During the school break for many of our local schools, DCC hosted a mini camp for youth aged 7-10. The four-day minicamp explored the woods and waters of Middle River Park in Machias with ten eager campers ready to discover something new.
On our first day, participants quickly became friends through hands-on games and activities. We spent the latter half of the morning learning what it means to be a naturalist and how to take field observations. Campers quickly took a liking to lichen, noticing it’s several different growth forms and began formally questions like “I wonder if these hurt the trees”, which we investigated further during the week.
Each day we continued learning about the landscape and how to be good stewards of the land through nature exploration. Campers searched the preserve for insects, birds, and species inhabiting vernal pools and the forested landscape, all while nature journaling, respecting nature, and having fun!
Cathy Lookabaugh, DCC’s Outreach Director and camp leader noted “We are showcasing this preserve, this small but significant patch of land in downtown Machias and in some cases, introducing these kiddos to some place they didn’t know was right up the road from their house. Now they can come back with their families and learn that adventure is in their own backyard.”
When asked what was the favorite part of week was, the answer was 100% “building our own bird nests!” Camper Mari noted that if she “had ten-billizon thumbs, she would give camp ten-billizon thumbs up!”
Support for this program was generously donated by Downeast Wind and members of DCC.Thank you to our volunteers: Laura, Robin, and Gail.
Exploring a vernal pool.
