It’s now possible to get green time and screen time simultaneously thanks to a new application for smartphones and mobile devices.
The Mendenhall Glacier Recreation Area debuted their “Agents of Discovery” application at their Fall Fun Fest this Saturday. The free, kid-friendly app takes users on a scavenger hunt of sorts around Mendenhall Lake and the glacier.
With visitors to the area spending so much time on devices, the U.S. Forest Service wanted to meet young visitors where they’re at: on their phones.
“We’re trying to figure out how to engage kids in more ways out there with technology growing as it is,” said Forest Service Employee Bev Levene, who helped develop the app.
Questions and challenges pop up in the app when users walk around the MGRA. At Photo Point, a popular area to view the glacier, app users are asked what “ingredients” go into making a glacier. Another challenge asks users to identify birds by their song.
At Steep Creek, a challenge requires users to change the image of a fish to what a sockeye salmon looks like when spawning. After completing all 12 challenges, app users earn a free badge from the USFS.
“We want kids outside, out there experiencing it, but so often we see kids and adults coming inside, looking at those phones a lot. So if we can engage that need to look at technology with getting outside, that’s kind of what we’re working on,” Levene said.
USFS has developed and Agents of Discovery app for the Chugach National Forest and is working on a version for Ketchikan.
• Contact reporter Kevin Gullufsen at 523-2228 or kevin.gullufsen@juneauempire.com.
