Winter temperatures are no deterrent from an 'egg-cellent' Easter egg hunt

Despite the frigid, winter-like temperatures, nearly 100 kids turned out to Apponagansett Park, not to swim or enjoy ice cream from The Bucket, but to find Easter eggs in the Parks and Recreation Department's annual Easter Egg Hunt.

Around 1,500 brightly colored eggs lay scattered in the grass as kids lined up in anticipation for the Saturday, March 28 hunt.

With the go-ahead from Parks and Recreation Director Becky Amaral, kids sprinted across the field, finding all the eggs in mere minutes.

Afterward, four-year-old Hope Curci, three-year-old Henry Curci and four-year-old Ryleigh Richard were busy eating donuts and eyeing their prizes.

Counting up the eggs she found, Hope called the hunt "good," even as one of the 11 she found nearly rolled off the table.

Henry guessed that he had found seven eggs, though Hope was a little skeptical of his success.

"You didn't even count them!" she said.

Ryleigh also said that she found "some candies on the ground" and that some friends shared their eggs with her.

Amaral said that several weeks of preparing goes into the event that's over in five minutes.

"It's a fun event," she said. "It's over so quick."

She estimated that between stuffing all the eggs, taping them up to make sure they don't break open and putting together goodie bags, it took about 25 hours to get the hunt set up.

But as this was the 14th year that the Department of Parks and Recreation hosted the event, Amaral said the event "kind of runs itself, as we've been doing it for so long."

Amaral said that 140 kids registered for the hunt but that only around 90 attended.

"All the eggs were taken regardless," she said.