Youth Programs
Fresh Air Fridays
Fresh Air Fridays is being offered as a month-long day program series and will rotate around KMTA communities. The program is a combination of afterschool, half day, and full days sessions based on the KPBSD calendar.
FAF will be back for school year 25-26!
Pathfinders
Many of our region’s historic corridors are preserved and enjoyed today as multi-use trails. Pathfinders empowers kids to build skills, have adventures, and create lasting connections to the KMTA via these trails across time.
Scroll down for program details!
Coastal Connections
Back for 2025! During an exciting week-long day-based program, participants explore their local coastal ecosystem through a variety of adventure outings, science and art activities, and personal connections.
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Pathfinders- Now Booking!
Travel through and across the Kenai Mountains – Turnagain Arm National Heritage Area’s mountainous terrain has always required creativity, fortitude, and skill. Today, many of these historic transportation corridors are preserved and enjoyed as multi-use trails that provide access to the region’s incredible natural beauty and resources. Our Pathfinders programs empower kids from across Southcentral Alaska to build skills, have adventures, and create lasting connections to the Heritage Area via these trails across time. We are excited to be partnering with Chugach National Forest, Kenai Fjords National Park, Kenai Watershed Forum, and Trout Unlimited to connect kids to some of the incredible stewards, stories, and projects of the KMTA region.
These two-day camps are open to KMTA area youth ages 6-11. Pathfinders programs are open to youth from all KMTA communities (Seward, Moose Pass, Cooper Landing, Hope, Whittier, Girdwood) and to children visiting family members who live in these communities.
Each camp has a “Basecamp” where we will meet our partner staff and begin and end the day’s adventure- these could be visitor centers, trailheads, or other recreation areas/facilities. Many camp sessions also have 1-2 “Meeting Points” where we will offer pick up & drop off in our van.
2025 Program Schedule
June 3 – 4: Working Boats, Working Hands
June 17 – 18: Wild Lands, Wild Life
July 1 – 2: Our Trails, Our Stories
July 15 – 16: Exploring Moose Pass
July 29 – 30: Wild Rivers, Wild Salmon
August 5 – 6: Exploring Hope
New for 2025
Flexible Dates
Families have the option to register their child(ren) for the full program (Tuesday & Wednesday) or single days (Tuesday or Wednesday).
Activity Level Ratings
Programs are rated easy, moderate or hard based on the level of difficulty and specific competencies required to participate. All programs are trails-based, and participants must be comfortable hiking on rocks, roots, and other uneven or slippery terrain.
Easy: Designed to be fun for all ages, these programs include daily hiking of up to two miles through gentle terrain. Participants will need to carry their own daypack. Most trails are not wheelchair accessible.
Moderate: Participants should be able to hike three to four miles over gentle terrain carrying their own daypack.
Hard: Participants should be able to hike five to six miles over uneven and/or steep terrain carrying their own daypack. For trail running programs, participants should be comfortable running for one mile on a trail. Recommended for ages 8-11.
Tiered Pricing
One of our core values is providing accessible programs to our local communities. Disruptions to federal funding and the federal workforce have created unprecedented challenges for nonprofits like ours and the partners we work alongside. As we find our path forward, we need your help to ensure we can continue our work. Thank you in advance for supporting these programs at whatever level you are able.
Discover. Move. Learn. Play.
Explore our local coastal ecosystem through a variety of adventure outings, science and art activities, and personal connections. Throughout the week, we will build community and broaden our understanding of the surrounding environment. Youth participants will have the opportunity to learn and play outside along with some focused time to connect to the places we visit through hands-on activities. We will explore the coast and experience the lands and waters of the KMTA NHA while working on team building, leadership, and resilience.
Coastal Connections Camp is open to middle schoolers. Participants must be at least 11 and entering 6th, 7th or 8th grade this upcoming school year.
2025 Program Schedule
June 10 – 13: Rivers & Forests (Seward)
June 24 – 27: Rivers & Forests (Whittier)
July 8 – 11: Just for Girls (Seward)
July 22 – 25: Oceans & Coasts (Seward)
New for 2025
4 -Day Camp
Coastal Connections Camp will be Tuesday – Friday this year, 9am to 4pm.
CCC Heads to Whittier
We are so excited to announce that Coastal Connections Camp in the KMTA is growing! This year, we are expanding the program to include a week in Whittier alongside three weeks of camps in Seward.
Financial Support
This year, we have partnered with community organizations in Seward and Whittier to reduce camp costs for any families in need. Discounts are applied during the registration process. We are grateful to Youth360 and Whittier Parks & Recreation for sponsoring these discounted camp rates!
Fresh Air Fridays
Fresh Air Fridays (FAF) is all about fresh air and FUN! This program is offered across the KMTA region to local families with kids in kindergarten to fifth grade. FAF offers adventure, art, science, outdoor skill-building, and other activities with a goal to build community, foster pride of place, empower kids through skill-building, and support families with safe and supervised fun for their kids.
Fresh Air Fridays will be back for the 2025-2026 school year! Each month, Fresh Air Fridays will have a different theme that will guide program activities and adventures. A big thanks to everyone who participated this year, and stay tuned for more details!