Connecting Kids With Nature
Create Outdoor Memories Together!
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Welcome to Happy Trails Family Nature Club! Happy Trails is a new, informal, free nature club, begun in the Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN area. It was started by me, Jodi Hiland, a local parent who is committed to offering my children as much outdoor free-time as possible. It is my vision that having year-round, regularly-scheduled nature outings will help other families spend more time connecting with the outdoors. And everyone will benefit all the more from enjoying nature walks together!
The "Club" is open to anyone with a sense of adventure, and families are never obligated to participate in more than they wish. The only requirements are that children must always be accompanied by adults in their family, and that they are responsible for their own children. Make memories together! In fact, studies show that the two things required for raising Earth-protecting children are: 1) time spent in nature, and 2) with someone close to the child!
Childhood these days is quite different from when most of us were kids. Many adults today remember playing outside for hours at a time when they were children. Though today's world is different, the need for human beings to spend long hours in the natural world hasn't changed.
I am very excited to be learning more about the Children and Nature Movement, as it is being called. It is my hope that this website will be informative, and inspiring. For more about why the nature-child relationship is so vital to our children, and our culture, please see the Nature and Children page.
My family and I look forward to meeting you on the trail!
Jodi
"Passion is lifted from the earth itself by the muddy hands of the young; it travels along grass-stained sleeves to the heart." Richard Louv
Did You Know?
Kids who start out camping close to home, are more likely to someday camp in the wilderness.
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