Spring 2005 - Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont

Summer Camp
It’s never too early!
by Jeremy Lloyd
While summer may not arrive as early as
we wish it would each year, it’s never
too early to start dreaming about it. And
it’s never too early to sign your child up
for a new adventure at summer camp in
the Great Smoky Mountains!
Discovery Camp is one of our longest
running programs for children ages 9 to
12. Together we explore nature, learn
about plants and birds, frogs and snakes.We
swim in the river daily, plus take hiking
adventures in the best wilderness the eastern
U.S. has to offer.We even get to spend
a night camping out in the woods!
Wilderness Adventure Camp is a 3
night/4 day backcountry excursion for
teenagers who might never have backpacked
before and want to see what it’s all
about.This is a favorite for many campers,
who return year after year before “graduating”
to Teen High Adventure.
Teen High Adventure,a
6 night/7 day trek that will
likely include a day whitewater
rafting, is for
teenagers as well.Teen
High Adventure is our premiere
backpacking offering,
designed to give each
participant a rewarding
experience growing in the
areas of backcountry skills,
nature appreciation, and
personal development. Our
backpack programs were
the first to fill last year, so
sign your teen up early!
Field Ecology Adventure
gives teenagers age 13 to
17 the opportunity of
working with and as real
scientists. Past campers have conducted
studies of salamanders, insects, birds, and
plants. Climb a mountain and ford a river
while doing real science.There is simply no
other camp like this anywhere else.
Smoky Mountain Naturalist
Expeditions gives kids ages 12 to 14 the
opportunity to immerse themselves for ten
days studying amphibians, black bears, forest
ecology, or primitive skills.This is deep
immersion, in contrast with the windshield
experience of the average park visitor.
Expedition Naturalists will get to explore
areas all over the Park, interact with professional
land and wildlife managers, and
gaze into the glowing embers of an
evening campfire after an afternoon spent
swimming in the Middle Prong. Our new
first-time Expedition offering this summer
will be an archeology component, which
we have formed with the Archeology Field
School of the University of Tennessee.
Samples of weekly summer activities
can be viewed at the Tremont website—
www.gsmit.org—if you wish to see what a
week at one of Tremont’s summertime
youth programs looks like.These programs
fill quickly, so sign your child up early to
avoid being put on a waiting list.We look
forward to meeting you and spending the
summer with your child!
“Your camp changed my daughter permanently. Thanks for an excellent program directed by a wonderful staff. Not only did she talk non-stop
Walker Valley Reflections 8