Kids climbing trees is a common summer activity, but in Silver Spring, Maryland, they’ve stepped it up a notch and brought out some equipment that professional arborists use.
Dozens of kids put on harnesses and hooked up to rigs to climb a tall old oak tree at Long Branch-Arliss Neighborhood Park on Monday, as arborists guided them up pre-installed footholds and then lowered them back down while excited parents watched.
“I just like how hard it is. Yeah, we have to figure out how to go around the hump of a tree and figure out the correct path,” said 11-year-old Eli Sondak.
Eight-year-old Leslie Pineda-Castro also made it to the top, and said she’s now considering a career as a professional tree climber.
“I was proud of myself,” Pineda-Castro told WTOP, on how she felt when looking down from the top.
The event was part of Latino Conservation Week for Montgomery County Parks, a celebration that the department has participated in for a decade.
Latino Conservation Week was created by the Hispanic Access Foundation with the aim of supporting the “Latino community getting into the outdoors and participating in activities to protect our natural resources,” a release said.
“With Montgomery County being one of the most diverse counties, it just makes sense to make sure that we’re reaching everybody, all of our constituents and making sure that everybody knows about the parks,” said Michelle Ramirez, public outreach specialist for Montgomery Parks.
“We have 420 parks in the county. So we want to invite people to come out, check out a new park meet up friends and family while they’re there and try something new.”
The parks department is offering numerous other events throughout the week, including the Bilingual Weed Warrior Event at Cabin John Regional Park and a kayak clean-up at Lake Needwood.
