By Judy Ratkos

If you’ve ever asked a young person “What did you do on your summer vacation?” you may have gotten answers that ranged from “I worked” to “I went out west with my folks” to “I watched a lot of television” to “Nothing.”

This past summer, 59 young people from 25 Michigan counties were able to answer “I swam, hiked and went charter boat fishing. I learned about careers related to natural resources and the Great Lakes. I discovered environmental education projects I can do at home. And I had a blast!”

The teens, aged 13 to 15, were campers and counselors at 4-H Great Lakes and Natural Resources Camp, which is held on the shores of Lake Huron at Camp Chickagami, between Alpena and Rogers City.

At camp, the teens also learned about Michigan’s diverse natural resources and enjoyed the aquatic environment of Lake Huron. They learned to appreciate and understand natural resources and management issues, and explored Great Lakes ecosystems.

According to Shari Dann, Extension youth specialist in the MSU Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, campers rated the morning educational sessions overwhelmingly as either good or excellent. One camper summed up the experience this way: “All the sessions were very fun and we learned a lot. The teachers were very informative and cool!”

With camper enrollment up by 30 percent in 2004 (from 45 in 2003 to 59 in 2004), it’s obvious that the mix of fun and learning is attractive to campers, counselors, parents and the instructional staff at camp. The instructors are MSU Extension and Michigan Sea Grant staff who are natural resources experts.

The next 4-H Great Lakes and Natural Resources Camp will run from July 31 to August 6, 2005. For more information about the camp, contact your county MSU Extension office or Judy Ratkos by phone at 517-432-7613 or by e-mail at ratkos@msu.edu.

Judy Ratkos is the 4-H program leader for environmental and outdoor education.