Community members who want to celebrate the new year with an outdoor, physical activity can take advantage of two opportunities to participate in local orienteering events on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day.
“This is an opportunity to get out and try something new, to explore nature while being physically and mentally active. It is both an intellectual challenge and healthy physical activity. All are welcome,” said Mike Minium, event director, Orienteering Cincinnati.
For beginners, he said there is an easy course that is set up along established park trails, covering a distance of a mile or so. Expert courses involve extensive off-trail navigation to more remote and rarely visited parts of the park.
“Orienteering is an outdoor adventure sport that involves finding your own way to a series of checkpoints. The New Year’s Day event will offer courses at six different lengths and difficulty levels.
“Participants can choose to run or walk and whether to go individually or in a group. We expect about 70 to 100 people of all ages on New Year’s Day, from competitive athletes to families with young children to seniors wanting some fresh air and a hike,” said Minium.
As an internationally recognized sport, orienteering is an outdoor adventure in which participants find their way using a map. It is like a treasure hunt. Participants will receive a detailed map of the park, which shows a series of checkpoints they must try to locate.
“As the course planner, I enjoy seeing the smiling faces of those newcomers who successfully complete a course, watching them learn new skills and gain confidence in their own abilities. I also enjoy hearing the people on advanced courses talk about their route choices, where they made mistakes, or were challenged by my courses,” Minium said.
About 95 people participated in last year’s New Year’s Day courses, and 29 participants did the New Year’s Eve Night Course for experienced orienteers.
“Orienteering is always a new adventure. Although we may return to a park that we have used for a past event, the courses are always new and different – with different checkpoints to find. A year ago, MetroParks opened a new pedestrian bridge and trail, which now gives recreational and beginning level orienteers access to parts of the park that previously were rarely used and visited only by the most adventurous orienteers,” Minium said.
Orienteering Cincinnati (OCIN) has around 40 events per year in different parks throughout the area. The organization also offers various educational programs to school groups, scouts and others.
The New Year’s events are in partnership with MetroParks of Butler County, where OCIN provides several events per year, including an “Egg Orienteering” course for young kids in spring, and a “Trail of Treats” around Halloween.
HOW TO GO
What: New Year’s Day Orienteering
Where: Governor Bebb MetroPark, 1979 Bebb Park Lane, Okeana
When: Jan.1, with start times between 11 a.m.-1 p.m. The New Year’s event is from 9-11 p.m. on Dec. 31. Pre-registration closes Dec. 30.
Cost: $10 for Orienteering Cincinnati members, $15 for non-members for groups of 1-5 doing a course together. $5 for youth younger than 18
More info: OCIN.org and yourmetroparks.net
About the Author
Ginny McCabe is an award-winning journalist, bestselling author, media professional, speaker and teacher. She has covered news, lifestyles, and entertainment for the Journal-News for more than two decades. Ginny was named "Best Freelance Writer" in 2018, 2021, and 2022, and she is a Kiplinger Fellow, Class of 2019.
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