Kids at summer camp cope with scorching heat with water and the shade of 100 oak trees

To be a kid again: a refreshing spray with the hose is just one strategy for keeping things cool at Flamig Farm Summer Farm Adventure Camp.

The summer camp in West Simsbury is only on day two and campers are facing temperatures soaring into the 90s. Everyone at the farm is using tactics to stay cool and hydrated, from campers to staff to the animals.

“We just, we cope with it,” Nevin Christensen, Flamig Farm owner and camp director, said.

The scorcher of a day is not keeping campers from spending time outdoors: hiking through the shaded woods, riding ponies, and making their own creations at the tie-dye station.

“We like to play with the animals,” Mariel Burk, a 9-year-old from Simsbury, said. “When you're in the sun, it's really hot, but you have to keep cool.”

For the 85 kids attending the camp this week, the best defense against the heat is water. Every child has a water bottle and camp staff are constantly replenishing three giant jugs of ice water.

“I've been taking water breaks and trying to keep cool by getting in the shade,” Alexander Gutfran, an 11-year-old from Simsbury, said.

Relief from the sun is plentiful, thanks to 100 oak trees planted around Flamig Farm by the owner.

“Forty or more years ago, I started planting trees," Christensen said. "This one I planted was probably 50 years ago! And so they're getting big and providing shade, so it's cool. Whoopee!”

Everyone down to the dog is deploying cooling tactics. The farm animals are enjoying some refreshing sprays and also have plenty of access to shade.

For the campers, the thermometer reading does not impact their decision to spend the day on the farm.

“I love animals,” Burk said. “So one out of 10 be here, definitely 10! And then one out of 10 be at home, definitely, like zero.”

They are gaining memories from a farm the modern kid does not typically get, but that Flamig Farm can provide.

“People my age and up used to go to grandpa's farm or uncle's farm, and oftentimes they'd go spend the summer there. Pardon me if I cry, I get emotional a lot, but nowadays people don't, they don't get to do that,” Christensen said.

These are experiences the kids would not trade.

“I mean, you could be inside in the air conditioning,” Gutfran said. “But you won't be having as much fun.”