Kayaking, biking and rock climbing — these are just some of the many activities offered at Kent Parks & Recreation’s Junior Adventure Camp, which immerses participants in the beauty of nature.
Junior Adventure Camp works with Kent State University’s Adventure Center and the Cuyahoga Valley National Park to provide an entire summer of outdoor experiences for kids going into fourth through sixth grades from June 8 to Aug. 7.
Primarily held at Plum Creek Park, this eight-week-long camp is geared toward adventure activities, ranging from pond fishing to bird watching. Kids in the camp learn basic outdoor skills, including backpacking, campfire safety and campsite management.
When recreation specialist Megan Johns first joined the team, the camp was a standard outdoor camp without the adventure aspect.
“We’re like, You know what? We already have a couple of those camps, so let’s make this one different,” Johns says.
After revamping the camp, one big change was the field trips. Every Friday, the camp takes a trip to CVNP to do activities like fishing and hiking. Other field trips include visiting the Kent State Recreation Center to climb the rock wall and practice paddleboarding and kayaking in the pool before taking on the Cuyahoga River and Wingfoot Lake. Plus, campers take fun breaks, such as biking to Katie’s Korner for ice cream.
“This camp is just another opportunity for the kids to try something new,” Johns says.
Johns says the highlight of Junior Adventure Camp is its kayaking and paddleboarding river trips. This is a major aspect that the kids look forward to and the main activity that they are working toward for the whole summer. By the end of the summer, the goal is for campers to have gained confidence in themselves. Confidence, respect, endurance, resilience and dedication are some of the key characteristics incorporated into the camp.
For prospective campers, Johns recommends having children first get comfortable with learning new things.
“This will be a good environment for you this summer if you’re willing to take that leap,” she says.
590 Plum St., Kent, kentohio.gov
Oliver Wuensch
Oliver Wuensch
Oliver Wuensch
Oliver Wuensch
