Fairy Tale Campfire Talk: Hairy, Scary but Mostly Merry: Fairies!
Fairy Tale Campfire Talk: Hairy, Scary but Mostly Merry: Fairies! Welcome lovers of nature and the wee folk! Enjoy a magical weekend filled with storytelling, sparkling bubbles, whimsical fairies, fairy house building, and fun in the forest. Put on your wings, see nature as you’ve never seen it before, let your imagination run wild, and join us for this enchanted adventure. As our Park Superintendent (and fairy friend) Renee Raney says, “Nature joyously waits for you. She wants to feel your bare feet on grass and talk to you through the buzzing bees and peeping frogs. She hopes to watch you catch (and release) a firefly, to laugh with you as you splash in a mud puddle, to blow wind through your hair, and herald you with birdsong. Through wonder and imagination, you can discover that every moment in nature is a Once Upon A Time moment.” The Mountain Store will be selling special “fairy fun kits” and more! Bring your little fairies and elves to Vista Cliffside Restaurant for a child’s Fairy Meal with a special enchanted dessert (served to go for picnics or dine on the cliffside deck). Plan a campout: sleep under a canopy of trees, watch for evening fairies to ride across the sky on little brown bats, and listen for starlight fairy lullabies. Primitive Campers receive 25% off their stay (June 24-27, 2021). Creatures love to hear stories and songs. When I build fairy houses or sit in an enchanted garden, I tell stories very quietly. The creatures of the forests and gardens take the stories back to the fairy children and repeat them. Just as we tell fairy tales to our human children, fairies tell human tales to their fairy children. -Renee S. Raney, Park Superintendent (and author of Hairy, Scary but Mostly Merry: Fairies! Curing Nature Deficiency through Folklore, Imagination, and Creative Activities) Enjoy a Peter Pan style storytelling where author (and Park Superintendent) Renee Simmons Raney weaves “true” fairy stories, enhancing the natural world with supernatural creatures (such as fairies, dryads, and pookas), and connects children of all ages to diverse habitats, creatures, seasons, and holidays while inspiring a sense of place, a land conservation ethic, and a comfortable fearlessness for outdoor exploration. She will be signing her book, Hairy, Scary but Mostly Merry: Fairies! Curing Nature Deficiency through Folklore, Imagination, and Creative Activities, that you can purchase from the Cheaha Mountain Store (100% proceeds benefit the park). For more information about International Fairy Day or Fairy Tale Weekend, email Mandy.Pearson@dcnr.alabama.gov or call 256 412-9938. The programs are free with gate admission and to overnight guests. We are committed to providing programs that are educational, fun, and safe. Family units will be spaced out from other family units. We will provide hand sanitizer stations. Date: June 26, 2021 Time: 8:00 PM-9:00 PM Location: Upper Improved Campground; Park day guest admission $5 per adult; $2 per child
