GO OUTSIDE

(And Don't Come Home ´Til The Street Lights Come On!)

May 15 at Kenton County's Doe Run Lake

Calling all tree-huggin', fish-catchin', canoein', kite-flyin', bird-watchin', wildflower-lovin', geocachin', and hikin' people! It's back!

Go Outside is a half-day festival has been designed to bring public attention to a terrific place ~ Doe Run Lake. Go Outside has been designed with YOU in mind ~ for you to explore fun stuff that you and your family might like to do this summer. Go Outside is an outdoor enthusiast's dream come true! You'll have opportunities to speak with hobbyists and professionals ~ the experts! ~ about the outdoor activities they love. They'll be ´showing and telling' what they do and what they have to offer. You'll see stuff you only read about in magazines ~ the stuff you've always wanted to try, and thought, ´Well, that might be fun!' or ´I wonder if I could do that?' And maybe you'll discover that adventure you've been hoping to find…right here in Kenton County and Kentucky!

Admission is free!

The date has been set for Saturday, May 15 and the event will run from 9:00 am until 1:00 pm, although you can stay and play until dusk if you want to. We'll be at Doe Run Lake, where we planned to hold the event two years ago, until the half the roadway back to the lake fell off. A last-minute change of venue in 2008 put Go Outside at the Richwood Flea Market, with space kindly provided by Mike Stallings. The road has since been repaired AND there is a restroom (not a flush toilet ~ it's a one-holer port-o-let inside a nice concrete building). Now, if you gotta go, at least you won't have to leave!

Northern Kentucky Youth Association will be operating a fundraiser in handling concessions with hotdogs and hamburgers with all the fixins', softdrinks, and candy.

Bluegrass music! Mike Dominach from Dominach's Taekwondo Academy in Independence has graciously agreed to present our musical guests, the Kenton County Bluegrass Band! Toe-tappin', foot-stompin', dancin' if ya get happy feet bluegrass music from 11:00 am until 1:00 pm!

´Vendors' will be pretending that ya'll are from Missouri and will be showing you who they are, what they do, and how to find them. Demonstrations are fun! Stuff is good! Booths will be staffed from 9:00 am ~ 1:00 pm. Many ´Vendors' will be doing special demonstrations. Each ´Vendor' will also be providing a door-type prize that will be awarded in a free raffle at the end of the day.

Mark your calendars for Saturday, May 15 and check back at this site often. As we get more calls from ´Vendors', we'll make updates to this page so you can follow along as we add more and more fun!

We are expecting 25-30 ´Vendors'. Here is an alphabetical list of those who have already said they will be there:

Behringer-Crawford Museum

Big Bone State Park

Boone County Water Rescue

Boy Scouts of America ~ Independence BSA Troop 8

Cincinnati PIGS (People Interested in Getting Stuff) Aloft Kite Club

Crystal Clear Science

Dagaz Acres

Dominach's Taekwondo Academy

Field Programs on Fowler Creek

FORE (Foundation for Ohio River Education)

General Butler State Park

House of Reptiles, LLC.

Kenton County Alliance to Prevent Substance Abuse

Kenton County Conservation District

Kentucky Department of Fish & Wildlife Resources

Kentucky Division for Air Quality

NKU Center for Environmental Education

Northern Kentucky Water District

RiverWorks Discovery

WAVE Foundation at the Newport Aquarium

For more information, call (859) 525-PLAY (7529)! Don't miss Go Outside! You won't want to ´come home ´til the street lights come on'!

Directions: Doe Run Lake is easy to find! The address is 1501 Bullock Pen Rd., Covington, KY 41017. From I-275, take Exit 80 (Covington/Independence). Go south on KY 17 about 2.5 miles (past Pioneer Park) to Bullock Pen Rd., turn right on Bullock Pen Rd., and cross the bridge over Banklick Creek. At the stop sign turn left on Old KY17, and go .8 miles to the park.

For news of upcoming programs, activities, and events to be held in Kenton County's parks, call the Parks & Recreation office at (859) 525-PLAY (7529). Ask about signing up for a once-a-week e-mail update of What's Happening in Kenton County's parks.