Winter Fun Afternoon

Mark your calendar for Sunday February 28! 

After Church, there will be a Winter Fun Afternoon at the Mirick Farm on the slopes of Mt  

Wachusett in Princeton.  We’re planning on sledding, snowshoeing, and cross-country skiing now that we’re finally getting snow this winter.  There will be a bonfire, and a cooking fire by the lean-to for make-your-own s’mores, and hot drinks. 

Plan to leave the Church about noon.  Bring your own picnic lunch, which you can eat in the dining room before leaving, in your car on the way (the drive is about 25 minutes), or around the fire after you arrive. 

This is an intergenerational event!  Bring your own sleds, toboggans, snowshoes, and skis.  There are lots of slopes – some steep and some gentle – all kinds of fields and lanes through the woods for cross-country skiing, and lots of walks through the woods for those on snowshoes.  You can stand on top of a beaver lodge, follow animal tracks through the snow (moose tracks if you’re really lucky), scout for places where the deer have bedded down, and just enjoy an afternoon outdoors.   If you get chilly, you can warm up at the cooking fire at the lean-to or around the bonfire. 

Of course, dress for winter weather:  layers of clothing, boots, hats, and gloves. Consider a small backpack for lunch, snacks, and odds and ends.  And if you have little ones who may get wet when playing in the snow or along the brook, put a change of clothes for them in your car.

Princeton is just 17 miles north of Worcester.  The quickest route from the Church is to pick up I-290 in Lincoln Square, to I-190 north to Route 140 and then Route 62.  You can also get to Princeton using Route 31 from the center of Holden.  We will pass out maps and “Can’t Miss” directions on February 28.  If you were on the Mt Wachusett climb in October, the route will look familiar:  Mirick Road is parallel to Mountain Road, where we started on the trail up the mountain.  The Mirick farm has a large red barn on the west side of the road, and a white colonial house and other outbuildings on the east side of the road.  For those who use a GPS, plug in “160 Mirick Road, Princeton MA  01541”

Park in front of the barn – head-in parking, please!  If you have a 4 wheel drive vehicle, you can also park in the field to the right of the barn.  And if everything else is filled up, then parallel park along the edge of the road, but leave room for cars to get through.  The bonfire and lean-to are a couple of hundred yards down the lane to the right of the barn, past the pond, and over the brook (there’s a bridge!) to the right when you come into the meadow.

Join us for as much of the afternoon as fits in your schedule and your energy level!

Bad Weather Date:  If February 28 is terrible, we’ll move to the following Sunday, March 6.

Questions?     Call John or Diane Mirick 978-464-2313  

Emails: jmirick@mirickoconnell.com or dianemirick8@gmail.com