ESTEVAN — The Estevan Wildlife Federation hosted a successful youth conservation camp from Aug. 10-13.
Jarrett Daoust, the EWF's youth chairman and one of the camp organizers, said this year the weather made a good camp even more interesting.
"We had a little bit of rain that came down, but we needed rain anyways, so we worked around it. And it was wildlife camp, so we dealt with doing activities in the rain, which was good for the kids to learn," Daoust said.
Just over 40 kids ages 11-14 attended and were camping out in tents at the Boundary Dam site of Woodlawn Regional Park. Daoust noted that about half of the kids were returning, while for others their activities were new.
To make the camp work they also attracted six counsellors and over 40 volunteers.
"Between everything it was about 100 people that came and helped out and enjoyed the activities," Daoust said.
The 24th camp offered a wide variety of wildlife-related activities for the kids to try and enjoy.
"The biggest thing is just getting kids outdoors, giving them opportunities to be involved in activities that they don't necessarily get to do every day, to give them a new spectacle and get them re-engaged in the outdoor lifestyle, and [help them to get] as much as they can of what we have here in Estevan," Daoust said.
During the camp, kids went out canoeing, kayaking, swimming and fishing and got to meet and talk to a research team to learn about fisheries and habitat at the Boundary Dam. They also had many games and activities, like fire lighting, outdoor cooking and more. But the biggest highlight every year is the shooting day on the third day when kids get to learn about and try shooting various firearms, including handguns, .22's and muzzleloaders. They also play games at the paintball range, try trap shooting and practise archery.
"Shooting day is our biggest spectacle, that's where most of the kids get to do hands-on with the firearms, of course being safe and having all the range officers walk them through what needs to happen to go have fun, but also do it properly and be safe," Daoust noted.
He also thanked the many people involved with the camp, who helped make it safe and fun.
"Just a big thank you to all the sponsors and volunteers that we had this weekend. It's a joint effort between lots of companies and a lot of volunteer hours and equipment that come out. We absolutely couldn't do it without that, so just a big thank you to that and the community members," Daoust said.
