Jasper County Conservation is inviting the public to a Halloween night hike featuring “Jasper Your Friendly Host and Nature’s Glow Show” Friday at Mariposa Recreation Area, seven miles northeast of Newton on Highway T12.
This is a fun and educational, not scary, event featuring skits performed by volunteers with Jasper Conservation Connection and the Newton Community Theatre. Hour-long hikes will begin at 6 p.m. and will depart every 15 minutes. The last hike will begin at 8 p.m. Hikers will step into a Wolfman Jack radio show, meet various characters along the trail and listen to some familiar songs that span over the decades!
Parents with young children are encouraged to come earlier in the evening. Along with the hike, participants will be able to roast marshmallows over the fire, listen to campfire music by Mike Wignall and Colton Forck, go blacklight animal tracking, decorate pumpkin gourds and stargaze with the Des Moines Astronomical Society. Check in at the picnic shelter located east of the lake. The cost is $3 per person, children 3 and under are free.
For more information, call the Jasper County Conservation Board office at 641-792-9780 or go to jaspercountyconservation.com.