Today on the radio I had the pleasure of interviewing Andrew McCown, Associate Director of Echo Hill Outdoor School and Founder of their Summer Explore trips. We didn't have time to talk about everything Echo Hill Outdoor School does, but go to their website www.ehos.org - and I'll give you a description here.
Since 1972, Echo Hill Outdoor School (www.ehos.org) has provided students with “hands on” outdoor education experiences in Worton, Maryland, just off of Still Pond Neck Road on the waters of the Chesapeake Bay. Each year, more than 5,500 students attend Echo Hill Outdoor School’s programs and learn more about the wonders of nature, the value of history, and the diversity of individual qualities. The school’s teachers are dedicated to creating a safe and supportive environment for students to feel challenged and successful with the freedom to think, question, and express themselves.
A number of Echo Hill’s classes take place on the various waters of the Chesapeake Bay region. Classes vary from a half day bay studies class to a week long excursion on the school’s skipjack, the Elsworth or the buy boat, the Annie D, which are the foundation of the School’s Chesapeake Heritage Initiative and Summer Explore Trips programs.
And on September 19, Echo Hill Outdoor School is having a Community Paddle on the Chester River. BYO kayak, canoe or rowboat, or rent one of theirs. This fun day includes guided nature tours, races, challenge courses - an opportunity for paddlers of varying skill levels to experience exploring a particularly picturesque stretch of the Chester River in the company of the teachers and naturalists of Echo Hill Outdoor School. Plus you get a T-shirt and an after-paddle BBQ, and the opportunity to support the tuition fund for the public school residential outdoor education programs which have experienced significant budget cuts. More information is on the website www.ehos.org, along with registration forms.
If you miss the paddle, you'll still have a chance to meet the staff of Echo Hill Outdoor School, and see and tour the Elsworth and Annie D. during the Chestertown Wildlife Exhibition & Sale on Saturday, October 17. The boats will be docked at the foot of High Street, and the staff will be happy to chat with you about all their programs.
Built in 1901, the 40-foot skipjack, the Elsworth, is one of a handful of skipjacks remaining on the Chesapeake Bay. The Elsworth is listed among 21 skipjacks built prior to 1912 on the National Register of Historic Places. Skipjacks are the last fleet of sail-powered work boats in the United States. They were designed to dredge for oysters in the Chesapeake Bay. The Elsworth dredged for oysters commercially between 1901 and 1996; the last seven of these were with Echo Hill Outdoor School, which acquired the Elsworth in 1988. The Outdoor School began rebuilding the Elsworth in 1996 and the boat is now used solely by the School for educational programs, helping students connect with the ecology and history of the Chesapeake Bay.
The oyster buy boat, Annie D. (left), was built in 1957 on Tangier Island, Virginia. With a wide beam and roomy cabin, the Annie D. was built to buy and transport oysters. The working mast and boom were designed as a crane to load and unload oysters rather than for sailing purposes. Oyster buy boats played an important role in the economy of the Eastern Shore before the building of the first Bay bridge in 1952. During the oyster season, buy boats would travel up and down the Bay purchasing oysters from watermen and carrying them to the great shucking houses of the Eastern Shore. During the months when oysters were not in season, the boats transported produce and lumber across the Bay. The construction of the Bay bridges and the decline of oyster harvests gradually eliminated the need for oyster buy boats. The Annie D. was donated to Echo Hill Outdoor School in 1983 and, after being restored, began its service with the Outdoor School in the summer of 1985.
Echo Hill provides a general outdoor education program to students from grades three through eight on a weekly basis. Additional programming is offered to younger children, high school and college students, and adult groups. Residential outdoor education programs, Adventure programs, and Day programs are offered to school groups, private groups, clubs, and other organizations from March through mid-December.
In order to keep tuition affordable, Echo Hill Outdoor School depends on the generosity of individuals, corporations, foundations, local, state and federal governments for donations and grants. Support from these sources is vital to helping Echo Hill Outdoor School continue to make a difference in students' lives. Representatives will be on hand at the Exhibition to answer questions about programs and how you can support Echo Hill Outdoor School, located at 13655 Bloomingneck Road Worton, Maryland 21678; 410-348-5880, www.ehos.org.
