Ian spent the first half of his spring break attending Little Ranger Camp, a day camp at Burgess Falls State Park.  Park rangers planned a highly educational experience that walked the students through many biology and anthropological skills this week. Based on the education Ian received while having a blast, I’d say we received a bargain on our tuition for this camp.

On day one, the little rangers began camp with a guided hike over the park’s trails. Ian has walked the main trail here dozens of times, but this was the first time he got to walk all the way down to the top of the big falls. From there, the hikers had the opportunity to take the Ridge Top Trail to see the Falling Water River from over the bluffs.

After a quick snack to recharge some tired hikers’ batteries, the park staff pulled out their reptiles for the educational portion of the day. I’m not at all sad that I missed the opportunity to hold a snake. Ian, on the other hand, has decided that snakes are pretty cool, and he particularly enjoyed the turtle. He came home from his first day of camp spouting all kinds of facts about scaly vertebrates.

I was able to attend day 2 with Ian, when the little rangers started their day with a discussion about mammals. The park staff focused this lesson on using animal skulls to help children identify the differences between herbivores, carnivores, and omnivores. The campers quickly determined that bears are omnivorous. When the park rangers asked the junior rangers what bears usually ate, Ian was the one kid to pipe up and answer: “people!”

After spending the morning handling skulls, the group moved it outside to learn a survival skill. The park staff taught the campers how to use materials available in the woods to build a shelter to help protect you if you are stranded overnight. This kids erected their stick and leaf shelter remarkably fast. I believe you could actually wait out a rainstorm in this shelter and remain mostly dry!

The children were also required to take part in a service project during camp. The staff determined that the campers were going to help prevent erosion by covering up unauthorized paths were hikers have begun taking illegal “shortcuts” through the woods. Each little ranger was responsible for emptying a bag of leaves over a portion of the unauthorized trail, and then covering those leaves with sticks. By the time they finished, it was hard to tell that there had ever been a trail there!

Both days of camp provided Ian with an excellent outlet to burn off some energy, but he also learned quite a bit about biology this week. I appreciated the staff’s education and ability to share that information in a fun way that kept the little rangers engaged. Ian has already decided that he plans to return to summer camp at Burgess Falls!