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Many Blount County adults may recall days of youthful enthusiasm spent up in the outdoor learning lab of Tremont during a school sanctioned retreat.

But Tremont, now known as Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont, has expanded its offerings to include a wide range of year-round activities for the entire family that meet its mantra of "connecting people and nature."

"It's all to meet our mission in bringing folks together to learn about stewardship and to learn about diversity, and really making folks appreciate the Smokies in their backyard," said Meredith Goins, public relations and development director.

Visitors can take what they learn at Tremont and use it to discover their own backyards, she added.

Nestled in the Walker Valley of the Smoky Mountains, Tremont provides educational programs that encourage an appreciation of one of the most beloved national parks. More than 9 million people visit the Park annually.

Whether the Park is your backyard playground or you've traveled from far to visit, Tremont has a wide range of programs. In March, Tremont offered for the first time a Scavenger Hunt, set inside the entire Park, in which participants answered questions and visited different sites. This year also marks the inaugural courses of the Southern Appalachian Naturalist Certification Program.

Originally built as a Job Corps training facility in 1964, Tremont was transformed into an environmental program in 1969 when Maryville College took it over. The facility began operating under the auspices of the Natural History Association in 1980 until 2001 when it became an independent nonprofit, Goins said.

Outdoor classrooom

The organization's number one goal is to work with school groups who visit Tremont. Throughout the school year, fifth- through eighth-grade students from surrounding counties and states visit Tremont and spend several days in the outdoor classroom learning about aquatic ecology, wildlife and natural and cultural history. These lesson plans follow the state educational standards and curriculum. More than 5,000 students and their teachers visit the Institute annually.

Teachers also have an opportunity to participate in workshops that help them plan lessons for the classroom. Grants that cover the program's costs are available for the science teacher workshops, and teachers receive continuing education credits.

Over the years, Tremont has expanded the types of programs it offers. Children and adults get hands-on experience of learning about the Park's diversity and the importance of good stewardship of the Park's resources. From learning to identify trees without foliage in the winter to viewing fresh spring wildflowers in April to discovering how to photograph nature at its finest, visitors can choose programs that pique their interests.

In addition, several day hikes and overnight trips allow participants of diverse outdoor experience the chance to enjoy unique vistas and vegetation.

The environmental educational facility also offers several camps for children during the summer.

Families have the opportunity to bond closer with each other and with nature by participating in one of the Family Adventure programs. These programs provide children and their parents with engaging lessons about wildlife, how to create nature art, skills for backpacking into the wilderness and a renewed interest in old-fashioned scavenger hunts. And what would a weekend at Tremont be without a chance to sit around a campfire, sing songs and eat marshmellows. The Council House provides the perfect atmosphere for storytelling and singing the "Scat Rap" song.

Visitors to Tremont who are participating in programs lasting more than a day long can stay in facility's dormitories and eat family style meals in the cafeteria. Tremont cooks take pride in serving delicious meals that include both meat and vegetarian selections, and visitors don't have to wash dishes.

The facility is located just inside the Park by taking a right turn at the Townsend Y toward Cades Cove and then taking the first left.