Poughkeepsie… Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro announced registration opens tomorrow, April 5th for Dutchess County Parks’ popular Adventure and Survival summer programs for children ages 9-17 at Bowdoin Park in the Town of Poughkeepsie and Wilcox Memorial Park in the Town of Milan. Due to the popularity of these programs, session capacity is limited and limited to one session per student. View the summer program brochure and register online at Dutchessny.gov/parks.
Program sessions will feature hands-on activities such as hiking, shelter making, fire building, and other survival skills, as well as tracking, archery, and building group problem-solving skills. Sessions are held Monday-Thursday, except for the week of July 4th session, from 9:30am to 4pm, with early drop-off and late-pick up options available.
County Executive, Marc Molinaro, said, “Dutchess County Parks’ summer programs teach teamwork, heighten keen observational skills, and an appreciation for outdoor exploration. We are proud to offer these popular programs and provide students with skills and friendships that will last a lifetime.”
Summer Program Schedule
The Adventure Program and Survival Program, for ages 9-11, will be held July 5th-8th (Tuesday through Friday) or July 18th-21st. The Adventure Program, for ages 12-14, will be held July 11th-14th or August 1st-4th. The Survival Intensive Program, for ages 12-14, will be held July 11th-14th. These programs will be at Bowdoin Park.
Additional programs include Complete Survival at Wilcox Park for ages 12-15 on July 25th-28th and Living Survival at Bowdoin Park for ages 16-17 on August 8th-11th. These sessions will mimic a real survival situation framed in the context of a story that changes every year. Complete Survival requires students to have participated in Survival Intensive and ends with an optional overnight stay.
Sessions cost $175 per student, per session. Due the popularity of the programs, there is a limit of one session per student.
Eaglet Adventures
The newest program, Eaglet Adventures, will be held for ages 6-8 and their caregivers on August 1st-4th. These sessions will be from 10am-2pm and will give children a chance to become better explorers and scientists. Children will develop skills to identify animal tracks, discover pond life and begin to see the interconnection that keeps the natural world in balance.
This session is limited to 12 children plus one caregiver and costs $125 per student.
Adult Survival Programs
Adults, ages 21 and up, can get in on the fun with Adult Survival I and II programs. Adult Survival 1 will take place at Bowdoin Park on Saturday, Aril 30th from 9am-4pm and will go through the skills needed in a short-term survival situation. This program is a prerequisite for Adult Survival 2, which will be a weekend overnight session June 11th and 12th at Wilcox Memorial Park in Milan. Adult Survival 2 goes deeper into wilderness survival education, including testing skills in an open campout setting. Space is limited and registration is $40 per person, per session.
Dutchess County Parks Director Sandy Washburn said, “It is such a benefit to be able to offer educational nature programs and learning experiences where both youth and adults get an opportunity to explore their creativity, courage, perseverance and their own situational awareness in nature, while interacting in a safe environment alongside their peers.”
To learn more about Dutchess County Parks or to register for an upcoming program, visit DutchessNY.gov/parks or call (845) 298-4600.
