Crow’s Nest Camp 2024 – Week Five
By Daniel Barringer, Preserve Manager.
Photo: Molly Smyrl
Summer camp has wrapped up and the preserve doesn’t ring with the sounds of kids playing—at least, not until fall programs start in a few weeks. And we do hear families enjoying the preserve on their own.
The last week of camp is for the 7th and 8th graders who have worked their way up through the program. They know the preserve well, and are ready to explore how Crow’s Nest fits in to the region. This year they explored a couple different Natural Lands sites, Cheslen Preserve and Stoneleigh: A Natural Garden. Above, cooling off in the Brandywine Creek at Cheslen, and below, learning about insects with Sam Nestory at Stoneleigh.
Photo: Pete Smyrl
The older camp kids also spent some time giving back to the preserve in the form of weeding invasive plants along our trails.
Photo: Molly Smyrl
And the highlight of the week is the kayak trips, first at Scott’s Run Lake in French Creek State Park and then on the Schuylkill River. It makes camp staff happy to see these kids growing up and in the final slideshow of the summer Molly Smyrl pairs photos from their early camps with this most recent one—making obvious how much they’ve grown.
It takes a committed group of people to make Crow’s Nest Camp happen: Molly Smyrl is the Educator who is responsible for the program. She was assisted this year by a large group of staff and volunteers: Devon Funt, our Long-Term Intern, helped with all weeks of camp. Cody Hudgens, Assistant Preserve Manager, also planned camp and staffed most weeks. They were joined by Serena Hertzog, Assistant Educator and Alden Ritchey, Education Intern. There were a large number of volunteers without whom camp wouldn’t happen: Eloise and Pete Smyrl have staffed camp every year since it started in 1998. And many former campers also staffed individual weeks of camp: Ryan Decker, Cullen Bland, Fiona Sanders, Molly Stone, and Grace Anthony. Other Natural Lands staff offered their expertise for this last week of camp, including Sam Nestory and Sean Quinn. Thank you all!
Photo: Pete Smyrl
Photo: Devon Funt