It wasn’t that long ago that the Liberty County 4-H contingent headed to Camp Rock Eagle could fit inside a van — with room to spare.

Monday morning, those kids headed to the camp filled four school buses.

Over the course of the week — they return home Friday — they will be taking part in what Liberty County 4-H agent Erin Hendricks said will be an “experiential learning camp.”

“They will be canoeing, they will be learning about nutrition and healthy living, they’ll be swimming, doing archery, all types of outdoor activities, and team building and leadership,” he said. “It’s really a life skills type of camp. It’s a lot of fun, whole lot of fun.”

The Liberty County contingent will be working with camp counselors and will get to interact with hundreds of others from counties across Georgia.

Rock Eagle is one of the oldest and most notable of Georgia’s 4-H camps. Located near Eatonton, it covers nearly 1,500 acres and has a 110-acre lake. It is named for the depiction of an eagle done in milky quartz, probably by native Americans about 2,000 years ago.

The rapid growth in the 4-H program, Hendricks said, is a result of many people, including the kids in the program.

“We have some incredible volunteer leaders,” he said. “We have some incredible team leaders. The community really cares a lot about the program. When the kids have fun, they invite more kids and it makes our job easier. And Rock Eagle sells itself. It’s cool. It’s heaven for a kid. Why wouldn’t you want to go? We’re excited to take such a big group.”