Summer Camps 2012
Registration is going on now!
To make registration easier, click on the course # below next to your camp selection and it will take you directly to ParkPASS to register. Or make note of the course #
and register at ParkPASS.
Call 301-528-3492 with any Black Hill camp registration questions.
To reach the naturalist staff call 301-528-3493.
ATTENTION:
Copies of All Camp Forms must be filled out and turned into the Naturalist office, two weeks prior to the beginning of camp.
Registration Information
Please note that when registering for any of the 2012 Summer Camps, before you pay for the camp, you will be prompted for information about your emergency contact, phone numbers, etc. These answers will be used to print your child's Camp Participation form, prior to the beginning of camp. After you pay for the camp, you'll be directed back to the ParkPASS home page should you need to complete any Medication forms or special Waiver forms. ParkPASS.
IMPORTANT! Before any camp registration can be confirmed, Black Hill Nature Programs must receive the following information.
- Complete the Day Camp Medication & Special Activity Permission Slip.
- Proof of immunization, a current public school report card can be used as proof of immunization.
Due to required parent/adult participation, "Babes in the Park Camp" children are exempt from submitting the medication form.
Call 301-528-3492 with any Black Hill camp registration questions.
Montgomery Parks Camp Refund Policy
If Montgomery County Parks has to cancel a Summer Camp, you will be notified and receive a full credit on your ParkPASS account-or at your request, a refund.
To withdraw from a Montgomery Parks Summer Camp, please do the following:
- For camps that do not involve offsite trips, submit a written request to the hosting facility at least two weeks prior to the start of the camp. You may elect to receive a full credit to your ParkPass account to use for future programs, or a refund (less 20% refund administrative fee). If your written request is received less that two weeks before the start of the program, no credit or refund will be issued.
- For camps that do involve offsite trips, submit a written request to the hosting facility at least two weeks prior to the start of the program. If the facility is able to fill your spot from the program's waitlist, you may elect to receive a full credit to your ParkPASS account, or a refund (less a 20% refund administrative fee). If the facility is unable to fill your spot, no credit or refund with be issued.
All refunds will be in the same form (check or charge) as the payment was received. Check refunds may take up to four weeks to process.
Summer Camps
Babes in the Park Camp
Monday – Friday 9:30 am- 1 pm Ages: 2-5yrs
#176059 6/4 - 6/8
#176199 6/11 - 6/15
A week-long nature camp for young children (ages 2-5) with their parent. We'll learn about the natural world through crafts, stories, and hikes. You and your child will go fishing, enjoy a pontoon boat ride, hike in the woods, and use nets in the meadow to catch butterflies and insects. Please bring a lunch for each day, and register the child only; no fee for accompanying adult. FOBH $145/$150
Outdoor Rangers Camp
#176200 6/18 - 6/22 Monday – Friday 9am- 3:30pm Ages: 9 – 11 yrs.
#176201 6/18 - 6/22 Mon. - Fri. 3:30pm- 5:30pm ~ Ages: 9 – 11 yrs.
Join Naturalist Lynette Lenz for a week of outdoor discovery. We'll enjoy nature in all its glory by hiking in and around the streams, forests and meadows around Black Hill and Little Bennett Parks. We'll also go boating and fishing, and explore Little Seneca Lake.
FOBH $270/$275 Extended Care: FOBH $45/$50
Beginning Fishing Camp
#176249 6/26 - 6/29
Enjoy four days of fun and adventure! We'll teach you how, when and where to catch freshwater fish, and provide expert, hands-on instruction on balanced tackle, live bait, artificial lure selection, knots, casting, and the latest techniques. Trips to waters outside of the park will complement experience gained on Little Seneca Lake. We'll send out an itinerary and equipment list prior to camp. Meet at the Visitor Center. FOBH $295/$300 Ages: 11 - 17 yrs. Tues. – Fri. 8:30 am- 5 pm
Advanced Fishing Camp
#175999 7/2 - 7/6*
*No camp Wednesday, July 4
Prerequisite: Beginning Fishing Camp, or experience with overhead and sidearm casting, mastery of at least one reliable knot to attach tackle to line, and ability to rig plastic worms and grubs to jig heads.
Our Advanced Fishing camp focuses on building skills and techniques to effectively use a wider variety of artificial lures, and better understand fish behavior and fishing strategies. Campers will also learn care, maintenance and selection of equipment. A tackle pack with a variety of lures will be provided. We'll fish a wide variety of waters, both on and off -site.. FOBH $295/$300 Mon.,Tues, Thurs., Fri. 8:30 am- 5 pm Ages: 12 - 17 yrs.
Wild About Water
#177355 7/9 - 7/13 Mon. – Fri. 9 am- 4 pm
#177353 7/9 - 7/13 Mon. – Fri. 4 pm- 5:30 pm
It's a week of water-filled fun! Plan to get wet (and dirty) as we explore our way through our bit of the Chesapeake Bay watershed. We'll compare fresh and saltwater habitats through hands-on experiences like sampling for water-dwelling animals, and performing simple water tests. Field trips will take us to see where our water comes from, how water is treated before and after we use it, and on a visit to the Chesapeake Bay. We'll also spend time boating and fishing as we learn all about water, the plants and animals that live there, and how to take better care of our watershed. FOBH $270/$275 Extended Care FOBH $35/$38 Ages: 9 - 11 yrs
River Adventures Kayak Camp
#176850 7/1 6- 7/20*
#176851 7/30 - 8/3*
*No camp Wednesday, July 18 or Wednesday, August 1
Kayaking is even more fun than it looks! Learn the basics of successful kayaking on fl at and gentle river waters in this beginners' camp. We'll cover equipment, safety, basic strokes, entries and exits (wet and dry), boat control, self-rescue, how to read the water, river hazards, safe transport of kayaks, knots and hitchesfeatures/uses of kayaks and equipment, and more, using American Canoe Association- approved manuals and certified kayak instructors. We'll spend ourfirst day on Li le Seneca Lake learning how to kayak on flatwater, and the other three days on local rivers (Class I moving water). Four-day camp. FOBH $295/$300 Mon.,Tues., Thurs., Fri. 8:30am- 5pm Ages: 12 - 17 yrs.
