We Regretfully must cancel Kids day June 2024.   We will certainly be back for 2021.   Watch our web site and our Facebook page for other events as they become avaialble

ACWCL and FIN FEATHER FUR HOSTS A KIDS DAY EVENT EVERY YEAR TO PROMOTE OUTDOOR SPORTS. THE KIDS ARE GIVEN DEMONSTRATIONS AND HANDS ON EXPERIENCE IN B-B GUNS, MUZZELOADERS, BOWS, FISHING AND MANY OTHER CATEGORIES.

  

Kid’s Outdoor Day
Rose Horst
The first Saturday of June every year marks the annual event of the Fin-Feather-Fur Kid’s Outdoor Day , which is held at the Ashland County Wildlife and Conservation League ( ACWCL) in Ashland County. This year marks the 9^th year for the event the ACWCL hosts the event, many volunteers have planned many hours and days helping the occasion take place. This year Carl the Cardinal known as the mascot greeted the participants as they entered the drive of the facility.

Each year this special event draws approximately 400 kids ranging from the ages of 6-12 years of age. There are two sessions with 200 participants in each session , which is divided into four groups. These groups include fishing , archery, BB guns, and exhibits. The most important thing expressed to these youths as they go from station to station with their group is the safety of the outdoors and the safe handling of some of the equipment used prior to the activity.

• The fishing takes place on two trout ponds stocked with approximately 400 trout. There is a volunteer assigned to help with one participant and that participant is allowed to take the trout caught home with them.
• The archery session involves the Ashland Bowman. In this session the participants shoot compound bows at balloons.
• The BB gun shoot takes place on the muzzle loading range on the Conservation Farm. At this session there was a variety of targets for the participants to shoot .  

The exhibits were mostly educational and related to the outdoors including the Division of Wildlife, Ashland County Pheasants Forever with a dog retrieving demonstration. There was also the Physically Challenged Bowhunters of America which had a small archery range. The Cub Scouts troop from Lucas had a display on scouting. The Ashland County Park District set up a display on information on the counties Parks along with a reptile display. Other displays included the Ashland County DARE and the Ohio native wildlife and fish taxidermy display.

At the closing of the two sessions , each participant was awarded of their choice of a fishing pole , BB gun, or a bow and arrow and a voucher for related accessories of what they chose as their gift when they signed up. Also included was a hat, a free issue of the Ohio Valley Outdoor News, and a potted white pine to take home and plant. These choices of gifts were provided by the Fin-Feather-Fur and the Pheasants Forever of Ashland purchased the trees.

This program was initiated by members of the ACWCL who thought there was a need for outdoor knowledge or activity to be introduced to the children of the community or families that may not have outdoor knowledge or would like to know more of the outdoors. Beginning in January each year , volunteers start gathering donations for their sponsors of the event. Sponsors and numerous sportsman clubs and conservation groups come together to sponsor this event which is the largest event of its type in Ohio. This event is not just for Ashland County Residents. There have been kids from area counties that have participated, some kids have come every year since they were 6 years of age to the age of 12. There have also been some of those kids through out the years of participating ,who are now volunteers of the event. One must pre- register for the month of May to take part of this child hood memory one will be sure to always remember.

If you wish to Sponsor The ACWCL Kids Day you can do so by:

• Purchasing adds in the program book
• Donating time to the organization and execution of Kids day
• View a list 2018 sponsors

Ashland Co. Wildlife Conservation League (ACWCL)

1930 Co. Rd. 1035* Ashland, Ohio 44805
Phone (419) 368-3001

Dear Sponsor,

Kid’s Outdoor Day is a planned outing to allow our kids to experience a “taste” of the fun of fishing, casting, shooting, archery, turkey calling, and hunting dogs while in the company of experienced sportsman. This dream has been a pet project of many veteran outdoorsmen for years. The organization and real implementation of this event has involved area sportsman clubs, area businesses, wildlife personnel, and individual volunteers all wanting to share their outdoor skill and knowledge with the young people. The A.C.W.C.L., know to many as the Ashland County Conservation Farm, located on Co. Rd. 1035, will again host this event. The A.C.W.C.L. is a non­profit Ohio corporation registered as EIN-34-0010629. The Kid’s Outdoor Day event offers two sessions to enable one-on-one supervision and guidance. Past years sponsors and volunteers helped to provide this experience for 350+ kids and their parents and guardians.

The events offered at each session are:

·         Kids Fishing Derby- Fishing available to all entries in the farms freshly stocked  ponds.

·         Archery Instruction-Learn to shoot a compound bow from expert bowmen.

·         B.B. Gun Shoot-Learn basic gun safety and get to shoot a real B.B. gun with experts available to teach you how to hit the target.

·         Muzzleloader Demonstration-See how the pioneers hunted and defended their homes and shot black powder guns.

·         Fly Casting-Learn how to fly fish.

·         Fly Tying-Learn how to tie your own flies and identify hatches from fishing pro, Ron Kyle.

·         Dog Training- See hunting bird dogs perform. Learn how to begin training your dog.

·          Turkey Calling-Learn how different types of calls work.

Sponsors are needed to raise money to help pay expenses required to make this day memorable for our area youngsters. Toward this goal we are soliciting sponsors that will be willing to purchase and ad in our printed program.

The sportsmen in this area are famous for their generosity and commitment. This event bonds together area outdoor groups and business uniting them toward one goal, a fun out-of-doors day for our area kids.

Help us to build on the success of last years event by sponsoring your ad in this years program. It’s tax deductible and a great investment in preserving the future of our outdoor heritage.

Thank you for your participation in the future of our youth’s outdoor experience!

A.C.W.C.L.