RING IN THE NEW YEAR AT DEEP RIVER WATERPARK - Great for the entire family  
Count down to 2012 in “Paddle’s Time Zone” at Family Friendly New Year’s Eve Celebration

5-7:30 p.m.       Kid’s crafts  
8 p.m.              Countdown & juice toast in the plaza and on the ice (8 p.m. is midnight in the family friendly “Paddles Time Zone”) 
5-10 p.m.         Disc Jockey, ice skating, concession items for sale 

Looking for a “kid-friendly” place to ring in the New Year?  Bring the family to Deep River Waterpark.  The $5 fee is for everyone entering the park after 5 p.m. on December 31.  On and off the ice family-friendly New Year’s Eve party fun.  For more information, call Deep River Waterpark at 219-947-7850.  Deep River Waterpark is located at 9001 E. U.S. 30 only 4 ½ miles east of I-65 on route 30 in Merrillville.

Deep River Waterpark
Saturday, December 10, 2011
9:30-11:30 a.m.  

Participation is limited so advance tickets are required  
Tickets for girls are $15 which includes admission, skate rental, all activities, pizza, drinks and dessert  
Tickets for adults are $12 which includes admission, skating (if they choose), and food  
Tickets on sale beginning November 1 and remain on sale until sold out

Snowflake Skate is an ice skating party for girls age 6 and older and their dolls or stuffed animals who love to skate.  Girls are encouraged, but not required, to bring a doll or teddy bear to join the fun both indoors and out. Parents should be prepared to baby sit dolls and animals who do not wish to go skating or make crafts. 

Girls and their “friends” will skate on the outdoor plaza and learn skating moves from the Deep River Waterpark Snowflake Skater. 
They will have their photo taken and make a souvenir to take home to help them remember the day.  The morning will conclude on the ice with a group “dance” and lunch in the eatery. 

Purchase tickets by calling 219-769 PARK, M-F from 8:30 - 4:30 or going to the Lake County Parks business office, 8411 E. Lincoln Highway, 4 ½ miles east of I-65 on Route 30, just west of Deep River Waterpark.  Tickets are also available at the Waterpark when the ice skating plaza is open.

Deep River Waterpark is located at 9001 East U.S. 30 only 4 ½ miles east of I-65 on Route 30 in Merrillville.

• Friday, September 16, 2011              

• Saturday, September 17, 2011          

• Friday, September 23, 2011              

• Saturday, September 24, 2011

• $8 per person (one person may purchase up to 15 tickets)

• Opening day ticket sales Wednesday, August 24 (in person sales only) from 5 p.m. until 7:30 p.m.  After that  time, remaining tickets may be purchased at the corporate office or by phone at  219-769-PARK  M-F 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.  REMINDER:  Tickets sell out quickly and may be sold out the first day.

• Deep River Waterpark, 9001 E. U.S. 30 in Merrillville (4.5 miles east of I-65 on Route 30, just east of the Lake County Parks Corporate Office).

• Evenings at 6:30, 6:50, 7:10, 7:30, 7:50, 8:10, 8:30, 8:50, 9:10, 9:30 p.m.   

• Check in at the campfire 15 minutes prior to your performance time as performances begin PROMPTLY and you don't want to be left behind.  If you get to the park after your tour has begun you will not be able to join your tour. 

Meet the Townsfolk:
For four magical nights, Buckley Homestead is transformed into Tarrytown, NY, a quiet, dreamy little village known to many as Sleepy Hollow.  The village abounds with stories and superstitions, the most famous of which is of a Hessian soldier who lost his head in the war and rides each night in search of a new one.  Perhaps you’ve heard of the Headless Horseman?

Visitors will walk with a guide through Sleepy Hollow as they meet and interact with the townsfolk in search of Ichabod Crane, the one person who can tell them all about the stories of this quaint village.  You become part of the storybook scenes, but be careful! There’s no telling what may cross your path in the night besides the occasional black cat. It may be the Headless Horseman himself! This program is a great way to experience the excitement of classic literature come to life.  The walking tour is about one mile long on a primitive trail.  Please note for safety reasons pets, flash photography and smoking are not permitted during the program.  

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow is outdoors and requires walking a bark chip trail lit by luminaries. It has proven a challenge for those who have walking difficulties. NOT RECOMMENDED for those who have a hard time walking the uneven and hilly ground or for strollers.  A short hayride is part of the program if trail conditions permit.  If not, we will walk the entire trail. Wheelchairs have made it around the trail if conditions are dry but will have to follow the hayride as there is no room on the hay wagon for the wheelchair.  Visitors should dress for the weather.  

Lanterns will light your way during the night program, but dress for the weather and be ready to walk. Remember, be prepared for the "unexpected" . . .

Not-So-Scary Mini Golf

Cedar Creek Family Golf Center is decorated for Halloween throughout the month.  It's the best time to bring your group to Cedar Creek for fun.      

