Dunham’s Bay Fish & Game Club to Sponsor DEC Summer Camp Participants
Every year the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) conducts a Summer Camp program for youth 11-17 years old. The local one-week programs are operated at four sites around the state, including Pack Forest near Warrensburg. Dunham’s Bay Fish & Game Club is proud to announce that it will sponsor three youth from Club member families by providing a scholarship for the full $350 cost of attending the DEC Summer Camp.
Downloads:
D-BAY – DEC Summer Camp application
D-Bay – DEC Summer Camp Dates and FAQs
Any questions contact Dennis Dempsey at 220reloader@gmail.com
Here is a description of the camp at Pack Forest from DEC:
Adventure, Education, Fun! The DEC Camps Experience
A week at Camp Pack Forest promises fun and adventure in the beautiful Southern Adirondacks. Sometimes campers have opportunities to pick the activities they participate in during “optional” times. At other times, campers will join the rest of camp and everyone participates in camp-wide games or activities.
Throughout the week campers engage in activities that emphasize basic ecological concepts about habitats, species identification, and how organisms and habitats adapt to changes. They also consider environmental solutions through activities and scenarios that encourage campers to make decisions that mitigate their impacts on the environment around them. As a camp focused on the older campers, Pack Forest weekly lessons go more in depth than other camps. Ecology lessons focus on field, forest, and stream. Campers may have opportunities to learn about advanced forestry techniques like using Biltmore sticks and increment borers or participate in community/citizen science programs. Each year the lessons are a little different, depending on the interests and experience of the camp counselors who design the program.
Campers at Pack Forest still get opportunities to try new skills, including archery, canoeing, fishing, birding, or taking a hunter education program. Campers also have opportunities to learn outdoor survival skills like fire and shelter building. Hunter Education programs are limited and offer campers a chance to complete their safety certificates on the path to a hunting or trapping license. Visit the Hunter Education Programs at Camps page to learn more. Counselors use the I FISH NY program to teach about fishing, fish identification, and lead some time fishing in the Pack Forest Lake. Environmental conservation officers and forest rangers may visit each week to talk about their work in conservation and demonstrate survival skills for outdoor adventures.
Overnight camping trips and day trips at Pack Forest usually include visits to sites in the Adirondacks, like Puffer Pond, Chimney Mountain, Indian Lake, or Crane Mountain. For day trips, campers may have the opportunity to visit the Warren County Fish Hatchery, canoe in other local lakes, or hike nearby trails. Overnight trips allow campers to experience backpacking and camping under the guidance of counselors.
Of course, camp also includes skits by counselors and campers, songs, campfires, swimming, and recreation games to round out the week. Many of the activities at camp are from environmental education programs like Project Wild or Project Learning Tree, allowing campers to play games while further reinforcing ecological concepts. College-educated counselor staff guide all activities, encourage participation and respect among group members while interpreting the natural world for campers.
For more information go to the NYSDEC website
https://www.dec.ny.gov/education/29.html
Please note that Dunham’s Bay Fish and Game Club is only providing financial sponsorship for the NYSDEC Environmental Education camp, but the NYSDEC ultimately decides who can attend the camp. Dunham’s Bay Fish and Game Club is not involved in the operation of the camp, nor provides transportation to and from the camp and does not incur any liability during any participation in the camp.