Chasing Crustaceans and a White Birch Leaf

Boys Camp counselor Chase Tobey stopped by to tell us about the Nature Scavenger Hunt in which he and some of his campers participated this week. It was clear that he enjoyed it as much as the boys did.  “Doc Fred” Cichocki, who runs the Boys Camp nature program, designed the hunt, which had counselors and campers running all over the Neck.

“It only happens once a summer,” Tobey says. “The wonderful thing about it is that some of the things you know, and some of them you don’t know. If you’ve been paying attention to Doc Fred’s Natural History Mystery presentations, you’re off to a good start.”

Cichocki gave each of the five groups a list of 11 items to find, including a crustacean, an anthropod, a white birch leaf, a gall, etc. “He says, ‘Ready, go!’ and then you have 45 minutes to find everything on the list,” Tobey says. Part of his group stayed in the Nature Museum to research the most obscure items in the books Cichocki leaves out. The rest immediately started searching.

Juniper campers did well but the winner was Outhaul. Tobey notes that Outhaul is lucky to have counselor Sam Sullivan, who has earned his Master Naturalist Award from Doc Fred. “It’d be like having a small Doc Fred in your group,” Tobey explains.

Tobey loves the Nature Scavenger Hunt because of what participants learn. “It’s fun because all the campers are working together with one goal,” he says. “And the only reward in the end is that you know this stuff about nature, which is cool.”