18 hole Miniature Golf Course

Buckley Homestead Living History Farm

"Recognizing and honoring World War II Veterans"

An HRS event sponsored by US 9th Infantry, the 353rd German Infantry, and the 2620th WAC Battalion and Homefront Helpers

• Grand Kankakee Marsh County Park
• Saturday, May 19 & 20, 2012
• 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. 
• $2 per person or children 7 and younger free

Jump into our time machine and hang on!  We’re traveling back more than 250 years when Northwest Indiana was primarily a marsh land.  You will see Native Americans, French-Canadian canoe men, called Voyageurs, British and French militia and many others who would have lived or traded along the Grand Kankakee River.

Bring your family for a day of authentic kid’s games, historic demonstrations, tomahawk toss, musical entertainment, merchants, food, and much more. The re-enactors are eager to interact with you as they portray life during this Fur Trade Era.  Kids receive a “See and Do” Scavenger Hunt list at the admission booth in the Buckley Barnyard.  Mom and Dad… make it a family challenge! 

Special School Invite to the Voyageur Rendezvous 18^th Century Fur Trade Era

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Deep River County Park Visitor Center • Saturday, February 18, 2012 • 1 p.m. • $5 per family payable in advance • Pre-register at 219-769-PARK after Thursday, January 19 • For a weather update on the day of the workshop call 219-947-1958

If you have access to large maple trees, a few supplies, and a little instruction you are able to make pure maple syrup.  Learn how and when to tap trees, how to collect and preserve the sap, and how to produce your own pure maple syrup.  A drill, some buckets, a camp stove or gas grill, bottles and pans and you’re nearly ready.  Other items such as spiles, filters and sap buckets may be purchased at the workshop. 

If you looking for a unique way to celebrate Earth Day, join a Lake County Parks naturalist to usher in spring with the American Woodcock.  The American Woodcock is best known for the male’s spectacular flight displays over its breeding grounds. These displays occur at dusk and again at dawn. The birds circle up to hundreds of feet high and then descend in a zigzag flight. Once they have landed, their distinctive “peent” calls penetrate the silence of the evening or early morning hours.

Anyone who has witnessed the flight of the woodcock recognizes it as one of the earliest signs of spring. Some woodcocks return as early as February and “perform” while snow is still on the ground. Join us at dusk as we stake out an area to usher in spring with our fascinating crepuscular friend, the American Woodcock.

Dates:             Saturday, December 3 & Sunday, December 4, 2011       2 - 7 p.m.

Tour Times:     Each day at 2:00, 2:20, 2:40, 3:00, 3:20, 3:40, 4:00, 4:20, 4:40, 5:00, 5:20, 5:40, & 6:00 p.m.

Tickets:           $5 per person (one person may purchase up to 10 tickets)

                       Please be at Buckley Homestead at the Visitor Center 10 minutes before tour leaves

Ticket Sales:   Opening day ticket sales is Tuesday, October 25 at 8:30 a.m.

Tours of Christmas Long Ago depart from the Visitor Center every 20 minutes  Advance tickets are required and may be purchased at the corporate office 8411 East Lincoln Highway, Crown Point, Indiana 46307 just west of Deep River Waterpark or by phone at 219-769-PARK first come first served.  IMPORTANT:  This is a performance so each tours departs on time.  If you are late for your tour, you will not be able to join it.

Christmas memories of childhood long ago on the farm are rich with the spirit of the time.  It didn’t matter that the family was short of cash or material comforts.  Children pored over the mail-order catalog for weeks before Christmas, not expecting to get anything.  More important than the gifts, however, was the magic of the season.  Chores, and even homework, were favorably affected by the atmosphere of the joyous season.  Join us at Buckley Homestead for a real old-fashioned experience on the farm long ago.  You will be guided as you travel throughout the barnyard and meet both adults and children getting ready for the holiday as they work on homemade toys, speculate about talking animals on Christmas Eve, and bake extra goodies for Christmas morning. Tours last about one and half hours.  Dress for the cold, as a majority of the program is conducted outdoors.

• December 5 & 6, 2011 ONLY           

• Advance reservations and a $20 deposit are required two weeks prior to the tour

• $2 per person (minimum of 20; maximum of 80) 

• Two reservation times: 9:30 to 11 a.m. or 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

• Reservations beginning Monday, October 3 at 219-769-PARK (7275)

• Designed for second grade and older

During the one and a half hour tour students will visit with farmhands and others who will be working in the Hired Hands quarters, the Tool Shed, and the Main Barn. Teachers or group leaders will receive a pre-site visit packet when their reservation is confirmed.  It is important that children are dressed for winter weather since a majority of the program is conducted outside.  Note to teachers who have participated in the past: This program is conducted entirely at the 1910s barnyard area to limit the amount of walking during the winter season.  While students will not be visiting the schoolhouse or the pioneer log house, they will still have participatory activities to assist them in learning about the early farm lifestyle.    

Updated June 23, 2011