By Juliet Kadzviti

Waskesiu Children’s Fest allows kids to discover inner explorer

Jul 17, 2016 | 8:07 AM

If you walked around Waskesiu Beach this weekend, you would have seen a wide array of activities for children, ranging from tree-hugging lessons to classic face-painting activities.

The anticipated 24th Annual Waskesiu Children’s Festival was held on Saturday July, 16.

For Parks Canada interpreter Colleen Gerwing, who helped co-ordinate the event, seeing attendees enjoying themselves was the best part of the festival.

“When the weather’s nice, everybody’s happy, they go for an ice-cream, they go for a swim, they’re having a good time. It’s pretty laidback and relaxed,” she said, describing the atmosphere at the festival.

Children attending the popular event got a passport allowing them to explore the beachfront at over 12 different stations including a volunteer firefighters barbecue, Indigenous craft workshop, a campfire sing-along, and a special initiative called hug-a-tree.

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“It’s an adventure smart survival program, it’s done all across Canada, and it’s very popular and it’s mostly for kids, like what to do if you get lost. It has a lot of interesting information for adults and kids too, you can apply some of the survival techniques for (everyday life),” she said.

Gerwing said the event was mutually beneficial for attendees and park staff.  

 “It’s a chance for us to interact with the public in the way of not only providing information but celebrating national parks and what they mean, it’s a place to have fun, it’s a place to explore,” she said.

She added events like the children’s festival often lead to families exploring other parts of the park.  

“It’s just the stepping stone, to get out, maybe get out paddling and hiking and seeing what’s in the park and enjoying activities all-year round,” she said.

Festivities continue on Sunday, July 17 with a children’s program at the Nature Centre on the beachfront starting at 10:30 a.m.

 jkadzviti@panow.com

On Twitter: @julietkadzviti