Republished April 16, 2019 - 8:45 AM
Original Publication Date April 16, 2019 - 7:41 AM
BELLEVUE, Neb. - Thrill-seekers will soon be able to climb, swing and zip through a suburban Omaha forest's treetops at a new $1.6 million aerial adventure park scheduled to open this summer.
Construction has begun on Fontenelle Forest's TreeRush Adventures, which will feature tightropes, suspended platforms and zip lines. The Bellevue attraction is expected to open for visitors this June, the Omaha World-Herald reported.
The park will have a main adventure area that's designed for adults and older children, and a kids park that's designated for children ages 4 to 6.
Some of the park's courses will take climbers higher than 50 feet (15 metres). They all vary in levels of difficulty, which is measured by the required balance, strength and stamina.
Many of the courses cross over one another at different heights, which allows families and groups of friends to interact while completing separate courses, said Kema Geroux, TreeRush's community relations director.
The kids park will have two courses where parents or guardians can walk alongside or carry children.
TreeRush will operate the park and share proceeds with Fontenelle Forest, which spans 2,000 acres (810 hectares) with more than 19 miles (31 kilometres) of trails. Tickets to the adventure park will be priced around $18 for children aged 4 to 6, $39 for youths aged 7 to 11 and $45 for visitors 12 years and older.
The forest's administrators hope the adventure park will bring in roughly $50,000 a year, said Fontanelle spokeswoman Molly Mullen. The money would help fund the forest's conservation efforts.
"Getting out into one of the largest forests in the state is really important because that's where your connection (to nature) begins," said Mullen. "... When you connect, you understand, and when you understand, you want to learn more, and when you want to learn more, you want to protect it."
___
Information from: Omaha World-Herald, http://www.omaha.com
News from © The Associated Press, 2019