Houston’s 10th annual free, family-oriented outdoors festival

HOUSTON— At a time when people in big cities are becoming increasingly disconnected from the world of nature and the outdoors, Take Me Outdoors Houston is hosting its 10th annual free, family-oriented outdoors festival Sept. 22 from 10 a.m.- 3 p.m. at Discovery Green.

Exhibitors will provide hands-on activities, booths and opportunities to engage audiences who haven’t or don’t often get exposure to the outdoors. The activities at the festival focus especially on resources located in Houston’s backyard.

“By introducing Texans, especially urban adults and kids, to outdoor recreation, our woods and waters and natural places become more relevant and important to them,” said Heidi Rao, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s hunter education specialist in Houston. “We believe recreation leads to conservation. If they’re out there enjoying the natural world, they come to care about it and finally to care for it.”

Take Me Outdoors Houston will host of a variety of exhibitors offering several different recreation opportunities available within the Houston area. Exhibitors this year include: Texas State Parks; Inland & Coastal Fisheries; Texas Outdoor Family; Angler, Boater, and Hunter Education; and Buffalo Soldiers.

Other exhibitors include: Avian Kingdom; Texas Brigades; U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service; Texas Wildlife Association; Texas Youth Hunting Program; Wetlands Center and Baytown Nature Center; Jesse Jones Park & Nature Center; Buffalo Bayou Partnership; SCI Houston – First for Hunters; Laser Shot Shooting Simulator; National Wild Turkey Federation; and Mule Deer Foundation.

There will also be two educational demonstrations of live hawks and other raptors in flight by master falconer John Karger of “Last Chance Forever – the Birds of Prey Conservancy.” Flying demonstrations will be at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.

Take Me Outdoors Houston will take place this Saturday at Discovery Green, a 12-acre park created by a public/private partnership between the City of Houston and the non-profit Discovery Green Conservancy. The park’s mission is to provide a beautiful, urban green space in the heart of Houston that serves as a village green for the city. It is located across Avenida de las Americas from the George R. Brown Convention Center and the Hilton Americas Hotel, sitting between the Toyota Center and Minute Maid Park. This year also marks the 10th anniversary of Discovery Green.

For more information about the event, contact Heidi Rao, (713) 829-1377, heidi.rao@tpwd.texas.gov.