'Snake' slithers into park

HURON TWP. — We have a new "snake" at Osborn MetroPark. And while you can always find local wildlife here, our latest visitor is of the non-living sort. I'm talking about Rocky, of course. Rocky is a snake made entirely of painted rocks. If you Google "rock snake," you'll find thousands of articles from across the U.S. Headlines about various parks connecting strangers, spreading joy and growing impressively long rock snakes fill your screen and make you wonder: How can something this simple gain so much popularity? It's unclear which park started this trend, but parks of all sizes have been sharing pictures of their rock snakes on social media and people are noticing. Our Erie MetroParks team had seen pictures of rock snakes circulating, but it wasn't our idea to install a rock snake at Osborn MetroPark. The district's programming department consists of four full-time naturalists that plan months, and sometimes even years, in advance for all our public programs, events and special projects. So, while we liked the rock snake idea, we had no plans to start the project anytime soon. And yet, we recently welcomed Rocky into the park thanks to VacationLand Federal Credit Union. Heather Gilchrist and her team at the credit union have been longtime supporters of Erie MetroParks. In the past, the credit union has hosted the Easter egg hunts at Osborn MetroPark, and, in the last two years, it has become a valuable sponsor of our annual Earth Day and Osborn Fall Fest community events. When Heather emailed me asking if we'd like to partner on a rock snake project, I knew we could work well together and make it happen. Visit where Rocky resides Most rock snakes are completely passive projects for parks. Examples at other parks explain that community members should paint rocks at home and deliver them to the park. Heather had the great idea to provide rocks for the community. I loved that idea so much that I decided we should provide the painting supplies as well. You know the saying, "If you build it, they will come,"? For Rocky, this couldn't be truer. If you visit Osborn MetroPark, you can find Rocky on the Discovery Trail behind Harmony Place in the Southwoods, just south of the Frost Center. His head is visible from the primary walking trail, and his ever-growing body slithers back into the woods, safely tucked away from heavy traffic. People of all ages are welcome to add painted rocks to help Rocky grow. We have opened a painting station inside the Frost Center during regular hours, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays through Fridays. Rocks, paints, brushes, bowls and soap are all provided with the trust that community members will clean up after themselves when finished. Freshly painted rocks are usually left to dry, and I add them to Rocky the following morning. Help Rocky grow Rocky is proving to be a meaningful addition to Osborn MetroPark. He is well over 200 rocks long at this point, and we've had at least 100 first-time visitors in the Frost Center since Rocky was installed on July 18. Our nature center attendance has been increasing as Rocky grows, and he has given our naturalists more opportunities to visit with the community and share information about our education animals and program offerings. Many rock painters coming to the Frost Center don't know that our nature center room is open to the public and full of local wildlife — even real snakes — books, coloring pages, puppets, park information and other activities for children and families. Like other parks across the U.S., we have seen Rocky bring joy and connect strangers. Our staff and our partners at Vacationland Federal Credit Union are so happy to see so many visitors participate in this project. Adults and children alike are coming together in the Frost Center to mingle over snakes and painted rocks in a fun and rewarding experience. We love seeing the creative decorations on the rocks and, more so, how tickled children are when they come back to visit Rocky and see that he has magically grown. I think the sense of contributing to a community project that is larger than yourself is always a good feeling. We can't thank VacationLand Federal Credit Union enough for creating Rocky and bringing him to Osborn MetroPark. We invite you to help Rocky grow. Make sure you share photos of your painted rocks and Rocky with the hashtag #RockSnakeErie.