The annual kayak trip for the National Youth Science Camp
July 10-11, 2010

The state of West Virginia hosts The National Youth Science Camp (NYSC) each summer. For more than 25 years, the West Virginia Wildwater Association has arranged a whitewater kayak trip for some of these kids. These are amazingly nice kids and it's a joy to introduce them to paddling. Our goal is to teach them the basics of whitewater paddling and to provide a safe, fun experience for everyone.

We'll be paddling the Glade Creek to Grandview Sandbar section of the Upper New this year, taking about 30 kids down the river on Saturday, camping out Saturday night, and then taking another 30 kids down the same stretch of river on Sunday. This means that we have to come up with at least 30 extra boats with sets of gear for the campers.

If you have gear that you'd be willing to loan, PLEASE do. We'll even arrange to pick it up and return it to you.

This event requires a lot of volunteers - both on and off the river.

At the River (before the trip):

• Gather completed ACA and WVWA waiver forms for all WVWA participants
• Provide basic safety information and paddling instruction on land
• Organize boats and gear
• Help match the campers and the available boats/gear
• Gather up extra boats and gear for shuttle to Grandview Sandbar

On the River: We will organize into groups:

• Pod leaders and their assistants - to work with the campers in their pods
• Support personnel - to assist and provide support wherever necessary
• Event photographer

Off the River (after the trip):

• Collect the boats/gear at the takeout and help load it for transport.
• Arrange for the pizza and s'mores for dinner.
• Arrange for ice and drinks
• Collect money for the pizza dinner.
• Arrange for wood for a camp fire

For volunteers, we have arranged free camping Friday and Saturday nights at Burnwood Group Camp Area as well as free dinner Saturday evening. Family members and friends are asked to pitch in $5 to help cover the cost of dinner.

We appreciate all of the volunteers who help to make this a great event.

If you can help or have any questions, call Bridget Tincher at 304-545-4403 or click here to send her an email.

Click here to view/print a registration form for mailing or click here to register online.

You can learn more about the NYSC at www.nysc.org/.

This is an ACA-Sanctioned Event