Kodiak Family Ocean Camp

On the Near Island of Kodiak, Alaska the Kodiak Family Church held a two-day Family Ocean Camp for parents and children on August 4 and 5. The National Ocean Challenge staff collaborated with young parents to create a schedule of activities connected with the ocean and nature along with promoting family time and fun.

The first day was full of adventure and exploring. The morning began with taking three Good Go boats out into the harbor for herring fishing where both the parents and children were thrilled and excited to catch small herring fish. This was followed by wildlife watching with the Ocean Challenge captains and captains-in-training where the families were able to spot otters and a whale as it swam among fishing boats waving its big tail.

In the afternoon, the families gathered at Mission Beach for a picnic lunch which was followed by a tide pool scavenger hunt using a pictured scavenger list. Groups of small and large family members clamored about the rocks and pools of water to find things like “a green Moonglow Anemone.”

The second day consisted of games at the church building, such as “Ships and Sailors,” a Japanese “Guess What’s in the Box” game, and “Fish for Thought” where the kids used a magnet hanging from a stick to “fish” for a laminated fish with different questions each group took turns to answer. The day concluded with a knot-tying lesson lead by a couple of the Ocean Challenge captains-in-training along with rock painting which was surprisingly popular for both the young and elders.

The Kodiak Family Church hopes to plan an annual gathering for all families in the community to participate and promote nature and quality family time.