Ecocamp at Glen Helen Outdoor Education Center
Experience community. Connect with nature. Find joy.
Since 1974, Ecocamp has provided countless opportunities for campers to experience the beauty of Glen Helen Nature Preserve up close, while creating a safe space for them to build community, connect with friends - old and new - and gain new skills as they build self-confidence.
Join Us for Ecocamp 2023
Camper Resources:
Scholarships are available! Applications are being accepted February 1 - March 31, with decisions by April 15. Please find more information and an application here.
Questions? We're here to help!
Please contact Meigan Turner, Operations Manager, in our Ecocamp Registration Office at 937-767-7648 or oecbusinessmanager@glenhelenassociation.org
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Day Camp: Ages 5-8 $270 per camp
Dig It
We’ll spend the week down-low and up-close, discovering all the creepy crawly critters that make the soil their home. Leave no log unturned! And, maybe feed our naturalist a mud pie?! Can we dig it?
Forest Friends
Get ready to behave like a different Glen Helen animal each day! We’ll move through the woods and use all of our senses just like the creatures do. Hunt for toads, seek the slugs, and dance like a salamander.
NART
Nature + Art = NART! The beauty of Glen Helen will provide inspiration, campers must bring their imaginations! Our artists will sculpt mud, weave leaves, make messes, and create nature inspired art projects to share back home.
NEW! Nature Ninjas
Become a part of the wild world of animals and nature. Enliven all senses by playing awareness games, following footprints and signs of wildlife, and befriending the birds. We will become invisible through camouflage and sneaking softly. We might even ambush another camp!
Puddle Jumpers
Explore the Glen’s pond and streams in search of the amazing creatures that call them home. We will participate in all sorts of water-themed crafts and games. Come ready for a wet week - no puddle will go un-splashed!
Whimsy
Stories, tales, and nature myths will inspire us as we explore the Glen’s most magical spots. Make wings, build gnome homes, and create fairy forts! End the week by creating the story of our adventures at camp.
Progressive Camp: Ages 7-11 $315 per camp
Fort-topia
Humans aren’t the only creatures that build houses! Explore all the amazing ways that animals create shelter for themselves and their families. As we discover different designs, we will put our knowledge to use by building our own shelters and forts.
Girls in the Outdoors! (Girls ages 9-11)
We’ll spend the week hiking, canoeing and building our basic outdoor skills. Meet women in leadership positions in the science field. Make new friends and discover something new about yourself!
NART (Ages 7-9)
Nature + Art = Nart! The beauty of Glen Helen will provide inspiration, campers must bring their imaginations! Our artists will sculpt mud, weave leaves, make messes, and create nature inspired art projects to share back home.
Nature Detectives
There are many secrets hidden in our forests, meadows, and streams. We will comb the Glen looking for tracks, scat, hidey-holes, and teeth marks. Each day will bring a new mystery that puts us hot on the trail of animals that call Glen Helen home.
NEW! Wilderness Living (Ages 7-9)
Hear the call of the wild! Play nature awareness games that enliven the senses and construct a survival shelter that can withstand a storm. We will use local plants around us to create a fire-making kit called a hand-drill, and put it to use by building a campfire to cook a meal outside.
Overnight Camps: Ages 8-15 $390 - $600 per camp
NEW! Avian Adventures (Ages 8-10) $390
Raptors rule the roost at Glen Helen. Spend time up close and personal with multiple resident birds of the Raptor Center throughout the week. Search the woods, fields, and streams for hawks, eagles, owls, and song birds.
NEW! Forest Deep: The Quest for Glenfoot (Ages 12-14) $390
Join the adventure and roll for fun. This week is themed around Dungeons & Dragons! Campers will get to create characters, earn XP, and level up their real life stats all while having an epic adventure across the Glen with a band of new friends.
Fort-topia (Ages 8-10, 10-12) $390
Humans aren’t the only critters that build houses! Explore all the amazing ways that animals and insects create shelter for themselves and their families. As we learn about design from other creatures, we’ll put our knowledge to use by building our own shelters and forts.
Girls in the Outdoors! (Girls ages 8-10, 10-12) $390
We’ll spend the week hiking, canoeing and building our basic outdoor skills. Meet women in leadership positions in the science field. Play and explore science and art in the Glen. Make new friends and discover something new about yourself!
