PEEC summer camps include Backpacking Adventure for Teens, Living Earth Adventure Program and two sessions of Nature Odyssey. Photo Courtesy PEEC

PEEC NEWS

Registration is open for all four of the Pajarito Environmental Education Center’s June summer camps. These camps give youth entering fourth through twelfth grades the opportunity to get outside this summer to explore the incredible outdoors of the Pajarito Plateau. The camps are filling up quickly, so sign up soon to reserve a spot.

Backpacking Adventure for Teens will take a group of high school students into the backcountry for a multi-day excursion. The group will spend a day preparing for the trip by learning about equipment, safety and backpacking skills and then head out on their adventure. This camp will be held from June 4 – 7. Participants should be in good physical condition and able to hike up to an average of seven miles per day with heavy backpacks at high altitudes. PEEC has equipment available for participants to use.

Living Earth Adventure Program offers students entering seventh and eighth grades the opportunity to explore the diverse ecosystems of the Pajarito Plateau and surrounding areas. Participants will learn about archeology, geology, ecology and wildlife and will get to take part in numerous opportunities for outdoor recreation. The group plans to go hiking, caving, rafting and camping during the camp, which will be held from June 10 – 14.

PEEC’s Nature Odyssey camps offer two adventure-filled weeks for kids entering fourth to sixth grade. During Nature Odyssey: Rocking and Flowing campers will explore the forces that shaped our landscape and study volcanoes, floods, fire and ice from June 10 – 14. In the second week, called Nature Odyssey: Moving and Growing, campers will focus on the fascinating creatures we find in water and on land on the Pajarito Plateau. This session lasts from June 17 – 21.

Thanks to a generous donor, PEEC can again offer need-based scholarships for summer camps. Email adventure@peecnature.org or call 505-662-0460 for more information about scholarships.

In addition to PEEC’s June summer camps, the organization will offer two summer camps in early August for children entering first through sixth grades. Registration for these camps will open in May, but the dates of the camps are available now.

For more information about this and other PEEC programs, visit www.peecnature.org, email adventure@peecnature.org or call (505) 662-0460.

PEEC was founded in 2000 to serve the community of Los Alamos. It offers people of all ages a way to enrich their lives by strengthening their connections to our canyons, mesas, mountains, and skies. PEEC operates the Los Alamos Nature Center at 2600 Canyon Road, holds regular programs and events, and hosts a number of interest groups from birding to hiking to butterfly watching. PEEC activities are open to everyone; however, members receive exclusive benefits such as discounts on programs and merchandise. Annual memberships start at $35. To learn more, visit www.peecnature.org.