costume characters

Do you know the Box Turtles favorite thing to eat?

Enjoy catching up with this "fungi"

To catch up with the Box Turtle we took a trip to the woodland forest to track him down. He is so well camouflaged that it took a bit to find him, and he was answering our questions soooo slow that we asked him to email them to us. We knew that he needed to take his time. Check out below what he shared about Halloween Hikes and what he has been up to this year.

I am so sorry this took such a long time to get back to you. I’m such a slow typer, but I don’t have fingers and I rarely go backwards. I am excited to see you pursuing this effort and happy to share, in fact, I think its a shelluva-n-idea!

If you want to empathize with my predicament, you can read my responses very slowly.

/s/ Box Turtle

First of all, what do the other characters at Halloween Hikes call you?

My friends on the trail call me Turtle, but I answer to anything when mushrooms are offered.

Where do you hang out when not on the trails at Halloween Hikes?

This is a popular question from the little people on the Hikes. I always share with everyone that during the summer I travel to the Turtle Family Reunion.

Why do you want to share your story at Halloween Hikes?

I think it’s better if I share my story instead of the skunk. She just wants to stink up the place and eat my youngsters.

Besides that, how would she know what to tell the Hikers about me? Or any of the other characters, for that matter.

If *I* tell my own story, I can be sure the hikers learn all the important things about me: I love mushrooms, I love the hikers, I love mushrooms, I’m a hider and proud of it, I love mushrooms, I like dry ground like the tortoise (he’s the one who beat the hare), I love mushrooms, I don’t like coffee, I love slugs too!, I need to be taken off the road and placed in the direction I am travelling, I love mushrooms, I may have an important date across the road.

IT COULD HAPPEN !!

How long have you been a part of Halloween Hikes?

With the Hikes coming up in a couple of weeks, for 27 years.

Who is your favorite other Halloween Hikes character to hang out with?

Howie Pollute is one of my favorites.

What do you do to get ready for your big nights?

Like any other day, after a day on the log, picking up some sunshine, I’ll grab a light dinner over at the unity garden, then I’ll meander over to my spot on the trail, do a little housekeeping, maybe take a quick nap, and then wait for the hikers to show up. Some of them are even slower than I am!

What is your favorite part of the evening?

When the hikers arrive, when the little people want to talk with me, when hikers bring me mushrooms!

What do you do after an evening on the trails at Halloween Hikes?

I enjoy a salad I make with the mushrooms, strawberries and slugs that people bring me! I love mushrooms, because I’m a “fungi” !!

Tell us your favorite joke!

Joke? I offer turtle truths!

Thank you for taking the time to learn more about the Easter Box Turtle. There is much more that you can only hear at Halloween Hikes on the woodland trails! It is an evening you and your family do not want to miss.

Halloween Hikes at the Chattahoochee Nature Center

October 23, 24, and 30 | 6-10PM

Purchase tickets now!

The Kingfisher Can’t Wait to see you at Halloween Hikes

What has the Belted Kingfisher been up to since Halloween Hikes last year?

Why hello everyone! Did you miss me? I was just fishing over at the pond at the Chattahoochee Nature Center and it made me remember how much fun I had last year seeing you all at the Halloween Hikes!

Can you believe it’s been a full year since we got to hike together and you got the privilege of meeting moi – the most beautiful bird on this side of the Chattahoochee?

Well I’ve had quite a busy year myself. After we finished having fun together last October, I had a quiet winter. Most days, all I did was fish. I would get up in the morning and perch on the edge of the Chattahoochee River. When I saw a fish that looked particularly tasty, I would take flight, close my eyes (I hate getting water in my eyes) and grab the fish in my long pointy bill. Then I would take it back to where I was sitting, pound it against the perch, and eat it head first. This was how I spent almost every day this winter – swoop, catch, and pound. To be honest, it started to get a little lonely and a little bit of a headache from the pounding. Just little old me, all by myself out there hunting the same spots day in and day out.

One day, I was hunting around my usual dinner spot when I spotted a really scrumptious fish. I swoop down, close my eyes, snap my beak shut …. and next thing I know, I have the head of the fish in my mouth, and another kingfisher – a male kingfisher – has the tail in his mouth. I looked into his dark eyes and blue feathers, and it was love at first sight. But of course, I played coy at first (and ate the whole fish myself). I let him court me by bringing me fish, until finally he asked if I would build a burrow nest with him. Of course I said yes!

We spent the whole rest of the spring together and next thing you know, we had eggs. It all went so fast!

After a whirlwind of incubation, where of course my prince charming helped me sit on the eggs, we had baby kingfishers. I spent the next two months making sure they got enough fish to eat, but they really mean it when they say they grow up fast. By August, I was already an empty-nester.

And that brings us up to now! I absolutely can’t wait to see you guys again. Seeing you every fall is my favorite part of the year. You are always so much fun to hike with and your costumes always make me so proud to call you my friends. Plus, I love getting the chance to see all my other furry, feathered, and scaled forest friends who don’t get to come out to the river and play as much as I would like.

Will you come see me this year? I have lots more stories to tell you, and I’m hoping you have a few to tell me as well!

See you on the trails!

