Hike NC at Smith Creek Preserve

June 2nd is National Trails Day!  We are celebrating by hosting a guided hike at Smith Creek Park Preserve on Saturday, June 2nd at 10am.  The hike is free, family-friendly and open to all ages, stages and levels.  The nature trail at Smith Creek Park Preserve is one mile and the hike will last approximately 30-40 minutes. Learn more at gohikenc.com/wilmington.

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Get Involved!

Do you want to get involved in your county government?  Several boards and committees including the Parks Advisory Board, Airlie Gardens Foundation Board and the Parks Conservancy Board are looking for dedicated volunteers who want to help our parks and gardens thrive and grow!  Applications are due June 4, 2018.  Learn more and apply at commissioners.nhcgov.com.
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Save the Date for Family Fun Night

Family Fun Night at Airlie Gardens will take place on Saturday, July 28th from 5-8pm!  This is a special after hours event where both young and young at heart will enjoy an evening filled with games, crafts, face painting, nature activities, educational booths, inflatable obstacle course, meet & greet with Reilly the Goose Dog, food trucks, live music by Mr. Mark and MORE!  For more information or to purchase tickets, visit airliegardens.org.  
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Summer Butterfly Releases

Join Airlie Gardens' educators in the Butterfly House each Tuesday, June 12th-August 21st, from 2-3pm for a Butterfly Release!  During this program you will learn all about butterfly life cycles and the types of butterflies that are in the Butterfly House that week.  In case of rain, the program will take place in the classroom and guests will still be able to observe butterflies.  This program is FREE for Airlie Members and included in garden admission for all others.  More Information

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Website Updates

Parks & Gardens staff has been hard at work improving our website to better serve you!  Some of the cool new features include:

-Online Reservations:  The new Online Reservations page makes it easier than ever to reserve and pay for your picnic shelter reservation any time 24/7 without having to call or visit the parks office.

-Interactive Map:  The new, improved Interactive Map on our homepage now features the ability to enter your address and find all the parks close to you.

-Park Prescriptions Page:  The new Park Prescriptions page makes it easy to find information on all the exercise opportunities that are available to you free of charge in your county parks, as well as, links to other New Hanover County resources to help on your health & wellness journey. 

Visit the website today at parks.nhcgov.com!

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