Over the past month and a half Parks in Focus has been working with University Outreach at the University of Michigan – Flint to introduce 10 youth from the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Flint to parks and public lands in and around Saginaw, Bay, Shiawassee and Genesee Counties. This series of outings has been building the participants up to a weekend adventure of camping, fishing, hiking, exploring and photo-taking at Bay City State Recreation Area. That adventure kicks off tomorrow afternoon!
For many of our participants, this weekend will mark their first time sleeping in tents, fishing, and making s’mores over a campfire. These new experiences can sometimes be a bit scary…
So, a couple weeks ago we hosted a ‘practice’ overnight campout inside the Boys & Girls Club. Participants spent the evening learning a few basic camping skills (like setting up tents and trying to get them back in the bag) and put their newly found skills to practice during a camping skills relay. To top things off, the Wildlife Recovery Association put on a special program for the group where they showcased some of Michigan’s birds of prey and discussed how they use photography in their work. We even ended the night with s’mores!
Check out the video above to see some of our (indoor) adventures and stay-tuned to our blog, Facebook and Twitter for updates on our final Parks in Focus trip of the season!
S’mores are my favorite dessert! Good lesson to know for survival! Well, maybe some other lessons are too..
Agreed! S’mores are amazing. I am looking forward to making them with the kids over a campfire rather than with a microwave!