Whether they’re sleeping in a submarine at OMSI or walking around the zoo checking out bats at night, the following adventurous overnight camps will have your little monkeys chattering non-stop to grandma every chance they get. Here are the details on three educational, summer overnight camps in Portland you need to book for your kids right now.

OMSI: Submarine Camp-Ins
Kids will get a serious lesson in engineering, physics and crazy fun when they sleep inside OMSI’s USS Blueback, the US Navy’s last non-nuclear fast attack submarine. While on this unique overnighter, kids will learn about buoyancy and density, as well as what it’s like to live on a submarine. They’ll get the chance to check out the torpedo room, look through the periscope and sleep in the crew’s quarters. Sub Camp-In dates at this moment go through the end of May, but more dates are expected to be added. Book at least two weeks in advance.

$55/person
3rd-12th grade
May 8, 9, 15, 16, 29

OMSI
1945 SE Water Ave.
800-955-6674
Online: omsi.edu

photo: Audubon Society of Portland

Audubon Society of Portland Overnight Camp
From wilderness survival to learning how to take picture perfect photos, these weeklong, overnight camps for fourth graders (through 12th grade), fully immerse participants in the activities at hand. The Audubon Society features three camps for the fourth grade age set. The kids sleep cozy and snug in their sleeping bags inside the Nature Center.

Stayin’ Alive: This über-useful overnight camp teaches kids about surviving in the wild, eating wild edible plants, tracking animals, making fire from a stick and building a shelter.

Nature Photography: Kids will learn about composition, framing and lighting while taking photos of waterfalls, animals and the forest in this artistic camp.

Forest to Farm: Step outside the grocery store and learn how to make butter from milk and dyes from native plants, among other ways to find food in nature.

Learning to Fish & Feast:  Cast a line into a lake and pull out a fish for dinner – that’s the stuff of summertime dreams. Many angles of angling are covered in this camp, including tying knots, casting and identifying lures.

$330/member; $350/non-member
4th grade and up
Weekly camps, July 27 through August 14

5151 NW Cornell Rd.
503-292-6855
Online: audubonportland.org

photo: Oregon Zoo

Oregon Zoo’s ZooSnooze
Kids will walk around in the dark and say, “hello” to the animals when no one else is around, check out how the staff preps monkey chow and other furry animal food, visit the Veterinary Medical Center and play zookeeper training games. The little zookeepers will also carry around clipboards and do research while checking out the animals in their habitats. Late night, expect snuggling up in sleeping bags while sipping hot cocoa and crunching on popcorn. In the morning, kids will wake up to a continental breakfast. The price includes zoo admission (for both days!), dinner, snack and breakfast.

$48/person
Ages 6 and up
September through mid-June
Tuesdays-Saturdays (except holidays)

Oregon Zoo
4001 SW Canyon Rd.
503-226-1561
Online: oregonzoo.org

Have you sent your kids to any of these camps this summer? Let us know all about it in the comments below!

–Suzie Ridgway

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