This marks the 11th year for the Kentucky State Parks Family Adventure Quest – the digital photo scavenger hunt for families or friends.
Participants are invited to learn park history and search for the perfect photo op as they explore Kentucky State Parks at their own pace throughout 2016.
Teams will choose an east or a west booklet when registering. This means that about one-third of the quests which are park-specific, will be in the eastern or western half of the state.
The remaining two-thirds are not tied to any particular park and can be completed wherever the team chooses to visit based on the challenge. Teams may choose to seek an historic building, hunt for critter tracks, or explore a golf course. The quest booklet serves as a guide to a year’s worth of adventures with friends or family.
Teams have until Dec. 2, to complete as many quests as they like in an effort to have fun and win prizes. Adventure Quest is designed as a goal-oriented way to explore the natural, cultural, and historical resources of one of the Commonwealth’s park system.
A digital camera is necessary to capture each team’s adventures along the journey, and photos just might show up on the park website or Facebook page. In fact, teams can earn a point just for sharing a picture of their quest to the Kentucky State Park’s Facebook page.
Participants from 2 months to 73 years old participated in the quest in 2015, and once they start, many teams repeat year after year. Thirty-four teams of the 142 that signed up in 2015 were repeat participants. One team has participated for 10 years.
Team Avengers from Louisville completed their second year in 2015.
“Our family enjoyed exploring parts of our beautiful state that we may not have ever made time for,” said team captain Kriston Glasnovic.
The Avengers completed 11 quests, which earned them a lodging certificate and three passes to the park fort, house tour, or museum of their choice.
By correctly completing just 10 or more quests, a team will receive a certificate for a one-night stay at the park lodge of its choice (Sunday through Thursday) and free passes to park museums or forts. Complete 20 quests and receive the lodge stay and passes, plus a $25 Kentucky State Parks gift card. Complete 25 quests and get the lodge stay, passes and a $50 gift card.
There are four bonus opportunities, so if there is a quest a team doesn’t want to do, it can choose one of the bonus quests to take its place.
“It was great to have options and be able to get 25 quests completed,” said Ivy Jones, captain of Team Wild Jones,’ from Elizabethtown, which also finished their second year of participation in 2015 and won the top prize.
If planned out properly, the first prize level can be attained by visiting as few as four different parks.
A $15 registration fee includes the quest booklet, a commemorative bandana map, a compass, bonus coupons for some of the destinations involved and informational materials to help you along the way.
More details and registration forms can be downloaded here . A registration form can also be picked up at any Kentucky State Park, starting in February.
Kentucky State Parks