Weston camp sponsors Picnic for the Planet for Earth Day
By Leslie Lake Hour Staff WriterWESTON -- As Earth Day approaches, worldwide attention turns toward the state of the environment, but for Weston resident Lyn Kimberly the commitment to preserving and sharing an appreciation of all that nature has to offer encompasses more than that one day.
Wearing many hats in her mission to get people to go outside and explore their natural surroundings, she and her husband Chris started American Wanderer (AW) Camp, a traveling summer camp that affords teens the opportunity to explore U.S. National parks. Kimberly is also the market manager at the Farmer's Market at the Norfield Grange and has organized a local Earth Day "Picnic for the Planet" in conjunction with The Nature Conservancy.
"I read about a study that showed that kids are spending an average of seven hours a day on their cell phones, talking, and texting. That doesn't include school, video games, sleep," she said. "When are they going outside? The picnic is a great way to get people to think about going outdoors."
The April 22 picnic, sponsored by AW Camp, The Norfield Grange and the Children & Nature Network, will be held locally at The Nature Conservancy's Katharine Ordway Preserve in Weston. It will be one of hundreds of such picnics around the globe in a 24-hour period and is designed to connect people around the world to one another through food and appreciation for the planet. Activities will include games and a hike through the preserve before the picnic.
"This is a multi-venue picnic held at locations around the globe," said Kimberly. "There will be a photo collage of all of the picnics around the world on the Nature Conservancy website. We'll include a photo of our local picnic. We strongly encourage people come to the picnic and explore the preserve."
Six years ago, Kimberly and her husband Chris felt so strongly about the value of outdoor exploration that they started American Wanderer Camp, a mobile summer camp that offers four two-week summer sessions for teens to explore western U.S. National Parks.
The focus of the camp is to put the video games and cell phones away and explore nature and history. Camp activities include: hiking into the Grand Canyon, hunting for fossils in Wyoming, panning for gold in the Black Hills, exploring ghost towns and ancient ruins, and rafting the Arkansas River.
Traveling in RV's that the Kimberly's call "rolling camps" kids ages 11-17 will find themselves in a different park and new adventure every day of each session. Campers may attend one or more sessions. Each session includes eight or nine stops at natural attractions such as parks, lakes, mountains and caves.
"We go caving, river rafting, explore ghost towns, ride old train routes, we hike below the rim of the Grand Canyon. We've seen California Condors that nest in the Grand Canyon. We've seen elk, buffalo, antelope in their natural habitat," said Kimberly. "We hear over and over that this is a life-changing experience."
Session one, called the Anasazi Pass begins in Colorado then swings through New Mexico and on to Arizona with exploration venues such as: Mesa Verde National Park, Black Canyon, and Aztec Ruins. With a new group of campers flying in, session two, known as the Ute Route, takes the groups through Colorado, Arizona and Utah visiting: Zion National Park, Grand Canyon, Marble Canyon. The third camp session, Shoshone Trail, swings through Utah, Idaho, Wyoming and Montana with stops at Yellowstone National Park, Grand Teton National Park and Great Salt Lake. The final session, Lakota Patch tours through Montana, Wyoming, South Dakota and Colorado with stops at Mount Rushmore, Devil's Tower, and the Badlands.
Believing that finances shouldn't get in the way of the camp experience, American Wanderer has a foundation with the following mission statement: "Our mission is to connect today's youth with the natural and historic wonders of America, by providing scholarships to attend American Wanderer Summer Camp. We believe ALL children, regardless of financial ability should be given the opportunity to learn about the natural wonders of America."
"The camp philosophy is get out, explore, and build friendships with other campers," said Kimberly. "Our goal is to turn kids into future stewards of our national parks."
"Picnic for the Planet": 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Sunday, April 22 at Katharine Ordway Preserve, 165 Good Hill Road, Weston.
Information: www.AmericanWanderer.com www.norfieldgrange.com, www.nature.org/earthday.
American Wanderer featured in Family Circle:
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Campers from the American Wanderer RV Camp hiking through the Grand Tetons in Wyoming.
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American Wanderer featured in The Daily Weston:
Campers from the American Wanderer RV Camp hiking through the Grand Tetons in Wyoming.
Photo credit: Lyn Kimberly
WESTON, Conn. – Weston resident Lyn Kimberly and her husband, Chris, took a giant gamble in the summer of 2005 when they left their corporate jobs and created a new family life on the American open road. With their two daughters, they hiked through Yellowstone, Yosemite and Kings Canyon national parks. And that family journey changed the Kimberlys' lives forever as they turned their love for the outdoors into a new career path.
They created their own summer camp on wheels to open children’s eyes to a world they had previously only seen in books or learned about in class. What they created was American Wanderer, a mobile RV camp for kids.
Six years later, the Kimberlys have a thriving family business that every summer welcomes campers from all over the world. Unlike camps with cabins perched beside lakes, this one has the campers staying in RVs and waking up in a new town each day. The Kimberlys call them “rolling cabins.” The campers fly to an airport, get picked up by the Kimberlys and journey to national parks in the area. When the session is over, the children fly home.
“I like to say that we are a mobile summer camp where every day is a new adventure,” Kimberly said.
This summer, for example, the kids will fly into a Colorado airport, where they will be greeted by the Kimberlys and the camp's staff. They will spend the next 14 days in an RV visiting nearly 10 national parks and monuments in Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona. They will hike, raft and mountain climb through several historic sites of the American West while also learning about the history and culture.
“The best part is that we really spend time at these places. The kids really get this amazing educational experience. They are living their history class, they are experiencing their geology classes. It suddenly all comes to life for them,” Kimberly said.
The camp runs throughout the summer, allowing kids 11 to 17 to sign up for a two-, four-, six- or even eight-week sessions. This summer, campers will also have the opportunity to travel to Utah, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana and South Dakota.
“I really believe that learning is hands-on, and at our camp all the five senses come to life,” Kimberly said.
They created their own summer camp on wheels to open children’s eyes to a world they had previously only seen in books or learned about in class. What they created was American Wanderer, a mobile RV camp for kids.
Six years later, the Kimberlys have a thriving family business that every summer welcomes campers from all over the world. Unlike camps with cabins perched beside lakes, this one has the campers staying in RVs and waking up in a new town each day. The Kimberlys call them “rolling cabins.” The campers fly to an airport, get picked up by the Kimberlys and journey to national parks in the area. When the session is over, the children fly home.
“I like to say that we are a mobile summer camp where every day is a new adventure,” Kimberly said.
This summer, for example, the kids will fly into a Colorado airport, where they will be greeted by the Kimberlys and the camp's staff. They will spend the next 14 days in an RV visiting nearly 10 national parks and monuments in Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona. They will hike, raft and mountain climb through several historic sites of the American West while also learning about the history and culture.
“The best part is that we really spend time at these places. The kids really get this amazing educational experience. They are living their history class, they are experiencing their geology classes. It suddenly all comes to life for them,” Kimberly said.
The camp runs throughout the summer, allowing kids 11 to 17 to sign up for a two-, four-, six- or even eight-week sessions. This summer, campers will also have the opportunity to travel to Utah, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana and South Dakota.
“I really believe that learning is hands-on, and at our camp all the five senses come to life,” Kimberly said.