Rangeley saw more than 50 walkers and their dogs during the Best Dog on Earth Day.

RANGELEY — The Rangeley Lakes Chamber of Commerce and Rangeley Health and Wellness held the first annual Best Dog on Earth Day event, a celebration of dogs and Earth Day recently.

The cold, damp weather could not dampen the spirits of the approximately 50 participants and their dogs, who went out on the trail for a 1- to 3-mile fun run and walk and then returned to the Chamber of Commerce for a variety of activities.

The Franklin County Animal Shelter was on site, providing adoption information and low-cost nail trims, microchips and flea/tick treatments and a portion of the proceeds from the event are being donated to the shelter. Rangeley Lakes Heritage Trust provided information on their programs and hiking trails, all of which are dog-friendly.

Each participant received a tree seedling in recognition of Earth Day and a raffle ticket for a prize basket of items donated by local businesses. The lucky winner of the raffle prize was Anna Mather. In addition, local businesses offered discount coupons to all participants.

The Rangeley Lakes Chamber of Commerce and Rangeley Health and Wellness developed the idea to provide a fun event that would bring the community together, promote physical activity, support animal adoption, provide educational information about protecting the environment and support local businesses, which had donated items for the raffle prize and provided discount coupons.

More than 50 walkers and their dogs came out for the Best Dog on Earth Day event in Rangeley.