OTTUMWA — An egg hunt in the springtime is a tasty, longtime tradition.

After the spring equinox, daylight hours increase and food gatherers in ancient cultures searched brush, bushes and trees for bird eggs. The pastel-colored “goodies” were a welcome sight after a bitter winter.

Today it’s the Easter egg hunt that brings smiles to young faces in the springtime. Numerous children and their parents or babysitters flocked to Pioneer Ridge Nature Area to hunt eggs along the path and into the bushy areas.

When the adults said, “Go!,” the kids knew exactly what to do.

Wyatt Craft, 2, of Ottumwa, was no exception. He smiled but had no comment as he ran to the next egg with his mother, Lacey Dudziak, right behind him.

Mara Maupin, also 2, had a lollipop and wanted to get more candy immediately. She tugged on the coat sleeve of Nicole Zorn, her babysitter, and “Want to go!” was her frequent comment.

The eggs and the goodies inside them weren’t the only reason both kids and parents hurried along the paths at Pioneer Ridge, which is six miles or so south of Ottumwa. Cool temperatures and a breeze out in the country made everyone step lively.

The “Easter Bunny” (Ilene Osing) was in an over-the-clothes white, fuzzy outfit with long ears and may have been dressed the warmest.

When the 2-year-old hunters first saw the tall rabbit, their eyes got big and they had the “fright or flight” look. But, after the Easter Bunny offered treats, the toddlers smiled and put more goodies in their bags.

There was some confusion at the beginning of the hunt. Information supplied to and printed in the Courier didn’t say the hunt would begin somewhere other than the Nature Center, where most events and programs.

But, this year’s hunt started from the Haybarn Shelter, which is on the other side of the pond from the Nature Center. The two groups of hunters passed each other on the path around the pond.

Easter is one of those special days that doesn’t have an exact date. The Christian holy day is on the first Sunday after the first full moon following the spring equinox.

This year the equinox was Thursday and the full moon was Friday. That means an early Easter and the weather made everyone believe it was still winter.

The Wapello County Conservation Board maintains nine areas totaling 1,661 acres. In combination, these areas provide extremely diverse habitats providing residents with a wide range of outdoor recreational activities, including as hiking, hunting and fishing.

In 1977, the people of Wapello County voted to establish a county conservation board. Today all of Iowa's 99 counties have such a board. Wapello County was the 98th county to establish its board, which is one of the youngest in the state.