Kids spend February vacation enjoying the outdoors at Milton scout camp

MILTON, Mass. — Even as COVID-19 cases decline and restrictions are loosened, outdoor activities are a big draw for families looking for February vacation activities for the kids.

At Milton’s New England Base Camp, which is owned and operated by Boy Scouts Spirit of Adventure Council, 43 kids are enrolled for winter camp this week.

Older scouts are learning survival skills and shelter building, constructing tents in the woods of the Blue Hills Reservation to stay overnight Wednesday into Thursday.

“We need to find resources and bring tarps and stuff… because it’s going to rain,” said Brendan Maher, 12. “It’s fun. Just tiring, too.”

Hiking, archery, and shooting at the BB range are among the many activities scouts enjoy, feeling a sense of freedom from masks and the omicron surge.

“Just happy I’m getting out, because I’ve been inside all the time, and I haven’t really been doing much because all my friends were getting COVID,” said Will Mellon, 12. “It’s just really fun because I don’t have to wear a mask when I’m outside… It’s just much easier when you can actually breathe.”

Despite having a week’s worth of winter activities planned, including snowshoeing, ice climbing, skating, and sledding, unseasonably warm weather this week has shifted plans. Some of those activities will be packed in on the last day of camp, Friday when snow is expected.

Educator director Kira LaFosse-Baker said the camp programs allow kids to be kids and connect with one another in nature.

“It’s so freeing. You get to see these kids uninhibited in a great way,” LaFosse-Baker said. “There are still kids around with masks on, which I think is a testament to force of habit. And sometimes we remind them, ‘You’re outside, you’re spread out.’ They’re going, ‘Oh, yeah.’”

Marta Bausemer, mom to seven-year-old Willa, told Boston 25 News she is becoming more comfortable allowing her daughter to resume normal play with friends, but outdoor activities are the safest option for now.

“I’m a nurse and I work in the schools. So, I am constantly thinking about COVID. It’s the first thing I think about when I wake up, sadly,” Bausemer said. “It makes me feel really comfortable being outside. I couldn’t think of more of a comfort zone than having something like that for my own kid.”

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