FreeArticlesArchive

Some of my favorite memories from childhood are those of when we went camping as a family. For a few years we would go for a week during the summer holidays. Hikes through the campground, riding our bikes round and round the loops, the campfires, these are some of the things I remember most.

My favorite camping trip came when I was about the age of 12. We went to a Provincial campground that held Ranger camps for kids every morning. We would learn about native plants and animals to the area. One morning we even made birdhouses!

My favorite of all was when we went in search of footprints. We were not seeking the footprints of our friends or ourselves but we were in search of footprints that appeared to be from animals. We were led off path into some earthy areas of the forest where we found prints made by deer, bear, skunk, squirrels, and many more.
The park ranger told us stories about each of the animals we found had walked through the area the night before.

As she spoke we all stood around and watched her mix some dry plaster of paris with some water. When she was done she gave each of us a cup filled with the mixture and we went in search of prints and poured the plaster of paris throughout the depression when we found one we liked. Once dry the plaster casts were removed from the dirt, brushed off and returned to us. We left with two beautiful prints, one of a small deer's toes and another of a great big bear’s foot. I still have these molds today and they represent a very special summer with my family.