BLUFF LAKE SUMMER CAMP

Camper General Registration is Now Open

Our weekly outdoor nature camps offer a unique opportunity for kids and teens! We have something for everyone, with Weekly Camp Themes for ages 5-6 or ages 7-12, and a Junior Counselor Program for ages 13-17. A session for campers runs for one week from 9am-3pm Monday to Friday. Junior Counselor sessions run for two weeks from 8:30am-3:30pm Monday to Friday. These camps are for every kid or teen with some energy to play, grow, and build a strong future for themselves and the planet!

We inspire our campers to better understand and appreciate the outdoors through a blend of weekly environmental topics, nature exploration, animal encounters, hands-on lessons, games, crafts, and free creek play. Small group sizes organized by age and parent/guardian preferences give every camper the opportunity to be curious, active, and appreciated! Parents/guardians will also get to share in the experience by receiving camp photos and activity summaries from the counselors at the end of each week.

Extended pre-camp care (8-9am) and post-camp care (3-5pm) are also available (with the exception that no pre-care is offered for Weeks 1 or 10). See Hours & Location for full info. Scholarship applications are available for families who cannot pay camp fees.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR 2024 CAMPERS & GUARDIANS

We will host a virtual information session on May 22nd with important information regarding camp policies and procedures, camp format, preparations you can take before your camp week begins, and more. All registered families will receive an email invitation to attend.

Check out the 2024 Camp Handbook, with policies, rules, procedures, staff information, deadlines, checklists, and much more. We highly recommend reviewing this information prior to the camp attendance.

NEW FOR 2024

We strive to make each camp season better than the last by using feedback from families and staff. Here are our changes for 2024:

Junior Counselor Program: We love our “J.C.s” and want them to get the most out of their experience. This season we are increasing the length of Junior Counselor sessions to two weeks so that they have time to learn and incorporate feedback from their counselor mentors. This will also allow them to work with two different groups of campers and see a wider variety of lessons, activities, and teaching strategies. Each J.C. will leave camp with written feedback on their performance, contacts for employment and references, and sixty hours of volunteer child care experience. Each week a guest speaker in the outdoor education field will lead a short workshop during camp hours for our Junior Counselors. We hope these changes allow for J.C.s to make more connections with their mentors, campers, and each other.
Registration: Last year our camp sold out in record time! This year, we have moved our registration dates back one month to better align with other area camps. Starting on January 1st, Early Registration will open, allowing those who donated during 2023 to register for one session per child. On January 8th when General Registration opens, families can register for as many sessions as are available. All registrations will open at 7am MT. We are also increasing our 7-12 year old spots, and decreasing our 5-6 old spots in order to better align with demand. Early Registration and General Registration information is available here.
Simplifying Cancellation Fees: In order to discourage overbooking and last minute cancellations we are changing our cancellation policy to a $50 fee to cancel before May 20th, and no refund after May 20th. Families canceling after May 20th will have the option to transfer to a new sessions waitlist for no cost, or receive a $150 voucher for another Bluff Lake program within a year. May 20th was chosen as the cuttoff date because at this point we will have hired our staff and bought supplies for the entire summer, and our registration system CampDoc will “lockout” users from making further changes to their accounts. This new policy should lead to less last-minute changes.