MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND MAY 24-25

 

RIDE THE TRAILS SATURDAY BEGINNING AT 1 PM

 

FREE WILL DONATION CHUCK WAGON FEED OPEN TO THE PUBLIC (IE: YOU DON'T HAVE TO BRING YOUR HORSE) AT 6:30 PM.

 

ENTERTAINMENT TO CONSIST OF COWBOY POETRY AND MUSIC

 

SUNDAY MORNING POTLUCK AT 8:00 AM

SUNDAY TRAIL RIDE AT 10:30 AM

 

LIMITED PRIMITIVE CAMPING AVAILABLE

CALL FIRST!!! SO WE KNOW HOW MANY TO EXPECT AND IF YOU'LL NEED A CAMPSITE!!!

 

CONTACTS:

 

GINGER WALKER 712-225-6709 OR 712-229-9117

DUANE HESCHKE 712-434-2361 OR 712-229-8804

 

Ok, that's the official info above. Here's the scoop: the Cherokee Arena Committee has graciously pulled together plans for this neat new event at Martin's. All the profits will go toward the park, and we will earmark these funds for horse related amenities. We are expanding this property with 80 additional, beautiful acres. This very afternoon my team and I will blaze new trails into the new property, so if you've ridden Martin's before, prepare to explore new ground. All our trails are dirt trails with minimal development. We leave structure, like rocks and logs, in the trail to minimize erosion. Stay on the trails, let us know how they feel, bring us your ideas and your talents and LETS MAKE THIS A SAFE AND FUN PLACE TO RIDE! I'll be there to scoop chili onto your dog and to sing along with the acoustic musicians, plus I wouldn't miss the potluck which boasts legendary pancakes and plenty of food for all. We will be flexible with camping arrangements for this event, so pick your spot and park your trailer for the night. See you there!!!

Camper Who? Camp-or you'll forget how much fun it is!!!

 

I just made that up! Maybe you didn't laugh, but I'll bet you smiled. Anyway, we're getting lots of calls from campers who wonder if the parks are open. Well, they are! Martin's Access, Larson Lake, Steineke, Silver Sioux and Ranney Knob are all available to Campers like yourself for a night or a weekend of outdoorsey fun.

 

The water and electricity are on at Silver Sioux. Have a hot shower to take your mind off of the expansive trimming and restructuring our crew has been working on in the campground. Many sites have received a make-over to make room for larger RVs. New rock pads and grass seed will improve camping conditions. Please join us to watch the grass grow, and don't trample it in the meantime. By the way, there is now access to water from nearly every electric site. Just our way of letting you know we care.

 

If you don't have an RV, and sleeping on the ground isn't your idea of a jolly good time, why not rent the Silver Sioux Lodge for the weekend? Amenities include a full kitchen, soft beds, a hot indoor shower, fireplace, charcoal grills, scenic views and peace and quiet. Nobody will pull their Lodge up next to yours in the middle of the night, cursing because their spouse can't back the thing up straight. And it's only $50/night. Warning: your kids might like it better than your house.

 

Keep an eye on our Education page, where soon you will find a list of things that are fun to do in Cherokee County Parks, or in your own backyard, compiled by the 5th Grade Graduates of the Cherokee County D.A.R.E. Program. All of my favorites are on there, but if we've missed anything, let us know! We'll add your suggestions, as long as they're family-friendly!

If you ever wonder what's happening here at the CCCB and you find that I haven't been diligent about rambling here lately, check out the Cherokee Chronicle Times website. Their talented staff does an awesome job of chasing us down for photos and progress reports, helping to get our message out to the whole world through their almost-daily publication and their updated site on the web.

 

Today, however, feel free to stay here and browse! Be sure to paruse the list of donors who have contributed to the Martin's Access Expansion! I get a big smile on my face when I add to the list. These are our heroes, folks! They have given so willingly and generously. We are all familiar with that feeling that we just can't stretch the ends to meet our own needs, let alone meet someone else's. Our donors bucked that sensation and gave us the money. I can't thank them enough!!! They gave that money to YOU for your new 80-acre Martin's Access Addition. Wow!

