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When: Todayfrom 9 a.m.-5 p.m. and Sunday from 12-5 p.m.Where: 5000 Lula Lake Road, Lookout Mountain, Ga.* Unstructured activities include open hiking, biking and trail running. But there will be guided nature walks, a photo contest, a raffle and yoga, among other activities. * See the full schedule at lulalake.org
The Lula Lake Land Trust's 20th anniversary weekend went so well last year that the organization decided it should host another, similar event this year, even without a notable milestone to celebrate.
Rain or shine, the group is hosting a founders weekend today and Sunday at the Lula Lake Land Trust in Lookout Mountain, Ga.
"It's not the 20th anniversary, but we really thought we should do another event like that," said the trust's development director, Tricia King-Mims. "It turned into this amazing event last year. The turnout was unbelievable, probably 1,000 people over the course of the weekend, and they gave rave reviews about what a great event it was."
Founders weekend festivities are scheduled, but not required for people who would like to attend and simply have a picnic or hike.
"It can be as unstructured as you want it to be," King-Mims said. "You don't necessarily have to be guided. If you want to freestyle it, that's fine, too."
The Chattanooga Nature Center will host an Animal Ambassadors booth, which should be a hit with the kids, King-Mims said.
Other planned activities include guided nature walks, historical activity with a National Park Service historian and a session on tree planting with a University of Tennessee at Chattanooga professor of biological and environmental sciences.
The Lula Lake Land Trust works to preserve the Rock Creek and Bear Creek watersheds. The trust conserves 10,000 acres of land, some of it in conjunction with Cloudland Canyon State Park and some through private conservation easements. It was founded through the will of Robert Davenport in 1994.
"Founders weekend is a special event that we hope reminds all of our guests that conservation is a long-term endeavor to keep important landscapes in their natural state for everyone to enjoy - forever," the trust's executive director, Mike Pollock, said in a statement.
Contact staff writer David Cobb at dcobb@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6249.