Fire and Ice Walk this weekend in Vermilion

VERMILION — Celebrate the season at the Fire and Ice Walk this weekend in Vermilion River Reservation. The event will be from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday in the Mill Hollow side of the park at 51211 N. Ridge Road, Vermilion, with parking on the Bacon Woods side. Tickets are $5 per person and organizers recommend purchasing in advance at LorainCountyMetroParks.com as only a limited number are available. Children ages 3 and younger are free. Winter is a perfect time to visit the park, said Matt Kocsis, Lorain County Metro Parks senior naturalist at Schoepfle Garden and Vermilion River Reservation. "It's a way to spend some time outside in the winter enjoying the natural beauty in the park, the beauty of the surroundings along the river, along with winter activities," he said. The family-friendly event will feature ice carving demonstrations with pre-carved ice sculptures placed along the Vermilion River bank for viewing. If Mother Nature cooperates, the massive icicles that hang from the cliff face over the river may provide their own ice sculptures as a backdrop as well. Strategically placed fire pits will provide visitors with warming spots and bags of s'mores supplies will be on hand for DIY treats. Perennial guests of honor, the sled dogs, will return, Kocsis said. The Siberian Husky Club of Greater Cleveland has partnered with the Metro Parks for years for this event. "The dogs love people and they love being outside in the cold. They're happy to be there. The dogs love it, they love the interaction with the public," he said. The Benjamin Bacon House Museum will be open for tours and a few animals and ice harvesting tools will be on display in the Carriage Barn. Costumed characters from the movie "Frozen" will be on hand for photo opportunities and passing out stickers and the Little Green Choo, the miniature train that fits both children and adult passengers, will offer rides through the park. This year organizers opted to replace the ice skating rink with an inflatable ax-throwing station. The rink limited the number of people that could participate, Kocsis said. "Hopefully with this more people can get involved. And it's inflatable, so everyone can try it without the danger of hurting yourself," he said, laughing. There also will be three food trucks: Great Plains Bison Burgers from New London, Papa Sal's Kitchen from Avon Lake and Dilly Dilly Donuts from Cleveland, as well as the Metro Parks coffee and hot chocolate station. Contact Rini Jeffers at rinijeffers@gmail.com.