Trailblazers High Adventure Summer Camp, June 2025

The June 2025 session of Trailblazers High Adventure Summer Camp was a phenomenal way to start our summer season! Our summer programs are the opportunity for us to connect with nature in a big way. Our days are devoted to exploring nature with friends, and we offer three different sessions of camp in the summer; all for different age groups and levels of experience! This High Adventure session is catered to our oldest and most adventurous students as it features our most physically challenging days.

The typical Trailblazers High Adventure format features a field trip to a different location each day. At each location, the student group is usually split in half with some enjoying a bird walk while the rest go on a hike in the creek. Then, the students switch after lunch so everyone gets to enjoy each activity. With this year‘s week of camp being completely under a heat advisory, we had to scrap our traditional format in favor of staying cool on some brutally hot days!

Our first day of Trailblazers High Adventure made for an interesting start to our week to say the least! The heat advisory was in full effect so we had blazing sun and temperatures in the high 90s. That didn’t keep us inside, but it did change around our usual format for our camp day. Instead of enjoying split group activities at school, we did a whole group hike on the BSES Nature Trail to practice trail etiquette, identify poison ivy, and get some good hiking in before the heat really set in. It was so hot that we didn’t even bring binoculars out for the hike! We did however have great views of a male Eastern Bluebird perched on the stop sign just at the nature trail entrance.

After we had an early lunch, we boarded our bus later than we expected to head to Ridley Creek State Park for our first field trip of the week. When we arrived at the park, we had to pivot from our usual location because the road was closed; fallen trees from the weekend tornado warning blocked the road. We ended up parking at the horse stables instead of picnic area #9. From there, we hiked down to the creek, and we even made it to our usual favorite spot to beat the heat with some creek exploration! Along the way, we heard a family of American Redstarts, a pair of Northern Parula, and a pair of Acadian Flycatchers. We explored the creek for about an hour and a half. Students found a whole bunch of crayfish, and the Nepi brothers caught a rainbow trout and an eel that everyone got to see! To avoid taking a wet group of students up and down hills in the forest, we decided to hike upstream back to the trail up to our bus. We heard an Indigo Bunting singing on our way back up the hill! Once we reached our bus, everyone was glad to be back. The conditions combined with our upstream hiking adventure made our first day a certifiable high adventure experience!

Our second day of camp brought us on our first full day field trip to White Clay Creek State Park in Delaware. We delayed our departure due to the heat, which maxed out at 98° (with a “real feel temp” of 108° according to AccuWeather.) We once again scrapped our usual format and spent all day in the water. Even though the sun was blazing, it felt wonderful to be in the creek! We had a flyover Belted Kingfisher that gave great views to the group. After that, an Osprey flew overhead low with a fish! We also heard an Indigo Bunting singing over our heads while we were in the water. 

Day three took us to the Great Marsh, a private property in Elverson. This is our first visit to this location since 2019! Today’s heat advisory had temperatures maxing out at 97° (with a real field temperature of 106° according to AccuWeather.)  We delayed our field trip departure yet again so we could reduce our time outside in the blazing heat. Once we arrived at the Great Marsh, we immediately ate lunch in the nature center. During that time, the students learned about the history of the Great Marsh and even got to inspect the pelts of some of the mammals that are found in our region. After that, we split the group in two: half went to the creek and the other half went to the swimming hole. At the creek, students waded in Marsh Creek to help the Great Marsh Institute conduct a survey on eastern eliptio mussels. At the swimming hole, students enjoyed a dip in a natural body of water and also got to practice paddling on an inflatable canoe! We also got to meet Violet, the Great Marsh Institute dog as she was learning how to swim. In this location, we found a dead spotted turtle. We also had a flyover Great Blue Heron. Even though the temperatures were blazing, the students had a ton of fun at both stations getting messy and staying cool! We need to give a special thank you to Jim Moore and Billy Brown for leading us at the Great Marsh!

Eastern Eliptio Mussel

Our fourth and final field trip of the week was our most adventurous of the summer: a canoe trip down the Brandywine River! We put in our boat at Corcoran’s Bridge near ChesLen Preserve, and we paddled our way back to the Northbrook Canoe headquarters. Today’s heat advisory was made less brutal by the cold waters of the creek. Temperatures today maxed out at 92° (with a real field temperature of 101° according to AccuWeather.) We made a handful of stops in our journey to play and swim in the creek! We also enjoyed a nice lunch on the riverbank about halfway through our trip. On the way back, the transmission of our school bus began to overheat! Thankfully we made it back to school without issue. We'd like to send a special thank you to Mr. VonDerstuck for joining us on the water for this trip!

With all four days being under a heat advisory, this is no doubt the hottest week of camp we’ve had ever in the last 12 years of Trailblazers. Even though conditions were challenging, the students still had a fantastic time getting outdoors and spending time together in nature. All told, we observed 56 different species of birds. We hiked only 9.5 miles; nearly 5 miles less than last year’s session (due to the revised format of camp.) Also, we paddled about 3.5 miles by canoe!

For more on the birds we observed, check out our eBird Trip Report for the session. Thank you to Trailblazers families for their continued support of our program, and we look forward to an amazing (and hopefully cooler) rest of the summer!