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Destinations This Ain't Your Grandparents' Summer Camp
Destinations This Ain't Your Grandparents' Summer Camp
| This Ain't Your Grandparents' Summer Camp |
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| Written by Alyssa McCormick |
| Monday, 30 June 2008 10:02 |
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Destination Paddling Camps for Kids At the tender age of 28, I never thought I'd utter the phrase old-timers fondly spout just before they drone on about some childhood reminiscence. You know, the old "Back when I was a kid" line. Yet, while interviewing the nation's youth paddling instructors, I kept thinking, "When I was a kid ... summer camp was nothing like this." In my mind, summer camp meant Lake DoTheHokeyPokey, located a stuffy bus ride from home in an unspectacular stand of woods on a serviceable lake with some rundown cabins. We did some canoeing, swimming and archery; made a mountain of macaroni headbands and leather beaded necklaces, and studied the fine game of "truth or dare." But today, kids are more sophisticated and their paddling camps are so cool, you'll want to tag along. The depth of choice is astounding: from whitewater rafting to sea kayaking, new programs spring up every year and the perennial favorites continue to grow stronger. Kids can canoe through the Adirondacks, kayak the Magpie in Canada, or learn to guide a raft on the Kern. They've got state-of-the-art equipment, world-class instruction and personalized curricula. Gone are the days of a zillion kids rushing haphazard into the middle of Lake DoTheHokeyPokey: today's adventure summer camps have more in common with Olympic training centers than the movie Meatballs. This is not to say that a summer of paddling instruction is like boot camp. On the contrary, the basic tenant of summer camp remains the same: it's still about having fun, building friendships, and learning valuable life lessons. In addition, kids will come away with self-confidence and decision making skills that translate into life off the river. AdventureQuest P.O. Box 184, Woodstock, VT 05091; (802) 484-3639; e-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it One of the most respected outdoor schools in the world, Adventure Quest offers a variety of paddling for kids of all abilities and experience levels. "Kids are our life," says founder Peter Kennedy, "And Adventure Quest is an extension of that." Kennedy is known throughout the paddling world as one of the foremost instructors, educators and trainers, instructing instructors since the 1970s. Adventure Quest has stayed true to its course since its inception: to create a whitewater school for kids that focuses on the health of the whole youth. As a result of its unique approach and world-class instruction, Adventure Quest consistently produces the top junior kids in the country. ACA-certified instructors, in-house research and development, boat designers on staff and all the amazing new gear you could dream up combine to make AQ a top-notch program. There is also an a la carte program for adults, in which families can design their own curriculum and learn together. Among their offerings are the Whitewater Slalom Clinic with Team Adventure's junior and senior National Teams, Whitewater Rivers of the South (New, Cheat, Tygart, Nantahala, Chattooga and the Ocoee), Maine and Southern Quebec, the Austrian, Swiss and French Alps and the Magpie River in Quebec. The Advanced Whitewater Rodeo Clinic travels with paddling gurus for a week of fun and play on Canada's Ottawa River. And on the quieter side, the Adirondack Lakes Kayak/Canoe Touring trip is a two-week adventure in upstate New York. Otter Bar Otter Bar Lodge, Inc., P.O. Box 210, Forks of Salmon, CA 96031; ph: (530) 462-4772; fx: (530) 462-4788; e-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Located in Northern California's dazzling Klamath National Forest, Otter Bar is a remote, rugged oasis of beauty. And the ultimate wilderness lodge (complete with hot tub, sauna, decks and gourmet cooking) just happens to be one of the top kayak schools as well. Otter Bar has taken its winning instructional formula and applied it to a kids program entitled NQGU (Not Quite Grown-Ups). Kristy and Peter Sturges began NQGU because their son, who was 10 at the time, didn't want to kayak. They dreamed up a kids camp and five years later, the program is running strong, with two, one-week sessions each summer. Otter Bar instructors bring with them degrees in outdoor education and biology and the 4:1 student/teacher ratio makes certain that each student will receive appropriate structure and supervision on and off the river. "If you're a safe kayaker, you're a happy kayaker," Kristy Sturges says of the camp's approach. "We're not teaching kids to be gonzo—but to have fun on the river—and to learn that it is not a scary place." The NQGUs weeks run simultaneously but separately from the regularly scheduled classes for adults, so families can have parallel learning experiences just next door. Children are welcome to come by themselves and be assured they will be in a secure and safe environment. Nantahala Outdoor Center 13077 Hwy 19 West, Bryson City, NC 28713-9114; (828) 488-2175; fx: (828) 