William H. Pouch Scout Camp

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Credit: Greater New York Councils, BSA.

For more than six decades, Pouch Camp, located within the 2,500 acre Staten Island Greenbelt, has been an important resource for the Boy Scouts of America and has been a state conservation priority since the mid-1980s. It is a recreational destination, an environmental education hotspot, and contains important wildlife habitat and water resources. Throughout its history, Pouch Camp has been managed and maintained in the spirit of protecting these resources.

The Greater New York Councils Boy Scouts of America (GNYC) is taking steps to permanently protect the camp, working with The Trust for Public Land to preserve the property in two phases. The first phase, completed in November 2012, protects the most used part of camp with a perpetual conservation easement on 43 acres that the Scouts will continue to use as they do today.

The second phase, if funded, includes the outright purchase of 51 acres through The Trust for Public Land for permanent conservation by the summer of 2013. Scouts will retain use of the cabins and trails on this portion through a management agreement. The Scouts will also retain the 40 acres known as the Camporee Field. In total the project would then preserve 94 acres of the property, protecting it from development under a permanent legal blanket.

Visit

Pouch Camp is open year-round for Scouting activities and is accessible by mass transit. It is an ideal location for day trips and activities or for weekend camping. Access to Lake Orbach provides opportunities for swimming, boating, and fishing.
Directions/contact information
Pouch Camp website