2013 Kickapoo Valley Reserve
Summer Adventure Day Camps

Welcome to another summer of exploration and discovery! At the Kickapoo Valley Reserve’s Summer Adventure Day Camps children will explore the trails, wetlands and woods with our experienced, caring naturalists who help your child foster positive connections with nature.  Hands-on activities, high outdoor adventure and new friends await your child as they experience the outdoor world at its best. 

AGES 3-5

Kinder Camp
Each Tuesday and Thursday for the weeks of June 10th, and June 17th, 2013.
9:30 am - 11:00 am    Fee:  $30 
Registration deadline:  May 27, 2013
Limit 15 Students  

Twice a week, for two weeks we will explore the natural world through discovery hikes, nature crafts and games. Come join us to encounter the wonders of nature with your child. Each session includes a healthy snack. (Children must be accompanied by an adult.)

Instructor: Meaghan Gustafson has been working with kids at KVR's summer camps for the past four years and teaches at La Farge Elementary.  She lives with her husband, son and animals outside of La Farge.

Printable Registration Form

AGES 5-7
Children ages 5-7 will enjoy a magical morning or afternoon of exploration and discovery with our themed programs.  Programs include science activies, games, hikes, creative art and natural play.

Jeepers Creepers

June 10-14, 2013
Morning session:
8:30 am - 11:30 am
Morning Session is FULL, we are maintaining a waiting list.  Afternoon session for June 10-14 still available.
Afternoon session:
12:30 pm - 3:30 pm

June 17-21, 2013 
Afternoon session:
12:30 pm - 3:30 pm
June 17-21 Afternoon Session is FULL

Note: Morning and afternoon programs are the same; please register for only one.
Fee: $40 
Registration deadline:  May 27, 2013 Limit 15 Students/session 
 

Monday:  Birds of a Feather
Explore the fascinating world of birds with hikes, stories and games.  Observe where these feathered friends live, what they eat and what songs they sing.

Tuesday:  Amazing Insects
Come be guided through the amazing world of bugs!  Flying and crawling critters will be the focus of outdoor excursions to find insect homes and habitats.

Wednesday:  A Frog's Life
Join us to expolore the world of our amphibious friends.  We'll search the pond and wetlands for frogs and tadpoles, learn about their unique cycle of life and try to find out if it's easy being green!

Thursday:  Nature Art
Create useful and decorative projects from unique items found in nature.  Students will collect, identify and create to give real meaning to learning about nature through craft.

Friday:  Blue Skies
Learn about the sky (blue or otherwise)!  We'll check out cloud formations, create a windsock or kite, learn about the earth's rotation around the sun, and discover how the weather affects our everyday lives. 

Instructors:
Meaghan Gustafson (Jeepers Creepers June 17-21) has been working with kids at KVR's summer camps for the past three years, and teaches at La Frage Elementary. She lives with her husband and animals outside of La Farge.
Mary Szepi (Jeepers Creepers June 10-14) has been teaching young children at Norwalk-Ontario-Wilton Schools for over 20 years. She has been helping children discover the simple joys of playing in nature at the KVR for six years.

Printable Registration Form

AGES 8-10
Children ages 8-10 will spend the day exploring, creating, and getting wet and dirty while they discover science and wilderness at its summer best!

WATER WONDERS
June 24-29, 2013-FULL
August 5-9, 2013-Just Opened
9:00am - 2:30pm

Water Wonders camp for June 24-29  is FULL, we have opened a second week for August 5-9.  Register for the second week now!

Fee:$65 (includes healthy snack; child must pack own lunch)
Registration deadline:  June 7, 2013

Explore  the wet and wild world of the Kickapoo Valley aquatic ecosystems.  Campers will spend the week learning about, playing in and exploring the world of water.  Canoe the pond, swim in the river, collect aquatic invertebrates, build a water-world model, learn about the water cycle through games and craft, meet an aquatic biologist and experience the life of water loving birds and mammals.  New friends, new skills and a new level of comfort in nature (along with some muddy shoes) will make positive lifetime memories for Water Wonder campers.

Instructor:  Vicki Ramsay is a Wisconsin certified environmental education teacher.  She teaches Biology, Agriculture, Chemistry and Life Drawing at Youth Initiative High School in Viroqua.  She loves adventures and lifelong learning that we all receive from nature just by taking time to notice, explore and spend time in the wild.  

Nature Nuts

July 15-19, 2013
9:00 am - 2:30 pm

July 22-26, 2013 
9:00 am - 2:30pm
All Nature Nuts Camps are FULL, we are maintaining a waiting list.