488-2498 Founded in 1972, the Nantahala Outdoor Center (NOC) employs 350 people during the summer—which means kids have a wide array of class choices. And the instruction is top notch: NOC regularly draws well-respected staff members from around the world. Kids blossom with a student-to-instructor ratio of 4:1. The whitewater camps for kids emphasize fun and basic safety. Day sessions start on the lake and progress to the river, where even beginners will tackle waves and eddy line crossings. Flexible itineraries allow instructors to take kids to several different rivers and swimming holes. Evenings are a combination of education and fun: paddling videos mixed with campfire tales. There are also playboating clinics, where kids will have a blast learning all the latest rodeo moves. Nestled in North Carolina's Great Smoky Mountains, NOC has every kind of activity a child could want. Kids can also opt for an adventure sports camp, which combines whitewater kayaking with mountain biking, plus a little climbing and sea kayaking. Kids stay in bunk-style cabins at the base camp with their counselors, who are among the most elite paddlers in the world. Cascade Raft and Kayak 7050 Hwy 55, RIO, Horseshoe Bend, ID 83629; ph: (800) 292-RAFT or (208) 793-2221; winter: (208) 939-4674 Tucked away in the beautiful mountains of southwest Idaho, summer river adventures are plentiful at Cascade Raft and Kayak. Designed by kids for kids, Camp Cascade is packed with days of sun, water, and confidence-building experiences on the Payette River. Billed as a "kids paddling adventure," the Cascade program need not be specific to any particular watercraft. Kids can choose anything from a raft to an inflatable kayak to a hard shell: the emphasis is on getting to know old man river. Tom and Debbi Long, who run the camp, are known for creating innovative instruction in the West. One of Cascade's most unique aspects is its junior instructor program, in which young, experienced paddlers pair up with certified adult guides to teach their peers. Junior instructors help encourage, support, and create a team atmosphere with the kids. All instructors have been professionally trained in river rescue and first aid, and are proficient with their proven system of training competent paddlers. "Kids have adults barking at them throughout most of kid-hood," says Debbi Long. "They have a much more open ear and different communication skills amongst themselves." The environment is still structured and controlled by adults, namely US Slalom Team Member Chad Long, Tom and Debbi's son. Essex River Basin Adventures P.O. Box 270, Essex Historical Museum's Shipyard, Essex, MA 01929; ph: (508) 768-ERBA or 1-800-KAYAK-04 For city slickers in the Northeast, Essex River Basin Adventures (ERBA) offers sea kayaking programs for kids practically in their back yard. Located 35 miles north of Boston in beautiful, sheltered Cape Ann, ERBA's day school meets at the historic Story Shipyard in Essex, Mass., a quaint fishing village. Boys and girls ages 10-16 will spend their week learning the sport of sea kayaking. They will begin on the quiet tidal estuaries of the Essex River. As the students become comfortable in their kayaks, they will work on wet exits, aided and self-rescue techniques, and paddling strokes, according to owner Sandy Osborn who operates the program with her husband. Depending on their students' skills, guides can opt to embark on more challenging trips, including overnight campouts on nearby islands. Students work on strokes and braces and learn about seamanship and safety on the water. The week culminates in a daylong journey planned entirely by the participants. One of the day trips usually includes an outing to Hog Island, where the movie The Crucible was filmed. Madawaska Kanu Centre P.O. Box 635, Barry's Bay, ON Canada K0J 1B0; summer: (613) 756-3620, winter: (613) 594-KANU; e-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Web site: www.owl-mkc.ca Canada's first whitewater school (established in 1972) provides personal instruction from beginner to expert levels in both whitewater kayaking and open canoeing. While it is primarily an adult school there are a few select kids courses such as the junior kayak week (age 14 to 16). The structure is the same as the adult courses, but it gives kids a chance to paddle with their peers. Kids will spend at least six hours per day on the water. "You are totally there for kayaking," says director Claudia van Wijk. "In the evenings, it's kayak technique videos and more instruction. It is very intensive." For younger kids, age 10 and above, they offer weekend courses called "Parents and Kids" that teach both whitewater kayak and canoe. And finally, for 8- to 13-year-olds, there are introductory kids kayak courses, which are half-day lessons to help develop a taste for H20. The MKC programs are not traditional camps and Van Wijk stresses the importance of parental involvement in the sport with their young ones. "We want parents to be there. It's not fair to introduce a child to a sport that they can't continue. A parent must be available to drive a child to the river and supervise if they are to continue," she says. But it should be no problem "coercing" parents to vacation at MKC: its pristine