Nearly 200 walkers and over two dozen pets participated in the First Day Hike at Goodale State Park on New Year’s Day. John Wells, Park Manager at Goodale, led the group on a 2.4 mile hike, previewing new trails under development.

Wells said, “Today, we’re walking in an area of the park that we hope to transition to a new trail system. We just did a thinning of the forest. This forest was very thick and very overgrown and had not been thinned in decades.”

“The First Day Hike,” Wells said, “is a great way to get outside and walk off the collard greens and macaroni and have a good day, spending the first day of the year out in nature, out walking around.” Goodale State Park participates in a nationwide program called First Day Hikes.

The free event was hosted by KC Trails, Friends of Goodale, and Goodale State Park. For more outdoor opportunities in Kershaw County, follow KC Trails and Friends of Goodale on Facebook.