Nature Detectives (Ages 8-10, 10-12) $390
There are many secrets hidden in the Glen’s forests, meadows and streams. As a nature detective, we will comb the forest looking for tracks, scat, holes and teeth marks. Each day will bring a new mystery and put us hot on the trail of one of the Glen’s many animals.
Nocturnal Camp (Ages 12-14, 13-15) $450
An Ecocamp tradition! We will descend into the nocturnal world of the night. See everything through new eyes and ears for a renewed understanding of the Glen and ourselves. In the dark we appreciate the light in new ways, realizing the importance of community, trust, and friendship.
Raptor Camp (Ages 10-12, 12-14) $450
Spend the week learning with the staff of the Glen Helen Raptor Center. Learn from and care for our educational ambassadors while you get to know hawks, eagles, falcons, and owls up close and personal!
Rock Stars (Ages 8-10, 10-12) $410
Let’s rock out! Skip ‘em, stack ‘em, see who’s living under ‘em, roll ‘em downhill, use ‘em for tools like our ancestors did. Includes a field trip to Caesar’s Creek State Park to collect your very own fossils.
NEW! Wilderness Living (Ages 8-10, 10-12, 12-14, 13-15) $450
For ages 8-10, 10-12: Build fires with friction, flint, and matches. Construct a survival shelter that can withstand a storm. Cook meals outside over a fire. Learn ancestral outdoor skills such as fashioning ropes from natural materials. Forge a natural “burn bowl” to take home, by working with a wooden block and coals from our campfire.
For ages 12-14, 13-15: Construct a village of survival shelters and spend a night outside in them. Learn how to safely sanitize water in the woods, cook meals outside over a fire. Meet new friends and learn how to make ropes out of natural materials.
NEW! Adventure Camp! (Ages 13-15) $600
Lace up your boots for a backpacking trip into the Hocking Hills Region and experience the wilds of Zaleski State Forest. After a day of preparation we will spend three nights in the backcountry. Practice primitive camping and enhance your survival skills with activities like frictions-fire and outdoor cooking. Backpacks, tents, and transportation are provided.
Leaders in Training (Ages 16-17) $270
Glen Helen Leaders in Training (LITs) program is for those who wish to give back to the tradition and culture of this special place and are prepared to take their own knowledge and leadership skills to the next level. LITs serve as teaching assistants to the Naturalist Counselors and as mentors and caregivers to younger campers. LITs also help plan and lead activities and pitch in with the day to day work that is necessary to make the Ecocamp magic happen. They receive coaching and instruction in teaching, naturalist skills, behavior management, Glen natural history, and get to have an unforgettable summer in the Glen with old and new friends.
To apply: a short application, a reference, and an interview are required to join Ecocamp as Leader In Training (LIT) - more information can be found here.
Ecocamp Weekly Schedule
Each Ecocamp is a week long, Monday through Friday, and is placed within 1 of 4 categories from the table below.
Day camp is for our youngest group of children involving daily drop-off and pick-up. Extended care is available to Day campers until 5:30 pm, Monday through Thursday, for an additional $30 per week.
Progressive camp is for ages 7-11 looking to get their feet wet in with an overnight experience. These campers will only sleep overnight Thursday evening with a daily drop-off and pick-up Monday through Wednesday.
Older campers participating in Overnight camp or our Leaders in Training program will be dropped off Monday morning and will spend the night in the fabulous Glen until pick-up on Friday afternoon.
Registration Info
To register you will first need to create an account for your household or log-in to a previously created account on our Campbrain Registration Portal. If you are registering more than one child you may do so within a single account. Select which camp options your child would like to attend and any desired options (sign up for extended care, purchase merchandise, add a scholarship donation, etc.). Every camper will receive one Ecocamp shirt upon registering and additional attire may be purchased at Monday check-in or Friday pick-up. Several forms are required upon registering and may be completed or updated prior to the start of your child’s camp. Register by January 30th and receive and automatic 5% off per camp.
Deposits for Day/Progressive Camp ($50) and Overnight Camp ($100) are non-refundable and due at time of registration for each camp reservation. Camp fees are due in full by May 1, 2023 for all camps. All unpaid balances as of May 1st will be processed by our staff using the last credit card on file. Any camp registration completed after May 1st must be paid in full.
Questions? We're here to help!
Please contact Meigan Turner, Operations Manager, in our Ecocamp Registration Office at
937-767-7648 or oecbusinessmanager@glenhelenassociation.org
© Glen Helen 405 Corry Street, Yellow Springs, Ohio 45387 (937) 769-1902