May 2015
Our Summer Nature Camp staff rocks! Many return year after year. We value a staff that is diverse, knowledgeable, patient, fun and highly-skilled and truly enjoys sharing thier love of nature with children. The photo above was taken during last year's full week of staff training. 

We have camps and programs for all ages. Read on to learn about  camps in some of the city's hidden gems and more!

Scuttle into City Nature T-shirts
For the first time ever we will sell our awesome t-shirts for youth! The image you see below will be printed on the back of the shirt. The authentic drawings can be used to identify ten beetles found in Oregon!

Building Bridges
This spring we returned to Boise-Eliot/Humboldt’s STEM lab to continue our partnership with the Forest Park Conservancy and the 3rd grade students. We are thankful for the support from the BE/H teachers, allowing us to spend time with their students. We see them for two classroom sessions (pre and post field trip) as well as the field trip itself. We had so much fun with them in the fall, and we were excited to get back in their classrooms and then get them out in Forest Park again!

This time around, teachers asked us to match our lesson plans with their ongoing curriculum focused around Portland’s history & bridges, and we did just that! For example, did you know that the Thurman St Bridge (also known as Balch Gulch Bridge), easily visible from Lower Macleay Park, was the first bridge built in Portland? Or that it’s a pin-connected steel deck truss bridge? Did you know that Native Americans who lived in the Portland area called Forest Park Tualatin Mountain, and that they used Cedar tree for just about everything? (Diapers, clothes, baskets, canoes, and much, much more!). We even prepared the students for their big salmon unit in the 4th grade by playing a fun & memorable game about the obstacles salmon face when they make their journey back to their spawning grounds. 

Some pre and post assesment stats:

Pre-field trip, only 4% could describe the obstacles salmon face. Afterwards, 70% could describe the salmon migration.

Pre-field trip, 6% could name one way Native Americans used cedar, and afterwards 49% could name one way.

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Best of City Nature Camp

Let us transport you to FIVE of Portland's wildest places with our partner Rewild Portland! You won't feel like you're in the city at all! Expand your awareness as you listen to what the animals have to say. Get lost and find your way in North America's biggest city park. Track animals on a beach where otters play. Climb an extinct volcano. Craft a basket out of invasive ivy plants. Make a healing salve with medicinal plants.
Ages 11 - 17
August 10 - 14
Register with code 1023058

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Summer Nature Day Camp
Registration is open!
"We have been doing this camp for about 6 years, and our son STILL loves it! Bravo!" ~Parent of 2014 camper

What is Summer Nature Day Camp? Youngsters under the age of 14 disappear into the woods and wetlands of Portland as they explore nature under the guidance of experienced staff. Themes for each session are only a catalyst as this child-directed camp has few limits. We foster deep nature connection as well as connection to place. Camps are offered city-wide in Portland's Parks and Natural Areas.

Hidden Gems! Some of our favorite locations for Summer Nature Day Camp are a little bit off the beaten path... so we think of them as "hidden gems". Powell Butte Nature Park, Washington Park, Marshall Park and Columbia Children's Arboretum are all fabulous places for campers to experience timelessness, explore and view wildlife!