The ninth annual 5k trail run and 1-mile walk/fun run will be held at Coastal River’s Salt Bay Farm on Belvedere Road in Damariscotta on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 26 at 9 a.m. The event has become an annual holiday tradition for many runners, walkers, and spectators who come back year after year.  

The 5K trail run and 1-mile walk/fun run are open to runners and walkers of all ages. Well-behaved dogs on leashes are welcome. 

The 5K course is on broad mown trails with gentle hills, making two loops around the fields which offer sweeping views of Great Salt Bay. The race is not officially timed, but there will be someone at the finish line to let participants know their finish time. Vegetable prizes will be awarded to the top male and female finishers as well as those with the best costumes. 

There is no fee to participate, but monetary donations of any amount to the Foodbank Farm are most welcome. Race organizers encourage runners and walkers to register ahead of time at www.twinvillagesfarm.org/foodbank-farm-5k/. Online registration closes at noon on Wednesday, Nov. 25. 

For more information, email Sara Cawthon at scawthon@twinvillagesfarm.org. 

TVFF’s mission is to grow and distribute healthy food for those who need it most in Lincoln County. TVFF serves pantries in Newcastle, Jefferson, Boothbay, Wiscasset, Waldoboro, Whitefield, New Harbor and share tables and youth food programs like FARMS at the YMCA.  

Growing 50,000 pounds of food each season on 3 acres since 2015, the Foodbank Farm provides fresh food for free, thanks to community support. The Foodbank Farm also operates Community Food Storage Hub, where as much as 30,000 pounds of food is collected each year from grocery stores, farms, and local growers and stored until it can be used by a community partner. 

The Farm operates in close partnership with Coastal Rivers Conservation Trust, which donates use of its prime farmland at Salt Bay Farm and provides administrative support. Coastal Rivers is a non-profit, nationally accredited land trust with active programs in land conservation, water quality, trails and public access, and nature education in the Damariscotta-Pemaquid region.