Friends of Runnymede to Hold Educational Park Program

The Friends of Runnymede Park's Rambles in Runnymede program will focus on hibernation and where animals go for the winter this month.

This month's event, "Snug as a Bug in a Rug," looks at how animals at Runnymede Park tuck in and stay warm and safe in the winter. The event begins at 2 p.m. Nov. 25.

The animals in the park have a wide variety of places they venture to in the winter, from dry leaves, to being buried in mud or encased in a weed stalk. 

Rambles in Runnymede is a natural discovery series created for children age 8 and older to get a closer look at the park and all that happens in it. Ramble events are led by Peter Munroe, a trained naturalist. 

Each Ramble event begins with a short presentation about the topic at hand and is followed by a ramble through the park. Events are one and a half to two hours long and will feature hands-on learning. 

Munroe has been teaching children about the outdoors and the natural world for more than 30 years, as a naturalist at the Audubon Allwood Center in Dayton, Ohio and as a biology teacher at Potomac School in McLean. 

The Friends of Runnymede say though Munroe has retired from school, he will never retire from teaching, and knowledge of the natural world has advanced much since most people studied it in school. 

Rambles in Runnymede are free and open to anyone age 8 and older and attendees should dress for the weather. The events are not appropriate for younger children. No reservations are needed. Each meeting begins at the picnic pavilion near the entrance of the park, which is on Herndon Parkway. 

More Rambles are scheduled for the future, including in January, March, April, May, July and August 2013. Rambles in Runnymede is presented by Friends of Runnymede Park in cooperation with the Town of Herndon's Department of Parks and Recreation. 

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