Posts Tagged ‘reptiles’

Reptiles at Sawhill Ponds

Wednesday, July 28th, 2010

Wednesday was another great day as we made our way out to Sawhill Ponds for a Naturalist tour around the water.  Before we got on the bus in the morning, we had time to make snakes, which were used for bracelets, toy snakes, and even bookmarks.  We ended up with very colorful and creative snakes.  Once the bus returned from Eldorado Canyon, we loaded up and headed out to the Ponds.

Upon arrival at Sawhill Ponds, we settled into the picnic tables for a delicious lunch before our Naturalist guide Robin arrived.  We began our tour by wading in the water around the edge of the pond looking for reptiles.  Our bus driver Ed was able to find us a toad in the mud, and caught it for all of us to see.  We also found shrimp, maefly larva, and tiny snakes in the water.  Out of the water we were able to look at all the creatures and plants we had scooped up under magnifying glasses.

Next we headed out on a hike around the lake to look for more creatures and to read a story that taught us all about what reptiles are, and how they are different from mammals and amphibians.  Our guide Robin was extremely helpful and we were very grateful to have her there.  After the story we had to jump back on the bus to get back just in time for GORP, which the Star Wars GORP Eating Tree Snakes had created, before parents came to pick up the campers.

Tags: , , ,
Posted in MDC Junior 2010 | Comments Off

Mesa Trailhead

Tuesday, July 27th, 2010

For the first time at Mountain Day Camp, our Juniors hitched a ride with the Eldorado Canyon Program, getting dropped off at the Mesa Trailhead on the way up to the Canyon.  We caught a ride on the bus to try it out for next year, when we will hope to do it on a regular basis.  It worked flawlessly, and our Juniors enjoyed the chance to ride the bus with the older kids.  We jumped off the bus at the Mesa Trailhead where we sung our morning songs and played a game.

With our morning routine finished, we set off in search of “Reptile Eggs” that our Junior Leaders had planted in the surrounding area.  It was an enjoyable scavenger hunt, and we found lots of eggs.  After our Reptile search we settled in for lunch at a nice shady picnic table to avoid the unbearable heat.  After lunch we explored more of the area around the trailhead, looking for reptiles around the meadows and river.  Unfortunately we were unable to find anything even bugs.  After our expedition, we attempted a large group jump rope in which the campers had to work together to make it under or over one rope.  It went surprisingly well and we all made it through successfully.

Back at camp we hid out in the air conditioning to read stories before having GORP for our afternoon snack.  With time winding down we ran out to the “mini-meadow” for some free play with frisbees and jump ropes.  It was a good day, but we were all drained from the heat by the end.  Tomorrow we are off to Sawhill Ponds for a Naturalist tour, so don’t forget to pack some extra water shoes!

Tags: , ,
Posted in MDC Junior 2010, What's Happening! | Comments Off

Slithering Reptiles

Monday, July 26th, 2010

Today was the beginning of another exciting week in our Junior program, with our theme this week focusing on reptiles.  All of our campers this week are returners from previous sessions which made for a seamless transition this morning.  We got a chance to re-decorate water bottles and make bookmarks this morning, after naming our cabin groups (Star Wars GORP Eating Tree Snakes and the Sleeping Dolphin Dragons).  After naming our groups we set off to the “mini-meadow” to play a game of tunnel tag, before we ventured out to Canyon Park for lunch.

At Canyon Park we found a nice big tree to eat under before exploring the park and playing games.  It was an incredibly hot day, so it wasnt long before we were all ready to return to the cool inside to read a story.  Our Junior Leaders then prepared a skit about reptiles for our campers to introduce them to the upcoming activities for the week.  We talked about all kinds of snakes and lizards and other reptiles.  As the Day began to wind down we had our afternoon GORP before closing up the day with “On Top of Spaghetti”.

Tomorrow we will head out to the South Mesa Trailhead, in search of reptile nests and eggs, and to hike and eat lunch.  It should be another great day!

Tags: , ,
Posted in MDC Junior 2010 | Comments Off

Juniors Head to Fish Observatory

Thursday, July 30th, 2009

Today was pretty rainy and cold, as everyone noticed (and talked about a lot)! So instead of going swimming, we decided to change our day around a bit. We started out with some fun songs, including “The Alligator is My Friend” and “Head and Shoulders.” Then, we played with a big bag full of balloons! It was exciting to see how long we could keep the bag up in the air without its touching the ground. Then, we split into groups and made paper-bag snake puppets! The campers really got into making them–ask your camper to make their snake talk!

After working on our snakes, we got packed up and headed out for our Rain Walk. We got to walk all the way to the Fish Observatory (28th and Arapahoe, by Boulder Creek). It was really cool to see all the different things brought out by the rain–we saw worms, and the rain made it easier to see spiderwebs, too. After eating lunch under an awning by the creek, we fed the fish and looked through the obervatory’s windows for awhile. Then, we headed back to Base Camp, through the rain!

Back at Base Camp, we took off all our wet things and settled down for some quiet time. We read “Star-Bellied Sneetches” and also “Where the Wild Things Are.” Everyone was pretty tired after our big hike! We then split up into groups for some afternoon group time–the Thunderheads mixed their gorp, the Chicken Flowers made a beautiful group picture, and the Pink Ponies finished up their snakes.

We ate snack inside (the delicious gorp mixed by the Thunderheads!) and then had some free play with our snakes. The campers had a great time introducing their snakes to each other and having their snakes eat various things around the room! We finished up the day outside–we used our snakes to talk about our favorite activity of the day, and then sang “On Top of Spaghetti” with a lot of extra “ssss”es! Tomorrow, we’re going bug catching and possibly making frog hats; it should be a really exciting end to our Reptiles week!

Tags: , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in MDC Junior 2009, What's Happening! | Comments Off