Note:  Each week includes the same programming; please register for only one.

Fee: $65  (includes healthy snack; child must pack own lunch).
Registration deadline: June 28, 2013
Limit 12/week

Each day of nature Nuts camp brings exploration, discovery and new skills. Campers will investigate the realm of plants with identification games and crafts, they'll search for animal life and learn the art of quiet sitting to see who comes along.  We'll encounter the wonders of water with a day on the pond, learning basic canoe skills and safety and discovering who lives in this watery world.  Traditional crafts and demonstrations in the ways that ancient peoples made their fires, shelters and food will also be part of the adventure.  Each day will include hikes, time for guided play and safe exploration.  We'll get wet, dirty and gain a new level of comfort and knowledge about nature.

Instructor: 
Nicholas Gale is a certified wilderness guide and has been teaching children at the Kickapoo Valley Reserve for over 7 years.  His passion is helping children learn nature awareness skills that help them connect with the earth.

Printable Registration Form      

AGES 11-17
Youth ages 11-17 will enjoy high adventure, new skills and great fun during our diverse weeks of Adventure Camp. 

Wilderness Adventure Camp
Ages 11-14
August 12-16, 2013 
9:00 am - 3:00 pm
August 15 Optional Overnight

ADVENTURE CAMP IS FULL, WE ARE MAINTAINING A WAITING LIST.

Registration deadline:  July 26, 2013
Limit 15 Students

Whether you are joining Wilderness Adventure for the first time or returning for another yaer, there are always new skills to learn and friends to meet!  Join us for a combination of high adventure activities and wilderness living skills that promote self-confidence while developing a sense of wonder abotu nature.  The camp will include challenge course teambuilding, active adventure elements such as remote backpacking, map and compass navigation; and river paddling.  It will also allow participants to gain knowledge of plants, mammals, tracking, birds and wilderness survival skills.  Our qualified instructors will guide students into new and challenging experiences that nurture their connection to the earth and serve them for a lifetime.  

Past Nature Nut Campers will have an opportunity to build the wilderness foundation skills they have already gained.  The optional Thursday night overnight will give participants the opportunity to expand their wilderness cooking skills and hone their night-time awareness.  Additional female staff will chaperone the overnight.

Instructors:
Bill Humphrey is the owner of Essential Skills Outdoor School.  He is a certified climbing instructor with over 20 years rock climbing and teaching experience.  Bill is a member of the American Mountain Guides Association and a certified Wilderness First Responder through Wilderness Medical Associates.
Nicholas Gale is a certified wilderness guide through a year-long primitive living immersion course.  He has been teaching summer camps and community programs at the Reserve for over 7 years.

Printable Registration Form

NEW!!  Wilderness Leadership Camp
Ages 13-17
9:00 am August 1, 2013- 3:00 pm August 4, 2013

Fee: $200 (3 meals a day will be provided)  
Registration deadline:  July 19, 2013
Limit 12 Students

Come join us on this four-day, three night adventure for teens only.  Campers will deepen their experiences in the wilderness environment and gain hands-on leadership skills.  This is a self contained wilderness trek designed to develop endurance and self-confidence by pushing personal boundries in a safe and supportive back-country setting.  Experienced wilderness instructors Nicholas Gale and Bill Humphrey will teach subjects such as proper selection and use of outdoor gear, shelter building, wilderness cooking, weather safety and wilderness navigation.  Campers will provide their own backpacks, sleeping bags and personal clothing.  Tarps for tents will be provided as well as food and cooking gear.  Detailed gear list provided with registration confirmation. Additional female staff will be available to chaperone overnights.

Prerequisite:  Campers enrolling in this camp must have already taken the KVR Wilderness Adventure day camp (see above).  Consideration will also be given to students with comparable wilderness experience.  Call for more information.

Instructors:
Bill Humphrey is the owner of Essential Skills Outdoor School.  He is a certified climbing instructor with over 20 years rock climbing and teaching experience.  Bill is a member of the American Mountain Guides Association and a certified Wilderness First Responder through Wilderness Medical Associates.
Nicholas Gale is a certified wilderness guide through a year-long primitive living immersion course.  He has been teaching summer camps and community programs at the Reserve for over 7 years.

Printable Registration Form 

For more information, contact the Kickapoo Valley Reserve office at 608-625-2960 or by email at Kickapoo.reserve@krm.state.wi.us.