Overview
There are not many places where a child can wade into a salt marsh, snorkel over a seagrass meadow, and walk to the Atlantic Ocean — all before lunch. This stretch of Hampton Bays, where the bay and the ocean meet on either side of a barrier island, is the setting for these camps, and it is not incidental. It is the curriculum. Cornell Cooperative Extension runs them through its Marine Program, and the educators who lead them are active researchers: people who monitor seahorse populations, restore eelgrass meadows, and publish field guides to Long Island's coastal species. That combination of place and expertise is genuinely hard to find.
Program Overview
Four distinct one-week day camps for kids ages 7–14, running 9am–2pm daily throughout July and August. Each is designed for a different kind of curiosity — marine science, art and science, or deep-dive specialty — but all of them work from the same premise: the best way to understand a living ecosystem is to get into it.
Bayside Adventures (ages 7–14) is the flagship marine science week. Campers formulate and test scientific questions, measure environmental parameters, collect and record field data, and care for their own fish tank throughout the week. They seine for local fish, hike through coastal habitats, observe species under microscopes, and participate in eelgrass restoration — covering salt marshes, seagrass meadows, mud flats, and dunes.
ArtSea (ages 7–13) is the program for kids who don't separate art from science — and shouldn't have to. Each day combines art projects (painting, drawing, sculpture, collage) rooted in what campers observe in the habitats around them, paired with hands-on science lessons and daily outdoor exploration. Touch-tank time is built into every day.
Seahorse Art & Science (ages 10–14) is the specialty deep-dive. Campers seine daily to contribute data to CCE's Seahorse Conservation Initiative — capturing, photographing, and measuring seahorses living in the eelgrass meadow. They snorkel over the meadows, set up experiments, participate in eelgrass restoration and coastal cleanups, and work on a seahorse-inspired art project each day. Two sessions run each summer.
Your child will be doing real science
The data campers collect goes into actual CCE research. The Seahorse Conservation Initiative is an ongoing scientific effort, and the seining data kids contribute each week feeds directly into that record. The eelgrass being restored at the facility's coastal nursery is part of real shoreline conservation — not a demonstration. For a child who wants to feel like their participation matters, it does.
Who It's For
The child who is happiest outside. Who wants to know what's living under the surface of the water, what the marsh smells like at low tide, why the same bay looks completely different from one week to the next. It's also a strong fit for the kid who moves between art and science naturally — who might sketch what they find before cataloging it. The programs are intentionally small, and the CCE educators are skilled at building connection with kids across a wide range of backgrounds and experience levels.
Cost & Information
All programs run 9am–2pm as one-week sessions.
- Fees: $715–$770 for Southampton Town residents · $740–$795 for non-residents
- Bayside Adventures · July 13–17 · Aug 24–28
- ArtSea · July 20–24 · Aug 17–21
- Seahorse Art & Science · July 27–31 · Aug 10–14
Pricing and registration at ccemarineeastend.org.
Swimmer note: Bayside Adventures and Seahorse Art & Science require participants to be capable swimmers, comfortable wading to waist height, and physically able to participate in seining.