setting on the Madawaska River, combined with a homey Swiss-style chalet, makes for a wonderful adult playground, too. Families can also choose to camp together on the resort's 10-acre spread. Whitewater Voyages 5225 San Pablo Dam Rd., El Sobrante, CA 94820; ph: 1-800-488-RAFT; fx: (510) 758-7238; Web site: www.whitewatervoyages.com One of the few youth whitewater rafting programs in the country, Whitewater Voyages gives kids the unique opportunity to master the art of guiding a raft. For five days, young rafters will learn current reading, raft guiding, river safety and rescue, camp cookery, camp set-up and breakdown, nature interpretation, raft rigging, knot tying, raft maintenance and repair, care for the natural environment and river preservation. They even get to captain their own adventure, running a portion of the river and electing a trip leader (with a certified guide in the boat). In camp founder Bill McGinnis's experience, the act of stepping up to take responsibility helps kids expand as people. "We hope to inspire young people to be supportive to each other," he says. "In our culture today, it's tough to be a kid. In rafting there is a need for a captain— someone must assume a leadership role and everyone has to support it." Whitewater Voyages holds six sessions per summer. Kids may enroll in the Whitewater Summer Camps (ages 12 to 15) or the Youth Whitewater Leadership Schools (ages 15 to 17). The tent-based camp center is located at Beaver Point on a "forgiving stretch" of the South Fork American River in Coloma, one hour east of Sacramento. Wolf River Paddling Camp 606 Eugenia Ave., Madison, WI 53705-3405; (608) 233-6728; e-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it The Wolf River Paddling Camp was founded ten years ago by Bob Obst and Colleen Hayes, a husband and wife team who won a silver medal in tandem canoe at the 1989 Nationals. The camp is run by the non-profit Wolf River Paddling Club, which is sanctioned by the American Canoe Association and the U.S. Canoe and Kayak Team. Three camps are held each summer at the Wolf River Refuge, a private nature reserve near Langlade, Wis., and are three to four days in length. Instruction is provided for C-1, C-2 and kayaks and is aimed at paddlers aged 8-18 who start out on the lake and move up to the Wolf River. Intermediate and advanced paddlers can train for competition on rapids and slalom gates on the river, getting instruction from such greats as world champion Kent Ford and Olympic Gold Medalist Joe Jacobi. The camp is set in beautiful pine woods above the river, where they enjoy sing-alongs and storytelling and make lifelong friends. Parents are also encouraged to attend. Camp Mondamin /Camp Green Cove P.O. Box 38, Tuxedo, NC 28784; winter: 800-688-5789; summer: 828 692-6355; e-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it If you aren't sure that your child will be into paddling, it's a safe bet to send them to a traditional camp that introduces boating as part of a wide selection of activities. Camps Mondamin (for boys) and Green Cove (for girls) are great choices that also happen to have outstanding paddling programs. Founded by Frank Bell, Sr. in 1922, Mondamin takes its name from an Indian legend about a teacher who helped his people gain independence and self-sufficiency. Green Cove was founded in the 1940s, and both camps help kids gain confidence, self-esteem, and independence through building outdoor skills and friendships. The two camps have a capacity of 185 each. The programs are non-competitive and non-regimented. They are strongly focused on tripping in the surrounding mountains, lakes and rivers of Western North Carolina. Canoeing and kayaking begins on the lake, where they work on safety and basic strokes. When ready, campers take river trips, training at first on easy Class I and II rivers, then moving up in difficulty and challenge as they are able. The canoeing and kayaking programs are run by Tracy Chapple, former instructor at the Nantahala Outdoor Center and Gordon Grant, former head of instruction at the NOC. Sierra South Paddle Sports P.O. Box 1909, 11300 Kernville Rd., Kernville, CA 93238; ph: (760) 376-3746; Web site: www.sierrasouth.com Sierra South's kids rafting program is a scaled back version of the training their adult commercial guides go through, only a little more relaxed. Campers learn to guide a raft using paddle commands, rescue one another with throw bags, lead safety talks and read the river. At the end of the week, they get to wow mom and dad by playing guide; outfitting their parents with PFDs, giving the safety talk, and taking turns guiding rapids. Sierra South also has kayaking classes, such as Youth 101, structured especially for teens and the Kern River Summer Camp for kids age 11-14. These programs are designed as mid-week summer camps for kids interested in river adventure. They'll spend four days and three nights learning basic paddling and river skills while camped out on the wild and scenic upper Kern river. By the end of four days on the river, the kids will graduate as junior river guides with skills in rafting, kayaking, river reading and river rescue. Originally Published, Paddler March-April 2000 |
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