The University of Nevada Cooperative Extension, Mineral County is looking for teenage youth to go to the Nevada Youth Range Camp. This camp is open to students 14-18 years of age. It is June 21-27, 2015 at big Creek Campground in Austin Nevada. There is a $200 fee for the camp. Applications must be postmarked or emailed by Friday, May 1. By Friday, May 22, you will receive an acceptance letter and notification. Payments are due by Friday, June 5.

Nevada Youth Range Camp is a teenager’s best opportunity to learn about Nevada’s desert and mountain rangelands and diverse ecosystems, while experiencing them first hand. The Society for Range Management operates the week-long camp for 14-18 year olds from Nevada and eastern California. University of Nevada Cooperative Extension conducts the program with staff from various State and Federal agencies including University of Nevada Cooperative Extension, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Nevada Division of Forestry, Nevada Division of Conservation Districts, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Nevada Department of Wildlife. Financial sponsors include Nevada Wildlife Federation, Nevada Conservation Districts, Nevada Bighorns Unlimited, and Nevada Society for Range Management.

Campers will have the opportunity to learn from range management professionals who are knowledgeable in the ecology and management of the Great Basin’s desert and mountain rangelands. Students learn basic surveying and map reading, identification and importance of rangeland plants, evaluation of sagebrush and woodland ecosystems, wildlife surveying techniques, evaluation of stream health, and many other topics related to rangelands. While the camp is educational, it also offers an enjoyable, outdoor experience with activities such as swimming, fishing, hiking, volleyball, horseshoes, campfires and photography.

Camp is held every June at the US Forest Service Big Creek Campground in central Nevada’s Toiyabe Mountain Range. The Toiyabes are one of Nevada’s most impressive mountain ranges with several peaks over 10,000 feet in elevation. June is an ideal time to be in the Toiyabes when numerous wildflowers are in bloom and the vegetation is green from the recent snowmelt.

More information is also available at http://nevada.rangelands.org/Range%20Camp.html. Please call your local extension office if you want to go before applying at 945-3444 Ext 14.