Scavenger app for Stroud preserve debuts
The SCVNGR app gives a tour of the preserve and issues fun challenges.
Here's a cool thing to do with your kids this weekend:
Natural Lands Trust, a land conservation organization, has launched an app that, in effect, provides a tour of the 574-acre Stroud Preserve near West Chester.
The app, SCVNGR, is free for iPads, iPhones and Android devices. You download it, then click on Treks on the main page and then look for "Stroud Preserve - NLT."
The app takes you on a tour, and then presents users with challenges -- like finding as many different leaves as you can in 60 seconds. It also asks questions based on signs and and maps posted at the preserve.
"SCVNGR is a way to bridge the gap between technology and nature," offers Molly Morrison, president of Natural Lands Trust, in a press release. "We all know that children are spending increasing amounts of time with electronic devices and less time exploring the outdoors. SCVNGR is a way to get them excited about nature using a tool they love and use on a daily basis."
The SCVNGR app is used by major educational institutions and museums across the country including the Smithsonian Institute, the organization said. However, Natural Lands Trust is believed to be the first organization to make use of the app to provide a tour of a nature preserve.