CREA Camp returns to Topsham with 205 young nature explorers

CREA Camp will open June 29 at the Cathance River Nature Preserve in Topsham with 205 campers, 16 teen Counselors-in-Training and five dedicated camp counselors guiding seven weeks of outdoor exploration. The program packs 35 hours a week of learning and play into a setting with almost 8,000 feet of shorefront on the Cathance River.

Camp runs from 9 a.m. to 3:45 p.m., with drop-off beginning at 8:30 a.m. and pick-up ending at 4 p.m. The site is off-grid, and refrigeration is not available, so lunches, water bottles, layered clothing and wettable shoes are part of the daily routine.

Cathance River Nature Preserve is a 230-acre easement property adjacent to the Cathance River, one of six rivers that flow to Merrymeeting Bay. Its trails and river access support birding, hiking, stream play and wildlife study, and the preserve is home to 143 bird species.

CREA Camp has run every summer since 2000 in Topsham and the surrounding communities of Brunswick, Bowdoin and southern Midcoast Maine. Campers spend their days identifying birds, hiking forest trails, studying local ecosystems and getting direct contact with mud, water and river habitat instead of screens.

Registration for the 2026 season ran through a lottery from Feb. 25 through March 3, with camper slots allocated March 4-10 and family communication starting March 11. Full and partial scholarships are available, and the land trust partners with the Brunswick School District’s Student & Family Engagement Coordinator to provide full camp scholarships for local youth in need.

In spring 2024, field trips at the preserve brought more than 600 children from 32 local classrooms to Cathance River Nature Preserve for nearly 2,500 student hours of nature experiences.