Back in the fuzzy recesses of my mind there are several experiences and memories I draw on from time to time when I’m enjoying the outdoors. One of those memories is the short time I spent at Boy Scout camp.

I learned about knots, swimming, rowing, and did some crafts. The specifics are blurred with the passing of several decades, but that’s not important. What is is that seeds were planted relatively early in my life that later grew into an appreciation of the outdoors and a sense of wonder at how it all fits together.

My daughter has been fortunate to have experienced several sessions at the Girl Scouts’ Camp Natarswi in the shadow of Mt. Katahdin, and I’m sure that later in her life the seeds of that experience will grow into a sense of stewardship for the Maine experience.

She’ll have lots of help in that area from “graduates” of the Greenland Point Center in Princeton, an arm of the University of Maine at Machias. It’s one of the fastest growing outdoor education programs in the state, according to Rick Scribner, director of the facility. Made up of a series of one-week programs, the emphasis is on conservation education and it is done through such vehicles as the Maine Conservation Camp, the Wet and Wild program, Maine Waterways Adventures and Winter Conservation Camp.

The 65-acre facility sits on the shores of Long Lake and it is run, Scribner said, as a department of the university as the Outdoor School and provides students in recreation management with a working laboratory. The camp also attracts education students who benefit from the ability to work with youth at the camp, as well as marine biology and environmental studies students.

Campers are attracted from all over the state with roughly a third coming from southern Maine, a third from the counties bordering Washington County and the rest from Washington County, Scribner said.

The Maine Conservation Camp offers youths ages 10-13 five one-week sessions, each of which gives the youth a chance to earn their Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Hunter Safety Certification and Boating Safety Certification. According to the camp’s brochure the programs help middle grade students to safely enjoy themselves while venturing into the woods. They receive instruction in canoe and water safety, swimming, fly casting (thanks to Penobscot Fly Fishers), rifle instruction, animal and fish identification, sailing and safe boat handling, archery, wildlife management, sportsman ethics, woods survival, trapping, tree identificaiton, forest and water conservation, and map and compass reading.

Or for youngsters more oriented to the water the Wet and Wild summer camp offers swimming, paddleboats, sailing, caoeing, fishing, kayaking, camping, nightwalks, woodland and water ecology, cooking and nutrition, and safe boat handling.

There are eight log cabins as well and a bathroom facility for campers as well as a main lodge housing a dining room, modern kitchen, library and multipurpose room.

But the program that really caught my eye is the Maine Waterways Adventures, which, to my surprise, Scribner said is not fully booked. Aimed at youths 13-17 it takes groups kids out on one-week kayaking and canoeing expeditions. Programs run Sunday to Friday, and trips begin on Monday and end on Thursday. Sea kayaking adventures begin at Roque Bluffs State Park and take in scenic waters of Englishman Bay. Activities on the trip include snorkeling, fishing and swimming while learning about island ecosystems, island ethics and low impact camping techniques.

The canoe trips are on inland waters of Washington County and offer youths the chance to develop canoeing skills, swimming, fishing, hiking and a chance to learn about wilderness ecosystems, land ethics and low impact camping skills.

Greenland Point Center “provides a quality outdoor education opportunity for college students as well as kids,” Scribner said. The children are learning from people who enjoy being outdoors and who are well trained — six are, or soon will be, registered Maine guides, three are Emergency Medical Technicians, eight are range safety certified, many are qualified in advanced first aid and several are first responder instructors. Scribner is a certified master instructor.

What makes Greenland Point Center different from many camps is that it is a non-profit entity which receives limited financial support from the University of Maine. It strives to keep costs low for campers and to that end it has attracted a growing list of conservation organizations which are providing camperships to help defray the cost of registration as well as lending various levels of expertise and teaching skills for youths attending camp. For example, Penobscot Fly Fishers has provided $400 for four campers and the Penobscot County Conservation Association has provided enough money for up to 44 youths, Scribner said. Programs run from $180 for Maine Conservation Camp and Wet and Wild to $250 for Maine Waterways Adventures. Camperships range from $100 to $130 which lower the cost to participants to $50 to $120.

There are more than 40 sponsoring organizations. Anyone interested in more information may contact the center at 796-5186. Do so quickly, though, sessions begin June 28 and run for the next seven weeks.

Here’s a couple of “program notes,” one for the active spirits, the other for the couch potato adventurers.

The second annual St. Croix River Kayak and Canoe Rally to benefit the St. Croix Estuary Project and the Calais Heritage Enhancement and Area Revitalization Team begins at 9 a.m. Sunday at the tourist information center at Calais Waterfront Park. Registration is $15 per boat which includes shuttle service, bottled water, and a St. Croix Estuary poster suitable for framing. You’ll join other paddlers for a three-hour trip exploring eight miles of the St. Croix from the Calais waterfront to historic St. Croix Island.

Check out the new season of Anyplace Wild returning to Public Television for its second season beginning July 11. Aired on Saturdays at 8 p.m. the half-hour episodes will take you to some of the world’s most diverse and colorful locations for reality-based expeditions. Produced in Camden the show is hosted by Backpacker Magazine executive editor John Viehman (of Trailside fame) and features co-hosts Annie Getchell, a registered Maine Guide, and Arlene Burns, a member of the U.S. Women’s Whitewater team and stunt double for Meryl Streep in “The River Wild.”

A special one-hour premier is June 24 featuring trekking and climbin in New Zealand.

The second episode features a rowing trip to Matinicus Rock, and episode eight in the series features a sea kayaking trip on Penobscot Bay.

Contact Maine Public Broadcasting for more information: Bangor 941-1010, Lewiston 783-9101, and Portland 874-6570.

Jeff Strout’s column is published on Tuesday and Thursday. He can be reached at 990-8202.