The Nature of Virtual Summer Camps

“Why isn’t Beaver Creek Reserve having summer camps this year?”

We’ve been getting this question a lot, well before WEAU aired an interview about local summer camps moving online.  Believe us, we wanted our camps to be able to run as usual.  Connecting people with nature is much, much easier if you’re able to get said people out in nature. 

So why couldn’t our camps be held in-person?

First, the Eau Claire Area School District is our major partner in offering summer camps.  We have a contract with them in which they pay the costs for their students to attend specific camps.  These camps make up most of our camp revenue in the summer.  With ECASD deciding that summer school and camps would be held in a virtual format, it made sense to follow their lead and offer all our camps virtually.

Second, we start planning for summer camps in the late fall.  That means that when camps were canceled in May, we had to react rather quickly.  At the time, we had to base our decision on how to run camps, according to the prevailing COVID-19 restrictions, as well as state and county orders.  Even with the loosened restrictions, running camps at our normal capacity would be extremely challenging. 

Nature Nuts campers, ages 5-6 on a
bird-watching hike in 2019.

As our naturalist explained, while we were talking through options for camps, if she were to run a camp with ten kids, and take them on a nature hike, under social distancing regulations, that would have made the last hiker inline 60 feet away from the leader.  Unless our naturalists used megaphones the last kids in line wouldn’t be able to hear anything.  This would require volunteers to help relay information and quite literally keep kids on the right track. Not to mention how wildlife in the area might react to the megaphone noise. 

Additionally, our Discovery Room is often used for camp instruction and activity and as a back up for inclement weather. At present, The Scheels Discovery Room is still closed.  Bleach and other harsher chemicals that kill the coronavirus are not safe for the animals, furs, taxidermy, or displays in the Nature Center.  We would not have been able to use the room for instruction or as a rain back up. Being inside presents its own challenges. At the time we had to make decisions for camps, we could not even count on inside areas as an option for camp use. These are just the tip of the proverbial iceberg when it came to logistical challenges that COVID-19 created in trying to operate in-person summer camps.

Earlier we mentioned volunteers, people we rely heavily on at Beaver Creek Reserve.  In the average

It takes a lot of volunteers to run each of our camps.

year, volunteers give enough hours to fill 2.5 positions at BCR!  Many, not all, of our volunteers, are in the high-risk age range.  This continues to be a concern for us as we work to complete projects at Beaver Creek. For this reason, our Butterfly House will be unstaffed for the first time in 14 years.  Additionally, we will not be utilizing our caterpillar lab, instead, volunteers will be raising Monarchs for us at home.

At the time we were working on our new camps, quarantine restrictions were already being lifted.  But this begged the question, what if a full quarantine was re-established?  There were just so many unknowns. For all these reasons and more, we realized that the safest way to hold our camps this year was online. 

Despite the changes and challenges, we are really proud of the fun line-up of camp offerings for the summer.  Several camps in partnership with the ECASD and those open to students of any district are now on our website and registration is open.  We are finalizing a few more camps with fun themes including photography, owls, fireflies, butterflies, geocaching, and more!  Camp fees for ECASD students are paid, but a materials fee still applies and is required.  For non-ECASD sponsored camps, materials are included in the registration fee.

For the preschool and early childhood age, we suggest you check out our partnered camps through Lily Pad Lab.  They are holding a series of online “Tiny Scientist” Camps. 

Thank you for your understanding and support as we navigate these unusual times.  While our naturalists are excited to see you across their screens, they are also counting the days until they can see their campers in-person!

Missing our in-person camps and programs?  Check out our YouTube Channel and our program calendar for virtual camps and programs.