TAMPA - Many summer camp programs run by the Hillsborough County Parks and Recreation Department are booked up this year, but spaces are available in two of the more unusual camps offered: fishing and skateboarding.
Some openings remain for 12- to 16-year-olds in the saltwater fishing camp at E.G. Simmons Regional Park, on the bay shore at Ruskin. These are two-week sessions starting June 18 and July 16. The cost is $120.
As of Friday, space was available in seven of the eight week-long Skate Camp sessions; skate-boarding counselor Raleigh Barnes said the Apollo Beach Skate Park has more openings than the Providence Skate Park in Riverview. The camp is for ages 8 to under 13 and costs $120 per week.
"We take those who have never stepped foot on a (skate)board,'' he said, adding that it's gratifying to follow their progress.
"It's quite amazing to see not only how impressionable but how fearless they are with just a little bit of guidance,'' he said.
At this fourth year of Skate Camp, counselors will go over techniques, board control, maneuverability, safety, course etiquette and fundamentals.
At Fishing Camp, they never know what they're going to catch.
Last year, a 9-year-old boy caught a large cobia during his first day of camp, said Matthew Wynn, who coordinates the four-session fishing program at E.G. Simmons Park.
It's the second year for the fishing camp, and it has become so popular that enrollment is almost at capacity. Web site openings for ages 12 to under 16 are available in the second and fourth sessions.
Wynn said they catch and release almost all of the fish, though if a youngster catches a big enough fish counselors will teach the group how to clean it. The fish goes home with the angler who caught it, Wynn said.
Fishing campers learn how to tie knots, cast nets and fish from a kayak. They also go on field trips, to fish at Fort Desoto Park in St. Petersburg and to check out the sea life at Florida Aquarium and Mote Marine Laboratory.
For more information about Fishing Camp, call (813) 672-1120. For Skate Camp, call (813) 744-5319. Go to hcflgov.net/summercamp for information on other camps.