 

Anyway, the list is full of greatness. Take for example Cherokee Pheasants Forever, reaching a grand total donation of $30,000 after they surprised us with $5,000 more at our recent local PF banquet. Or Dr. Tom Gary, quietly mailing a check for $5,000 in our final stretch of fundraising, and expecting no special recognition. Or our local 4-H kids raising funds and thoughtfully voting to support our project, when 4-H and the community have so many other needs. Cherokee County is full of exceptional people, working together to make life great for everyone. I just hope we can build them a beautiful rural park to make them proud.

 

So where do we stand? With land acquisition goals well within reach, we have begun to build a park. I don't even need that hot cup of coffee in the morning with an exciting project like this on my plate! Our first steps include widening our entrance from the road, building a boundary fence, erecting signs, seeding the crop areas, and cleaning up old fence and scrap piles.

 

I am frequently asked if the new portion of the park will be open for 2008 spring turkey season. It will be a close call. I don't expect the county to hold the deed to the property until late April, and our developed parks close to hunting April 30. The answer, then, is probably not. But there are certainly gobblers in Martin's Access (saw a gobbler in full strut last week south of Cherokee, by the way) and plenty of good hunting spots within the existing 224-acre park.

 

Watch for a groundbreaking ceremony to announce public ownership! Come help us celebrate a victory for conservation and for the community! Details to be announced.......

It's a great time to be the Cherokee CCB Director, let me tell you. Our department is the recipient of a lot of positive community spirit of late. To our donors, Thank You!!! Your faith in us will be rewarded with an inspired county park system.

 

Yesterday we were granted another $20,000 toward our Martin's Access project by Iowa Pheasants Forever. What that means is that the money that the county chapter has raised through banquets over the last decade is coming back to our community to provide public hunting, habitat and outdoor recreation for YOU! Isn't it nice to see local progress paid for by a local celebration of natural resources? I'm so impressed with PF right now, I just want to pat them all on the back. What a great job they've done. And what a big help they are to the county when we need it most!

 

Picture this: Sunshine, a carpet of green, islands of prairie amidst campers, cabins and tents, families gathered to enjoy the outdoors, children discovering deer tracks in the sand under a swingset, squadrons of dragonflies buzzing the skies over trail riders' heads, birdwatchers lounging on a bench gazing into the oak savannah. I can see this new park at Martin's Access in my mind's eye. Hunters unloading eager dogs from pick-ups in November, second graders in the spring chasing natural mysteries along trails, under logs and over streams, river-weary paddlers enjoying a hot shower and the serenity of sitting around the campfire with friends on a summer evening. I can see myself there, my friends, my kids and yours, and the families and children they will call their own someday. No matter how technology or economics may change our communities, future generations will always have this public land to enjoy the simple pleasures of the outdoors.

 

Like I said, it's a great time to the CCCB Director.

 

If it weren't for good luck, I'd have no luck at all.

The cross-country ski trail at Red Tail Ridge Habitat Area is groomed with ski tracks for your enjoyment! Parking and trail access are available on the south side of C44, east of the Little Sioux River. No skis? The Cherokee County Conservation Board has many pairs of skis with shoes and poles available for the daily rental fee of $5 per set. We have children's sizes as well as adult. Call ahead so that we can set aside your size, and remember we are staffed from 8-4:30 M-F. No snowmobiles are permitted at Red Tail Ridge, so the trails are safe, quiet and smooth. Nearly two miles of trail is groomed, and many skiers enjoy the adventure of a trek beyond the trail into the river bottom timber. Expect plenty of wildlife sightings!

 

The Little Sioux River ice, in case you are curious, is still unsafe for any sort of traffic. The river was up this fall, so flow is strong and pools are deep. Don't take any chances!

 

Hot coffee? Every morning. I prefer mine black and piping hot. Just in case you wonder what to bring should you stop in for a visit. Oh, and my staff has a fondness for raised doughnuts and cinnamon rolls. They don't turn their noses up at cookies either.

 

Happy New Year! Get outside and enjoy the season if you can! It will be a while before that dormant green world warms up and starts blooming and budding again. Might as well appreciate the snow on crooked tree limbs, the tracks telling stories of unseen animals, and the sun dogs in an icy sky...