SARATOGA SPRINGS — As the weather warms up ahead of summer, those out and about in Saratoga Springs will find more than just blooming flowers alongside the city’s public trails and paths.
A new project has hidden remnants of the city’s history — recycled horseshoes once worn by Saratoga Springs racehorses — in outdoor recreational areas for community members and tourists to find.
Dubbed “Saratoga Hidden Horseshoes,” the effort will launch on Saturday, April 22 in Congress Park, marking the beginning of an ongoing scavenger hunt created by Saratoga Springs residents Jenn Claeson and Tracy Shannon.
The way it works: Those hiking the Saratoga Greenbelt Trails or walking in High Rock Park, Congress Park or Waterfront Park can find the horseshoes hidden between ground- and eye-level within three feet of a trail. When discovered, the finder can scan a QR code located on the horseshoe that will allow them to register it and take a photo (for bragging rights). The art installation may then post the images on its social media page as a way to document the discoveries.
But no worries if those interested forget exactly what the free activity entails. There will be signs posted on trails, sponsored by Prestwick Chase, with a QR code that, when scanned, provides information about the local treasure hunt.
“It’s just so in line with the motto of Saratoga of ‘Health, History and Horses.’ Health is hiking. History is recycled horseshoes from the past and then, of course, horses,” Claeson said with a laugh.
In creating the project, she said she was inspired by “The Block Island Glass Float Project,” which has hidden more than 500 glass orbs for tourists to search for in her home state of Rhode Island. After traveling to Block Island numerous times on a mission to find a glass boat, she wondered why there wasn’t a similar activity…
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