NEWBERRY – The City of Newberry became one of the first representatives of the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation’s Kids in Parks program expansion in South Carolina last week with the ribbon cutting of their new Hidden Lake TRACK Trail at the Newberry Recreation Complex.

Through a grant from the BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina Foundation, Kids in Parks’ goal is to establish these TRACK Trails, a nationwide network of trails in each of South Carolina’s 46 counties.

These new TRACK Trails offer visitors a series of self-guided activity brochures that turn an ordinary hike into a fun-filled, discover-packed adventure. These trails will feature a trailhead offering a description and map of the trail, as well as activity guides encouraging young hikers to observe nature during their outings, learning about plants and animals, while being physically active.

When building the Newberry Recreation Complex, Collin Shealy, parks, recreation and tourism director said the city did not want to simply build ball fields, but instead, to create a full outdoor recreation experience that was multi-faceted for the community.

“We’ve had the trail, but now for it to become a TRACK Trail, so that you can do adventures as you go around the pond will be cool,” said Parks, Recreation and Tourism Director Collin Shealy.

Mayor Foster Senn echoed Shealy’s thoughts by saying the idea from the start was to really expand on the offerings of the recreation complex.

“You can go to the splash park here, you can play ball, you can exercise, walk on the sidewalks and learn about nature [on the trail],” Senn said.

Teddi Garrick, the program director for Kids in Parks SC spoke with the community and children present on the partnership with the city and how the TRACK Trail came to be.

The trailhead features four brochures, giving visitors the opportunity to experience the trail in four different ways. The brochures feature information on decomposition, pond life, animals and a bilingual brochure entitled, “Animal Athletes,” giving visitors even more chances to complete challenges along the trail.

Garrick explained that once children/families complete the trail, they can visit kidsinpark.com to “track” their adventures and register themselves to receive prizes in the mail for having completed each activity. Lynch’s Woods in Newberry County contains another TRACK Trail, Garrick said, and more would be coming throughout South Carolina.

Students from Earwood Karate Studio and Scout Troop 1789 completed the trail following the ribbon cutting along with community members.

The trailhead to begin the Hidden Lake TRACK Trail can be found just past Gully Washer Splash Park inside the complex located at 1786 Glenn Street Extension.