NOTE: Fee includes kayak rental, PFDs, and all other necessary equipment. You must be able to swim. Please wear clothes you don't mind getting wet, and bring water shoes or strap-on sandals, brimmed hat, sunglasses with strap, and sunscreen.
Earthkeepers Camp
#177399 7/23 - 7/27 Mon. – Fri. 9 am- 1 pm
Calling young nature lovers! Join Naturalist Lynette Lenz and explore Black Hill Regional Park's three habitats: forest, lake and meadow. Through crafts, games, stories and hands-on activities, we'll learn how to help take care of Mother Earth. Dress to be outside, and bring water and lunch each day. FOBH: $170/$175 Ages: 6 - 8 yrs.
Ancient Pathways
#176051 8/6 - 8/10 Mon. – Fri. 9 am - 3:30 pm
#177099 8/6 - 8/10 Mon. – Fri. 3:30 pm- 5:30 pm
Campers will have a hands-on experience of the ways in which our ancestors used the plants, stones, and bones around them for their housing, hardware store, pharmacy, and grocery. Campers will learn how to: build an emergency shelter as well as more complex variations, make fire by friction and then use fire as a tool, and use available materials to provide not only for needs but comforts. By the end of the week you could be living outdoors. FOBH $270/$275 Ages: 12 - 17yrs. Extended Care FOBH $45/$50
Family Adventures Kayak & Canoe Camp
#177999 8/13 - 8/17*
*No camp Wednesday, camp overnight Thursday.
Parents, do you have a secret wish to go to summer camp just like your kids? Here's your chance! Enjoy four days of canoeing or kayaking and one overnight camping expedition with your kids. In the first two days, we'll cover the basics of flatwater and Class I moving water kayaking and canoeing, including gear, safety, basic strokes entries and exits (wet and dry), how to read the water, and more. On Thursday and Friday, we'll take our boats and sleeping bags to the Chesapeake Bay to paddle and enjoy this fabulous natural resource. Fee includes kayak rental, personal flotation devices, and other necessary equipment. FOBH $295/$300 Mon. & Tues. 8:30 am - 5 pm; Thurs. & Fri. 10 am - 4 pm ~ Ages: 8 and up.
IMPORTANT: You must be able to swim, provide your own bedding (such as a sleeping bag). Please wear clothes you don't mind getting wet, and bring water shoes or secure sandals (no flip-flops), a brimmed hat, sunglasses with keeper strap, water, and sunscreen. At least one parent/guardian (or responsible adult) per family must register with and accompany their children.
Nuts About Nature Camp
#177049 8/20 - 8/24 Mon. – Fri. 9 am- Noon
Join us for a week of fun games, activities and outdoor exploration. We'll get wild about wildlife as we search for animal tracks and traces, experience migration mania, look for life under a log and splish/splash around the lake & in the creek. FOBH $145/$150 ~ Ages: 6 - 8 yrs.
Summer Programs for Adults
Dragonflies for Beginners
#189149 7/23 - 7/25 Mon. – Wed. 10 am- 3 pm
Ancient dragonflies (Protodonata) were here before the dinosaurs - with fossils dated from over 325 million years ago. These flying predatory insects to 2½ feet wide! Modern-day dragonflies and damselflies (Odonata) are smaller, and beauty- fully diverse. Dragonflies have captured the imagination of people throughout human history, and appear in the art and mythology of American Indians as well as many other cultures. In this course, we'll to identify local dragonflies, and learn their natural history, folklore and mythology. We'll visit and take short, easy walks at several natural and man-made wetland habitats in Wheaton Regional Park, as well as other county parks. The weather may be hot, so we'll move at a naturalist's pace, with ample time for observation and photography. A detailed itinerary will be sent in advance to each registrant. Naturalist: Denise Gibbs. Registration fee includes instruction, van transportation, dragonfly field guide, magnifying lens, and resource notebook. Ages: 18 & up Fee: $150
Rain dates: Thursday, July 26 and Friday, July 27. NOTE: Program Held at Brookside Gardens.
Butterflies of the Maryland Piedmont
#178050 8/6 - 8/8 Mon. – Wed. 9:30 am- 3 pm
This 3-day (15-hour) course/workshop was created especially adults who would like to learn or improve their butterfly identification skills, and explore the life histories of local butterflies. Our workshop emphasizes outdoor field study through wild habitats in local parks, butterfly gardens, and a butterfly-rearing facility. You'll learn how to safely handle live butterflies for close examination, rear butterflies, and scientific methods for monitoring butterflies. We'll also on butterfly conservation, discussing and demonstrating ways you can help butter-
flies at schools, parks, churches and backyards. Fee includes van transportation on, butterfly field guide, caterpillar field guide, and caterpillar rearing cage. Space is limited to 10 individuals. Ages: 18 yrs. & up. Fee: $150 For a detailed itinerary, please email Park Naturalist: Denise.Gibbs@MontgomeryParks.org.
Rain dates: Thursday, August 9 and Friday, August 10
Date of last update January 24, 2012
Montgomery County Department of Parks