye-catching titles like "Mysteries of the Deep' or "Flesh-Eating Plants". "Secrets of the Bog" utilized another ecosystem within the hut's reach. 'The Robust Rodent" disclosed the wonders of the active beavers around the lake. There were also programs for land-bound folks--lots of nature hikes around the lake exploring geology, bocany, ecology and animal life. "There's a Fungus Among Us" took guests looking for mushrooms, and scavenger hunts invited the participants to explore how it felt to be blind folded and depend on other senses. "Predator and Prey" was another blindfold game which taught about wildlife relationships and senses. Rainy day and night activities included "Nature Writing" when kids wrote poerns about birds, rocks and mountains they have seen on their hikes to the hut. An energetic reading of Dr. Seuss' The Lorax was a hit one wet night. Lonesome lake Jeopardy was also fun and effective in teaching about natural history, AMC and more!

There is a morning, afternoon and evening program each day. All these great nature hikes, games and activities go on around the normal hut croo life. Croos still provide a melodious wake up at 6:30 a.m. to prepare guests for a hearty breakfast complete with steaming mounds of oatmeal and the dinner bell can be heard at six o'clock. Packing still occurs twice a week and cross-dressing fashion shows can be seen on Saturday nights when the croos are all together at the hut. This summer Rob Badeau will be the AHM. We look forward to working with a great croo and also a volunteer from the Student Conservation Association to continue the hard work and fun that Emma and Pete began last year. Everyone is welcome, so come on up!