Deer Crossing Summer Camp

Archived Q&A and Reviews

Feedback on Deer Crossing Camp?

April 2015

Can anyone share their experiences of Deer Crossing Camp? I have 12 & 14 year old boys. Thanks! Looking for overnight camps…

I wanted to answer you with a strong warning about Deer Crossing Camp, located in the Sierras. It was the only camp I could find that coupled a base camp, including a ''lodge’', with tented sleeping arrangements. After seeing a local presentation, my son and his two friends chose to spend a two-week session there last summer. My son is very sports and outdoor oriented and, on paper, the camp seemed perfect...lots of activities and outdoor adventure. My son was very participatory and stuck it out, but the facilities were in great need of repair - his tent and the cots were ripped, the dining facility leaked, the showers were unusable, the toilets barely worked, and the camp nearly ran out of propane.

The kids could not eat breakfast until their tents were seriously spotless, but with the mattresses literally falling apart, it was nearly impossible to remove all of the debris. The campers couldn't take part in all of the activities, and unless they got into a class in the first day or two, they were shut out of that activity altogether. My son ended up windsurfing for two weeks because that is the only activity that had room and luckily, he made the best of it.

After the camp, we politely expressed our concerns and we never once heard from the camp with follow-up or explanation. I will never send my son back to this camp, and I could NEVER recommend it to anyone. More than Disappointed

Engaging summer camp for ages 12 and up

March 2006

I would like to hear about summer camps that were exciting and engaging for kids ages 12 and up. Both overnight and day camps that were stimulating, fun and where there was good supervision of the kids so that a kid who is slow to warm up would not be ignored but helped to join in.
looking for some great summer experiences

Hi. The first summer our son went away to a sleep over camp was pretty traumatic for all of us. He went alone and I really had to force myself to do it. He went to Deer Crossing camp which is up in the wilderness near lake Tahoe. It's run by the Wilten family who are absolutely wonderful. They specialize in teaching responsibility and optimism. All their counselors have more than the required safety training, and the activities are both fun and educational. There is canoeing, rafting, wind sailing on the small lake near camp, and all kinds of educational nature activities. When we went to pick our son up after a week, he begged us to let him stay longer! We're sending him back this year for two weeks and he's really looking forward to it. Find them on the internet at www.deercrossingcamp.com. Their web site is very informative. Carol