Summer is beginning to wind down, at least for kids who are facing the mixed emotions of the back-to-school bell, so we thought it appropriate to piggyback on our Aug. 14 entry and offer some final thoughts on the pilot Riverweek program at Van Cortlandt Manor, which ran from Aug. 4-8 and was organized by Danielle Fontaine, HHV summer camp guru (shown above).

Danielle said she found it particularly rewarding to work with the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater organization, which centers around a boat built by folksinger Pete Seeger in the 1960s to bring attention to pollution and environmental degradation plaguing the Hudson.

Riverweek wasn't the first time these two organizations partnered on projects. Danielle is a long time volunteer for Clearwater and had worked with Clearwater educator Dan Einbender on past projects such as the Summerweek program at Sunnyside.

After several brainstorming sessions between HHV Program Director Ross W. Higgins, Van Cortlandt Manor Site Director Althea Corey, and Clearwater Director Jeff Rumpf, the team of Dan and Danielle created the program that would become Riverweek's. With the addition of Camp Director Christin Creary and the talents of HHV's interpretive staff, Riverweek came to life.

A true blend of both organization's missions and educational programs, Riverweek featured a split day: mornings being spent in the early 19^th century with the Van Cortlandt family and other residents of the manor, with students studying how the Hudson and Croton Rivers shaped our history.

The afternoons were spent learning about the environment, ecology, and our effect on the future of our rivers. Campers built their own boats, prepared a lunch featuring Van Cortlandt family recipes for river fish, tied nets, studied the Hudson River School of painting, and made hand crafts of sailors past such as scrimshaw, knot work, and sailor's valentines. Students also spent  time studying aquatic life, examining the food web through games, and testing the waters of the rivers.

One entire Riverweek day was spent at Croton Point Park, seining in the Hudson River, collecting fish, and taking water samples. Students got to learn how they, as stewards of the river, can protect the waterways for future generations. Each day at lunch, there was a moment of silence, providing a chance to just listen to the surrounding environment and feel a part of nature, rather than just watching it on a screen.

Campers wrote their own song parodies and designed story boards with their own photographs, reflecting on what they learned during the week. They presented the end results in a concert for parents on the final day.

Danielle says by all measures the program was a huge success.

"After reviewing comments from campers and the written responses from parents, we are very hopeful that Riverweek will become a permanent part of Historic Hudson Valley's summer program offerings," she said.

From HVBLogger's perspective, any program that gets kids outside and thinking about the implications of man's footprint on the environment is a good thing, indeed. Bravo to Danielle and the entire crew for making it happen.

"Riverweek is the best camp on the Hudson."

A strong claim, indeed, but it's straight from the mouth of a young environmentalist who recently took part in Historic Hudson Valley's Riverweek summer camp at Van Cortlandt Manor.

A new program launched this year, Riverweek was designed by HHV's camp gurus to complement the organization's existing Summerweek programs, which are for children ages 9-11 and take place at Sunnyside and Philipsburg Manor, as well as Van Cortlandt Manor.

Riverweek, however, which is dedicated to the history of the Hudson and Croton Rivers as well as modern lessons about conservation and preservation, is for the 11- 13-year-old set.

"So many of our students who stay with us for three years in Summerweek asked us for a camp for older kids that we just had to respond," said Danielle Fontaine, camp manager. "They wanted something that was different and challenging but still featured the historic immersion experience that defines Summerweek."

This year's pilot Riverweek program, a collaboration with Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, was by all measures a huge success, said Danielle, who you can see in the top photo (she's the one with the ponytail.)

In an exit survey, a whopping 100% of the campers (yes, that means all of them) said they would want to return and repeat the program next year and would highly recommend the program to their friends.

Now that's impressive!

Activities ranged from the artistic (like creating the brightly colored carp shown above) to the crafty (like building wooden boats, also shown above).

More on Riverweek to come...

The weather held and folks came out for a little sunshine and history at Friday's Independence Day celebrations at Van Cortlandt Manor and Sunnyside.

In the top photo are gentlemen from Doughty Artillery Company, military re-enactors who wowed the crowds at Van Cortlandt Manor, and in the bottom photo, some spirited country dancers at Sunnyside.

Hundreds of visitors came out for both events, and the press came, too. Here's a piece from the Journal News.

Were you there? Leave a comment and tell us what you thought!

Yes, HVBlogger acknowledges the 50% chance of  a shower, but c'mon, you can't just sit inside on the start of a long holiday weekend! HHV has two offbeat events today -- Independence Day 1808 (Van Cortlandt Manor) and Independence Day 1858 (Sunnyside). How often do you get to choose your own time period?

The Journal News saw fit to publish a cover story on today's events, featuring the most clever lede (the opening sentences, for you non-journo types) HVBlogger has seen in quite some time:

Cannnon-wielding soldiers and hotheaded debaters might seem like a dangerous combination. Luckily, they're miles apart.

Oh, and Crotonblog had a few things to say about us, too.

Click here to buy tickets online. (Psst...used discount code USA and your 5-17 year olds get in free.)

And in our final installment about the joys of Summerweek, Danielle Fontaine has some good news for Web-overloaded older kids, too.

As you know, all of the Summerweek camps are for kids aged 9-11 and run from 9:30 until 3:30.

Slightly older than 11-year-old: "But wait, I'm too old to go to Summerweek, and I want to go!"

Me: "You're stuck in the 21st century I guess. Nothing to do except comment on MySpace and watch Britney videos on YouTube."

Slightly older than 11-year-old: *shudders to think*

Me: "No worries! A whole bunch of Summerweek campers who loved camp and realized that they'd ‘aged out' called me with the same problem sooooo..."

Riverweek was created! This is a never-been-done, one-of-a-kind camp that combines the history of Van Cortlandt Manor with the environmental activism of the Sloop Clearwater. Taking place Aug. 4-8, just after Van Cortlandt's River Day extravaganza on Aug. 3, Riverweek lets campers ages 11-13 step into life on the river back in the early 19^th century. You can learn how our history was shaped by the Hudson and Croton Rivers and then take a GIANT step into the present to see how we, as stewards of the river, can affect the future in a positive fashion. Talk about time travel!

We'll spend a whole day at the banks of the Hudson doing water testing, seining, and beach combing; we'll look through the eyes of the Hudson River School of artists, build boats, tie knots, hear tales of river pirates and, oh, yeah, make music!

Whoa! I'm seeing a lot of the past in your future! There's still time to sign up and join in on the historic happenings at Summerweek and Riverweek! Link up to the flyer here and call me at 914-631-8200 Ext. 643 to reserve your place in history.