Young people in St. Lawrence County can apply for the state Department of Environmental Conservation’s 67th Annual Summer Camp Program which begins June 29.

Parents may register campers only through DEC’s online registration system and pay by credit card, e-check or with a sponsor code. Fees for the 2014 camp season remain $350 per one-week session per camper. Camp dates and a link to the online registration system are posted on DEC’s website: www.dec.ny.gov/education/29.html. Families without internet access should call the camp office at 518-402-8014 for information on how to register for camp alternatively.

Youth 11 through 17 can have week-long adventures in conservation education at DEC's residential summer camps, participating in a wide variety of outdoor activities such as fishing, bird watching, fly-tying, archery, canoeing, hiking, camping, orienteering and optional hunter safety education.

This year youth 11 through 13 can take a trapper education course taught by DEC certified instructors at two of the four camps. Interested campers can register for Week 5 (July 27 to August 2) at Camp Colby and Week 7 (August 10-16) at Camp Rushford. The course is necessary to purchase a trapping license, should youth want to trap during trapping season. The trapping course at each camp will accommodate the first 25 campers who sign up for it. Visit http://www.dec.ny.gov/permits/6089.html for more information on trapping licenses in New York State.

All four environmental education camps serve children ages 11 through 13: Camp Colby in Saranac Lake, Franklin County; Camp DeBruce in Livingston Manor, Sullivan County; Camp Rushford in Caneadea, Allegany County and Pack Forest in Warrensburg, Warren County. Pack Forest and Camp Rushford also host week-long Teen Ecology Workshops, which are more in-depth environmental studies programs for ages 14 through 17.

All camps will operate for seven one-week sessions (Sunday to Saturday), beginning June 29. Campers may attend camp for more than one week during the summer, but will not be able to stay at camp on the Saturday night between sessions. Parents must make alternate arrangements for the intersession if two or more consecutive weeks are selected.

Sporting clubs, civic groups and environmental organizations are encouraged to sponsor one or more children for a week at camp. Groups who sponsor six paid campers will receive a scholarship to send a seventh child to camp for free. Information about becoming a sponsor is available at www.dec.ny.gov/education/1866.html on DEC's website.

For more information visit DEC's website at www.dec.ny.gov, call 518-402-8014, visit "NYS DEC Summer Camps" on Facebook or write to DEC Camps, 4th Floor, 625 Broadway, Albany, New York 12233-4500.