DEC's four summer camps have room in coming season

TIMES ALBANY BUREAU

ALBANY — Applications are now available for the state Department of Environmental Conservation's four summer education camps.

The residential camps, for youths from 12 to 17, focus on conservation education during eight one-week sessions between June 27 and Aug. 22. Outdoor activities and games teach "the wise use of natural resources," while overnight hikes and canoe trips are also standard fare. Campers with parental permission may participate in hunter safety training.

DEC operates four camps — Colby and Pack Forest in the Adirondacks, DeBruce in the Catskills and Rushford in Western New York. Each serves children 12 to 14 years old. Additionally, DEC also offers week-long ecology workshops for teens 15 to 17 years old at Pack Forest during the first five sessions of camp.

One week's tuition at any of the camps is $325 per camper. Many campers are sponsored by local civic groups, garden and sportsmen clubs. Spaces are still available throughout much of the season.

Interested parties may write to: NYSDEC Camps, 625 Broadway, Albany, N.Y. 12233-4500, e-mail to: [email protected], or call 1 (518) 402-8014. Full information is online at: www.dec.ny.gov/education/29.html.