Great Lakes Options (5)

Horse-and-Buggy Days

¸ trip to historic Roscoe Village will take you back to the days of horses and buggies and singing troubadours, especially during the weekend of the 30th-annual Dulcimer Days festival held at the Coshocton Lake Park Pavilion from May 14 through 16.

Featured artists Katie Waldren and Dan Landrum will hold a performance and workshops throughout the festival.

—Šaldren found her passion playing the mountain dulcimer in 1971. During 13 years in the Appalachian Mountains in North Carolina, she raised three children and founded the Western North Carolina Dulcimer Collective.

Landrum, who was discovered by Yanni during a street performance in Tennessee, was a featured soloist at the 2003 Yanni Ethnicity World Tour and performed at two presidential inaugurations.

Visit www.roscoevillage.com or call 1-800-877-1830 for more information.

— Marina Takahashi

Nature Walking

After months of brutal snow and cold, celebrate summer's approach with a stroll through the hills of southern Ohio. About three hours from Cleveland in Sugar Grove, the Ohio Historical Society's Wahkeena Nature Preserve offers guided walks. Visitors can expect to focus on fern or wildflower identification, folklore, plus anything else that pops up unexpectedly, such as a group of toads skipping across their path.

The 150-acre preserve includes a nature center, walking paths, wetlands and a large pond, creating a diverse array of habitats for animals and birds.

Fern hikes are May 30, June 13 and July 10; wildflower hikes are May 1, 2, 8, 9 and 16. There's no need to register and each hike starts at 1 p.m., costing the normal preserve admission price of $2 per car. Hours are Wednesday through Sunday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Wahkeena Nature Preserve is located at 2200 Pump Station Road in Sugar Grove. For more information, call the preserve at 1-800-297-1883 or visit www.ohiohistory.org/places/wahkeena.

— Jamie Carracher