Halloween Hikes at the Chattahoochee Nature Center

October 23, 24, and 30 | 6-10PM

Purchase tickets now!

A Visit to the Chattahoochee River to catch up with the River Otter

You will be "otterly" entertained

Halloween Hikes is a time to catch up with lots of woodland and watershed creatures and learn about their natural lives. Trail guides lead groups along the well-lit trails for a close encounter with some creatures that can be hard to spot in their natural habitat.

We caught up with the River Otter down by the river, imagine that! He is a hard one to catch up with because he is always busy, busy, busy. Find out who he likes to hang out with when not at Halloween Hikes and other interesting bits of information.

First of all, what do the other characters at Halloween Hikes call you?

Most of them call me crazy.

Where do you hang out when not on the trails at Halloween Hikes?

When not at Halloween Hikes you will find me on the riverbank. I have a wicked mud slide just off the boardwalk.

Why do you want to share your story at Halloween Hikes?

Although I am known as a wild and crazy mammal, I get serious about reminding humans to keep the river clean. That’s where I live! You otter tell your friends.

How long have you been a part of Halloween Hikes?

Seems like I have been part of Halloween Hikes for years. It is so much fun that I lost track of how many years!

Who is your favorite other Halloween Hikes character to hang out with?

Mother Nature is a blast to hang out with down by the river. You should see her on the water slide! It is “otterly” hilarious!

What do you do to get ready for your big nights?

No preparation necessary for me. I just show up for the fun. I always show up for fun.

What is your favorite part of the evening?

My favorite part of the evening is seeing all the human pups in costume.

What do you do after an evening on the trails at Halloween Hikes?

I’m working on a new routine for water gymnastics– a triple summersault.

I’ll practice that and munch some tasty fish.

Tell us your favorite joke!

What did the swamp rabbit say to the beaver? We need to be nice to otters.

Thank you for taking the time to learn more about the River Otter. There is much more that you can only hear at Halloween Hikes on the woodland trails! It is an evening you and your family do not want to miss.

Halloween Hikes at the Chattahoochee Nature Center

October 23, 24, and 30 | 6-10PM

Purchase tickets now!

Hanging out with Howie Pollute

Investigating all your pressing questions

Howie Pollute has a lot to say about what is hanging around these days. They have been part of Halloween Hikes for a long time! Read on to learn more behind the scenes information on Howie Pollute and of course their favorite joke! It is a really “crusher”!

First of all, what do the other characters at Halloween Hikes call you?

Howie when they are being generous, but sometimes they call me the trash lady, noisy girl and I get lots of lines about being in the dumps.

Where do you hang out when not on the trails at Halloween Hikes?

I can be on the side of the road, beside the river, in a kitchen or garage and sometimes at the landfill. Most wonderful human help me to regenerate. Can you believe that? I can be reborn as benches, paper plates, flooring, cans, bottles and many other items. It is so rejuvenating. My story isn’t always a great exciting rediscovery and reclamation, sometimes I become kitty litter. Now the Ancient Egyptians believed in reincarnation and were devoted cat followers so I think they would have really enjoyed this particular reawakening. I love cats and they sure love me, it is mutual but I can get a bit malodorous that way.

Why do you want to share your story at Halloween Hikes?

Together we can make a difference. Each person doing the best they can. I get sad when I think of those poor unloved landfill parts of me. They never get to see the light of day again and I can come back again and again with your help.

How long have you been a part of Halloween Hikes?

The box turtle and I have been doing this for over twenty years. We love seeing the wonder in children’s faces and enjoy that they love this planet Earth as much as we do and appreciate us for what we are. We all just want to be seen and cared for.

Who is your favorite other Halloween Hikes character to hang out with?

The turtle of course. He has watched me reincarnate for so many years and when I am occasionally left to decompose I have even produced mushrooms, his favorite treat. So we take care of each other.

What do you do to get ready for your big nights?

I make sure I have the lovely clean recycling items to show you, no one wants to see me when I am melting, rusting or rotting. Since most of me doesn’t decompose quickly I make sure I have a few antique items to show you just how long I can hang around if I am not actively recycled.

What is your favorite part of the evening?

The anticipation of the first group is a real rush, my everyday life is pretty mundane, just hanging around in hopes I will be repurposed. Everyone needs a purpose in life, but I need a human to help me fulfill my life goals. When children want to have their picture taken with me it is such a compliment. I try to look my very best, but sometimes my plastic just goes wild or a can will hang at the wrong angle or a box will just lay there and make me look …well, trashy. When someone sees me for who I really am, the real me, a valuable resource for their future, it is exhilarating.

What do you do after an evening on the trails at Halloween Hikes?

I lay around, relax, let my shredded plastic down and put my milk jugs up. The moon can be quite beautiful after the event and the peaceful woodland habitat is renewing. The nature center doesn’t usually allow me to sit outside like that, they tend to keep me enclosed in a can so people can’t appreciate all of my parts. I normally don’t mind as it speeds up my journey to a new life, but a night in the woods is refreshing.

Tell us your favorite joke!

My favorite place used to be when I went to the recycling plant to have my cans crushed, but now I find it soda pressing.