No Child Left Inside ®: The Great Park Pursuit starts May 10

Have you noticed the birds are singing more, the red-winged blackbirds have returned to Connecticut and skunk cabbage and trout lilies are emerging? Hopeful signs that spring weather will be here soon. This year spring began on March 20, the vernal equinox, at 12:57 PM. The vernal equinox is when day and night are approximately equal everywhere and the sun rises and sets due east and west.

With the spring season comes plans for the 9th Annual No Child Left Inside® Great Park Pursuit (GPP): CT State Parks Family Adventure. GPP is being kicked-off on Saturday, May 10, 9 AM - 3 PM, at Chatfield Hollow State Park, Killingworth and will end on the summer solstice, June 21, 2014. In addition to other fun activities throughout the seven weeks, on June 7 and 8th, as part of CT Trails Day, we will join our friends at CT Forest & Park Association on hikes throughout the state. Our final GPP adventure will be a campout at the University of Connecticut campus in Storrs. Normally we don't tell people at the beginning where the final event and campout is, but this year we are working with the professors and students at UCONN to plan so many great activities (and it will be so much fun to see all the new babies at the barns), we thought you would want to know early so you can make plans to be there.

Seven weeks of exciting adventures! Everyone is invited to attend even if they are not pre-registered, but to be eligible for the final prize families (someone over 18 with someone under 18) must be pre-registered by April 25th, must attend all the events, must check-in at the registration table at each of the guided events and must provide documentation (see registration information) that they attended the self-guided events. Registration will open on Tuesday, April 1 and will close at noon on Friday, April 25.

For more information contact Diane Joy, diane.joy@ct.gov