SD GFP NEWS FOR 9-2-09

 

 

Hartford Beach State Park hosts annual archery shoot

MILBANK, S.D – Grab your bow and head to Hartford Beach State Park to show off your skills. The annual 3-D Archery shoot sponsored by the Milbank Valley Archers is Sept. 12-13. Contestants can register between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. on Sat, and 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sunday.

Participants can shoot in competition or just for fun. Competition categories are based on equipment used, age and gender. Youngsters are welcome and will shoot the same targets as adults, but from closer locations. A "Tough Man" option is also available, in which shooters must shoot from difficult locations. Families can shoot a round together, even if competing in different categories. 

“The steep wooded landscape of Hartford Beach lends itself to some interesting shooting opportunities,” said Jeff Nodsle, park manager. “The course consists of 30 three-dimensional, life-size animal targets. The first 20 targets are along the Prehistoric Village Trail, and the second set of targets is along the Beach Trail.”

This tournament is sanctioned by the National Field Archery Association. The cost is $10 for adults, $8 for non-competitive shooters, $5 for cubs (ages 8-11), peewees (ages 7 and under) are free, and family admission is $25. In addition, a park entrance license is required. Concessions will be available.

This event is held each year the second weekend in September. For more information call (605) 432-6374. Hartford Beach State Park is located 15 miles north of Milbank off SD 15.

-GFP-

History Comes to Life at Beaver Creek Nature Area

BRANDON, S.D. - Fiddlers, homestead living, pioneer farming, Civil War soldiering, blacksmithing, pioneer crafts and outdoor cooking will greet visitors to Beaver Creek Nature Area near Brandon on Sunday, Sept. 13.

From 1 to 4 p.m., the park is hosting the 31st Annual Homesteader Day Harvest Festival. Each year, the event attracts thousands of visitors of all ages who want a taste of homestead life and pioneer living history. 

According to District Park Supervisor Marty DeWitt, the afternoon’s activities showcase what life was like settling on the prairies of Dakota Territory. “For many people, especially younger folks, all they know about life over 100 years ago is what they read in books or see in the movies,” DeWitt said. “At the Homesteader Day Harvest Festival, we give them a chance to experience first-hand the sights, sounds and smells of that bygone era.”

Visitors will be able to watch teams of horses go about the tasks of plowing, cultivating, seeding and harvesting the old fashioned way. They can also sit and listen to the music of the South Dakota Old Time Fiddlers and take part in homestead crafts like candle and rope making, Dutch oven cooking, and butter making. Other demonstrations will include blacksmithing, spinning and weaving, wood carving, chair caning, corn shelling and pioneer games. The 13th Infantry will also be on-hand to give visitors a glimpse of what it was like to be a soldier during the Civil War, and the Silver Creek Mavericks, a cowboy reenactment group will share the stories of the early cowboys on the prairie. Food and refreshments will also be available on site.

The historic 1870s Samuelson homestead cabin will also be open for viewing, including the new interpretive signs and a display of farming tools and cabin furnishings purchased with the help of a generous grant from the Mary Chilton DAR Foundation. “These new additions will give folks a better sense of what it was like to live in a remote log cabin at the turn of the century,” DeWitt added.

Admission to the Homesteader Day Harvest Festival is free. The event is made possible by the support of the Siouxland Heritage Museums, the Mary Chilton DAR Foundation, the Department of Game, Fish and Parks and the many volunteers.

Beaver Creek Nature Area is located southeast of Brandon, just one half mile west of the intersection of 484th Avenue and 264th Street. For additional information, contact Palisades State Park at (605) 594-3824. For additional information on South Dakota State Parks, visit http://www.sdparks.info/ or call (605) 773-3391.

- GFP -