By Robb Clifford
Darke County Parks
The summer months with the Park District are always a busy and exciting time of year, and this summer did not disappoint! Trails to hike and bike, events to visit, programs to attend and summer camps all designed to get you INTO nature!
Starting the summer off at the Solstice, the Bash at Bish suffered a heat wave, but the event was still the coolest place to be! Whether you hopped into a boat on the creek (our Crocl boats are always entertaining!), rigged up to climb our giant Sycamore tree, or tried your hand at axe-throwing, this is THE event to try your hand at outdoor recreation! The BMX bike stunt show made a return this year and did not disappoint! Even suffering a flat tire or two, these stunt-riders always put on the best show. Next year’s event planning is already under way. New shows, new hands-on experiences (zip-lining? Rock climbing?) and more party! Remember, while many adults may feel this is “for the kids”, we design this event especially for all ages so they can try their hand at these exciting sports!
Less than a month after the Bash, the Park District hosted their first Gathering at the Garst event! The Garst Museum approached the Park District in September 2023 asking us to take over the event. As the Parks have been partnering with them and running the encampment for the past decade or so, we were happy to bring our expertise to this event. This year was a simple copy/paste event for the Gathering, but beginning in 2025, we hope to bring in elements of our past Prairie Days event, grow the vendors and food offerings and boost the historical education offered on the encampment side. Connecting the two sites, while just across the road, could prove to be our most difficult challenge. Many who visited, including the vendors, were unaware the encampment was taking place just across the road. Look for ways to connect the two locations in 2025.
Just one week after the Gathering, the Park District in addition to Darke County Center for the Arts, were host to another special event, the Family Art Day at Bear’s Mill. Featuring the art of Ohio Second Lady, Mrs. Tina Husted, this morning of the arts was a great way to showcase the Historic Bear’s Mill and to bring families outside to give painting, ceramics, relief and flower-pounding a try. We were pleased to host the Lt. Govenor Jon Husted and his wife, Tina, who created the wonderful art of the Mill as part of her project of all 88 counties in Ohio. Be sure to experience the Darke County Art Trail, put together by the DCCA with sites scattered around Greenville. Grab a map, and take a trip to see these fantastic pieces of art.
The next morning, beginning at 7 a.m., the Tour de Darke hit the roads for the third year. Once again, we had right around 200 cyclists from the county, region and even as far as Indianapolis. This year also produced our first Unicyclist who completed the 36 mile loop! Offering four routes or “tours” this year, we had the 14 mile “Mini”, the 36 mile “Lower loop”, the 40 mile “Upper loop” (new for 2024 and very popular) and finally our 65 mile “Full Tour”, which connected all the loops. Every year we hear nothing but praise for our rest stop volunteers and we’re so grateful for those volunteers that are up early and on site by 6-7am to provide a spot of rest for our cyclists! This event helps fund improvements to the Park District’s bike trails. Last year wayfinding signs were purchased. This year, we hope to add some additional signage and will continue working towards future bike trail growth by securing funds to help with grants to produce future trails and maintain those that we currently operate.
This year will mark the departure of a favorite event of the Park District. The sun has set on Prairie Days, at least in its most recent iteration. We have made the long-coming, but difficult, decision that while being a great event, the format was far too volunteer-reliant. With our shrinking number of volunteers, we were unable to continue the event in that format. Our September’s won’t feel quite the same. We are exploring options to bring at least parts of Prairie Days to the Gathering at Garst.
As we move out of the busy summer months and step into the briskness of the autumn, we look forward to the return of school groups, the purples and golds blooming in the prairie, brisk morning walks and early full moon walks. The Fall Open House at the Mill and the luminary events will be just around the corner. Darke County Parks is excited for the fall weather and can’t wait to experience it with you! Check out our website for all details: www.DarkeCountyParks.org We’ll see you on the trails!
