The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service is offering a free, public program guided by its Jess Scutella, its fall artist-in-residence, on Saturday at noon on the Timberdoodle Flats Interpretive Trail in the Allegheny National Forest.

The public is invited to join Scutella on a one-hour hike where participants will explore and share their thoughts and emotions while out in nature. Participants will learn about Shinrin-yoku, a study of human interaction with the forest. The term Shinrin-yoku was coined by the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries in 1982, and can be defined as making contact with and taking in the atmosphere of the forest.

Hike participants should bring water to drink, prepare for the weather by dressing in layers, and take steps to protect themselves from biting insects and ticks as they should whenever they explore the woods. Participants are asked to meet at the Timberdoodle Flats Interpretive Trailhead, located off Route 59, no later than 11:50 a.m. for the hike.

For more information, call call Katherine Fenstermacher the Allegheny National Forest artist-in-residence coordinator, at 814- 363-6049.