Attendance at parks nationwide is down, and yesterday I pointed out that Congressman Sarbanes has a bill that attempts to "Leave No Child Inside"; but this spring and early summer the state of Connecticut was working on getting families outside and into state parks in their own way by organizing The Great Park Pursuit. It's a challenge where families compete as a team by following clues over a period of weeks to determine what park they need to go to next and what activity to engage in once they get there. Things like hiking, fishing, archery, hoola hooping, the list goes on... And not too unlike the television show "The Amazing Race", the families were competing for prizes like great outdoor equipment by being the first ones to complete the tasks and check in. They even allowed families to create their own web page with the photos and stories of what they did to share with each other. And while it's over in Connecticut for this year, it just may be something to suggest to the parks commission in your state for next... After all, they're probably looking for ways to improve park attendance themselves, and what better way to do it than with a fun game that parents and kids can play together?

via:: The Great Park Pursuit