Watershed Camps

APPLICATIONS NOT YET OPEN: The week-long day camp is June 23-27 for those entering 4th thru 6th grades.

APPLICATIONS NOT YET OPEN: The three-day long day advanced camp is July 17th-19th for those entering 7th thru 8th grades.

APPLICATIONS NOT YET OPEN: The overnight Wilderness Weekend is July 11-13 for those entering 9th thru 12th grades (high school).

Watershed Camp incorporates education, restoration, and recreation in a one-week summer camp for students entering 4th through 6th grades, including home-school students.

At Camp, students are introduced to our current restoration projects, receive specific restoration skills training, and even have a chance to get their hands dirty with restoration projects on the ground! Our students see an immediate, positive impact on our watershed through their own hard work -- truly something to be proud of.

Learning from biologists, botanists, Forest Service staff, Salmon and Trout Enhancement Program volunteers, foresters/timber managers, water safety guides, tribal culture guides, and others, these budding stewards also receive a first-hand introduction to the rich field of restoration and scientific careers.

Watershed Camp equips the next generation with the knowledge and skills for a lifetime of scientific learning and working for the health of their watershed. And, of course, to learn to have fun while doing it! Recreational activities are built into the program to ensure everyone has a fun and meaningful summer experience.

Wilderness Weekend offers high school students an immersive experience in the Coast Range. Over three days and two nights they will learn Leave No Trace ethics and basics of backcountry camping while learning about and engaging with ongoing restoration projects throughout the Siuslaw Watershed. Wilderness Weekend is a great opportunity for anyone interested in pursuing a career in natural resource management.

New in 2025, Advanced Camp provides 7th and 8th grade students with more challenging and engaging programming in comparison to Watershed Camp. The three-day long day camp will include opportunities to participate in trail work, a cycle tour of a large-scale ecological restoration site, and a canoe and kayak trip on the Siuslaw river.

2018 Review

In 2018, we had record attendance for our one-week watershed Exploration Camp!

Fifty students, ranging from fourth grade through high school, traveled throughout the Siuslaw Watershed engaging in a wide range of outdoor learning and recreational activities. While most of the students came from the Siuslaw and Mapleton School Districts, we were also joined by students from as far away as Portland.

As part of our 2018 programming, campers traveled to various sites throughout the Siuslaw Watershed and Coastal Lakes. This year the sites were on the Coastal Dunes, at Siltcoos Trail, Honeyman State Park, Sutton Lake, Camp Lane, and the Florence beaches. Activities included a scotch broom pull, a transect at Tree Island, sandboarding, Snowy Plover biology and habitat, bird-watching, hiking, boating, field games, a canoe pull, water quality monitoring, a traditional tribal tea, removing Japanese knotweed, making fish prints, freshwater ecology, orienteering, volleyball, forestry, a scavenger hunt, and horseback riding.

Watershed camp is made possible by the generosity of many organizations and watershed council members and donors. The Siuslaw Watershed Council and Camp staff would like to extend a sincere thank you to the following for their contribution to this year’s camp: The Ford Family Foundation, Siuslaw School District, the Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians, Western Lane Community Foundation, Mapleton Community Foundation, the Rotary Club of Florence, Fred Meyer, Sand Dunes Frontier, C&M Stables, Sandmaster Park, Honeyman State Park, Florence area Salmon and Trout Enhancement Program, the US Forest Service, Camp Lane, the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), Roseburg Forest Products, Ecology in Classrooms and Outdoors (ECO), Oregon Parks and Recreation Department and many local volunteers. Also a special thank you to those SWC members who donated to our annual Sponsor-A-Camper for scholarships offered to several campers this year.

Thank you for making this valuable opportunity for our youth possible.