Each year, high school students from more than a dozen California counties head out to Elkus Ranch in Half Moon Bay for a week of comprehensive science and natural resource management education from experienced professionals and university faculty. The California-Pacific chapter of the Society for Range Management (CalPac-SRM) puts on the camp with staff and presenters from the University of California Cooperative Extension, the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, local Resource Conservation Districts, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, and Humboldt State. Many Resource Conservation Districts around the state, plus the California Rangeland Conservation Coalition, the California Cattlemen's Association help with promoting the camp and providing scholarships and other financial support to students wishing to attend.

     California Range Camp was started in 1985 by a group of CalPac-SRM members who wanted to model an environmental science outreach program for students similar to programs in other states. Recruitment efforts are aimed at students from a range of “life experiences”- socio-economic, cultural, and environmental. Some students in particular come from poorly funded schools which don't provide many opportunities for environmental education and as a consequence, are not aware of societal decisions about water, grasslands, and wildlife. Two young women from inner-city Stockton expressed their appreciation for Range Camp opportunities during the last night of camp's emotional group talk.

     “This camp is so much different from what I'm used to and made me think about all of the opportunities I didn't know about,” expressed Maria Aguilar, one of the campers from Stockton.

      “It opened up my perspective on careers I could possibly pursue in the future and helped me expand my horizons,” added Aguilar.

       Camp began Sunday, June 21st at 2 PM, and lasted until Friday June 26th at 10 AM. Students were engaged from 8 AM until 5 PM in talks, presentations, and field activities. After a 5 o'clock dinner (of “the best camp food in California” no less), campers shifted to working on their “Town Hall” projects- presentations on the alternative use and management of the remaining Elkus Ranch facility. Campers presented their proposals on Thursday night to an assembled panel of guests, representing a fictitious town council.

       Camp Director Dr. Marc Horney explained the goal of the “Town Hall” display: “We are not too harsh on practical details… we try to get kids to come together, work together, put together a pitch, and get over the nervousness and fear of doing that in front of adults and their peers.”

      In sum, camp is an all-day affair with back to back learning, growing, and exploring ventures of varying practical applications.

      As an added bonus, students took field trips to Purisima Redwood Grove to learn about forest and watershed management, and Montara State Beach for a geology hike. According to Dr. Marc, one high point from camp was a conversation campers started with UC Berkeley Ph.D. candidate, Julian Weber's, geology hike. One camper from Sites, California, Maureen LaGrande, was particularly interested in Weber's involvement in the Sites dam project as she is actively involved with water policy efforts at home.

      “It was nice to talk to someone who has more knowledge about water than I do. I have gone to a number of water meetings at home, so it was nice to bring my knowledge to the table and hear what other people thought,” commented LaGrande.

       “The dialogue on professional ethics and management of natural resources included really well thought out questions about morality, science, and ethics,” added Dr. Marc.

        While at camp, students were exposed to a number of sciences involved in the management of natural resources and were able to work closely with people who are invested in environmental science and natural resource management. Either out in the field or during lecture, expert foresters, ranchers, conservationists, and policy makers spoke passionately about their areas of expertise to highlight opportunities in their respective fields.

      “Every specialist was thrilled to talk to us about their specialty. I was never tired during the presentations, I was always interested because they spoke clearly and we would always understand them,” commented LaGrande, adding: “To listen to them speak and have them love their job, was a big impact on me… It was not this is this, this is what I do… it was, this is why I do it, what they are striving for. They showed how much they cared about us.”

      No matter their background, there was plenty for all the students to learn at Range Camp. Whether it was learning how to vaccinate sheep, or building a completely new environmental vocabulary, each camper was able to absorb and become influenced by some thread of information.

     “It was cool to watch other people who had never been around animals experience that and see how much work it is,” commented LaGrande, who added: “We might have had different hobbies, but by the end of the week, we had the same ideas and enjoyed what we learned.”

     “I love seeing students who seem very unlike each other discover connections between themselves that they hadn't imagined would exist, and watching friendships take root,” echoed Dr. Marc.

     The general enthusiasm from campers is what makes Range Camp a special experience for all.

      “Thank you to California Range Camp and all the organizations involved in making the camp available to youth!” exclaimed Aguilar.

       LaGrande was quick to chime in: “I am definitely coming back next year. I just can't wait!”

For more information on Range Camp's fun and adventure at UC Elkus Ranch, visit: http://www.rangelands.org/casrm/HTML/rangecamps.html Applications are typically due the April 1st of each year.