PENFIELD – Staff members at the Parker Dam State Park have released the programs scheduled for the annual Woodhick Weekend, Sept. 2-4, at the park.
Friday, Sept. 2
CCC Experience:
8:30 p.m. – Campground Amphitheater
Though they were tough times, many men found a path in the Civilian Conservation Corps during the Great Depression. Learn about what it was like in that work program.
Saturday, Sept. 3
Kayak Basics – Sponsored by Clearfield-Jefferson Drug & Alcohol Commission:
11 a.m. – behind Beach House
Learn what types of kayaks there are, how to prepare and be safe on the water, and most important – how to get in, out, and get around on the water. Equipment is provided. All fees paid by the sponsor.
Log Drive:
3 p.m. – Beach House
Bring your beach buckets to help haul water for our scaled-down splash dam on the beach. Learn about how folks used to move logs before logging trucks. We will drive our miniature logs to the boom at the lake.
From Stump to Ship:
8:30 p.m. – Campground Amphitheater
As we celebrate our lumbering heritage, come learn what it was like for the woodhicks in past times. The original video shows the men in the woods, along the rivers, and in the mills.
Sunday, Sept. 4
33rd Annual Woodhick Games
Lumberjack Skills Demonstrations – PA Professional Lumberjack Organization:
12 p.m. and 4 p.m. – Woodhick Games Field
Many specialized skills made a woodhick valuable in the forest. Their hard work and skills were put to the test each day as they faced one of the most dangerous jobs of their time. Today, the stakes aren’t quite as high, but the skill level is. Watch as members of the PA Professional Lumberjack Organization demonstrate their skills and explain how what they do was useful to the earlier woodhicks in the forests .
Woodhick Games:
1 p.m. – 5 p.m. – Woodhick Games Field
Register for free at the table in the grove above the Cabin Road (look for the banner) so that you can participate in the Woodhick Games. Then, test your traditional woodhick skills against other amateur woodhicks in six different events: log rollin’, cross-cut sawin’, seed spittin’, ’shoe pitchin’, doo-doo droppin’, and hatchet throwin’. Best score will win you an event; best overall score in your division will give you the coveted title of Woodhick or Woodchick of the Year. There’s a Junior division for those who are 12 and under. Note: If you win an individual event, or one of the Woodhick of the Year divisions, you MUST be at the Woodhick Awards program at 6:00 PM to receive your prize(s).
Arrival of Smokey Bear:
1 p.m. – Woodhick Games Field
Smokey Bear will be in the park for a while to greet the competitors, their families, and other park visitors. Be sure to say hello.
Woodhick Camp Demonstrations
1 p.m. – 5 p.m. – Woodhick Games Field
Watch the blacksmith as he shows off his skills with iron. Other woodhicks will be demonstrating the skills used in the woods and along the waters. Look for the tools-of-the-time display, the camp cook’s tent, and the traditional bean-hole beans.
Log Birling Demonstration:
5 p.m. – Lake Shore, below the Woodhick Games Field
When driving logs downriver, balance was a skill you must possess, or face deadly consequences. The stakes aren’t as high, but bragging rights are on the line when woodhicks face off in the sport of birling. Come watch and cheer them on.
2016 Woodhick Awards:
6 p.m. – Woodhick Games Field
The competitors have given it their all, now it’s time to reward them. The winners of each event will be awarded their prizes; however, winners must be present to receive their treasures. Then, we will crown the 2016 Woodhick, Woodchick Jr. Woodhick, and Jr. Woodchick of the Year.