Youth Day Camps

At Hunt Hill Day Camps, youth age 5-12 years old have the opportunity to explore, learn about, and connect with the natural world. Each day of camp includes outdoor learning activities, nature games, crafts, hikes, and swimming. Camps are interactive and led by a team of trained and enthusiastic educators.

Day Camps are FULL- After opening early registration to Family Hunt Hill Members, Youth Summer Day Camps are full. However, we encourage you to still register for our waitlist. Depending on the number of summer staff we are able to recruit and hire, we hope to allow additional campers into our Youth Summer Day Camps from our wait list. Visit our Registration & Fees page to be added to our waitlist.

If you have any questions, feel free to call (715) 635 – 6543 or email program@hunthill.org.

Day Camp Handbook

Updated COVID-19 Plan

Registration & Fees

Weekly Camps

These are day-long programs where the same camper attends every day of that week. Families who choose one of these weeks, will be signed up for the whole week.

Awesome Animals Week –
Learn about some animals and their adaptations at Awesome Animals Week! Identify animal tracks and scat, practice your hiding skills in a game of camouflage, and discover why habitats are so important to animals by exploring the different habitats found at Hunt Hill.

Super Scientists Week –
Interested in becoming a scientist? Step into a day in the life of a scientist as we conduct chemistry experiments as chemists, dissect owl pellets as biologists, and take a closer look at minerals and rocks as geologists. Every day will be a different field of science to discover!

Daily Camps

The following weeks feature individual days of day camps. Families can choose to sign up for a single day in any week, or multiple days across these weeks of day camp.

  • Tuesday, July 5: Splash Camp – SPLISH! SPLASH! Enjoy cooling off on a hot summer day by searching for creatures in the lake, sliding down a slip and slide, and playing water games.
  • Wednesday, July 6: Frogs & Salamanders – Join Hunt Hill on a search for our amphibian friends in the woods and the water. Find a blue-spotted salamander, catch a leopard frog, and net a tadpole all in a day at camp!
  • Thursday, July 7: Diggin’ Dinosaurs – Spend the day as a paleontologist digging up dinosaur bones, discovering fossils, and playing dinosaur-related games.
  • Friday, July 8: Going Fishing – Learn how to bait, cast, and reel in your own fish. Then test your new skills on the lakes at Hunt Hill. Maybe you’ll catch a big one!
  • Monday, July 11: Nature Art – Find inspiration in nature! In this camp, you’ll learn how to nature journal and make art out of natural materials like leaves, sticks, rocks, and seeds!
  • Tuesday, July 12: Rad Reptiles – Lizards, Snakes, and Turtles, Oh My! Meet the Hunt Hill educational turtles, Snappy and Pancake, and learn about what makes reptiles so unique!
  • Wednesday, July 13: STEM Camp – Complete STEM challenges such as making ice cream with science, constructing the furthest flying paper airplane, and building the best outdoor shelter.
  • Thursday, July 14: Blast from the Past – Travel back in time with Hunt Hill to discover different time periods from the past with fun, historical games and crafts!
  • Friday, July 15: Mythical Creatures – Discover the world of your imagination! Design your own mythical creature with special powers and go on a quest to find the missing magical trolls of Hunt Hill. We’ll play games and crafts based on popular mythical creatures like unicorns, dragons, fairies, mermaids, and wizards!
  • Monday, August 1: Animal Engineers – Meet some of nature’s best engineers and learn how to design and build like a spider, bird, and beaver! We will see who can build the silliest spider web, the best beaver dam, and the biggest bird’s nest!
  • Tuesday, August 2: Incredible Insects – Explore the incredible world of insects with Hunt Hill! After catching some insects, we will take a closer look using magnifying glasses before safely releasing them back into nature. Also, we will play some fun, insect games!
  • Wednesday, August 3: Feathered Friends – Join Hunt Hill on a nature hike to search for some of our feathered friends. You will practice using binoculars, listen for common bird songs, and even be able to identify different birds’ nests!
  • Thursday, August 4: Survival – What would you do if you got lost in the woods? At this camp, you will learn how to find your way around and the skills to help you stay safe while out enjoying nature!
  • Friday, August 5: Pirate Camp – Arrg, mateys! Legend has it that pirates buried some treasure here at Hunt Hill! Use your skills and teamwork to decipher the nature clues to uncover the hidden treasure!

Frequently Asked Questions

Our plan for Day Camps needs approval from the Board of Directors before being announced publicly. We anticipate opening up registration in February 2022.

We have created a COVID-19 plan to help reduce the risk of community spread at Day Camp. This plan is subject to change and will be reviewed as needed according to recommendations from the CDC, American Camp Association, and government entities.

You can read the plan here: 2022 COVID-19 Plan.

We are still determining what Day Camp will look like in 2022. Please check back later for more details.

If cancellation occurs before camp:

  • You may reschedule to a different week for no charge, if spots are available in other weeks.
  • If you don’t reschedule, you will receive a full refund minus the credit card processing fee (2.9% of the total + $0.30)

If cancellation occurs the week of camp:

  • You may reschedule to a different week for no charge, if spots are available.
  • If your spot can be filled, you will receive a partial refund for the days your camper did not attend.
  • If your spot cannot be filled, you will receive a partial refund of the amount you paid minus $25/day.

Here’s an example schedule:

  • Arrival & Check-in (Between 8:00 AM – 8:30 AM)
  • Morning Games
  • Welcome Circle
  • 1st Morning Educational Activity
  • Snack
  • 2nd Morning Educational Activity
  • Lunch
  • Choice Time
  • Swim Time
  • Craft Time
  • Afternoon Games
  • Check-out (Between 4:00 – 4:30 PM)

We will send you a comprehensive packing list in advance of camp.

Packing List:

  • Layers for changing weather (sweatshirt, sweatpants, raincoat, etc)
  • Shoes for running/hiking (sneakers or hiking boots work well)
  • Shoes for the waterfront (sandals or aquasocks work well)
  • Sunscreen that the camper can apply independently
  • Bagged lunch & snack (please place these in separate containers)
  • Swimsuit
  • Towl
  • Backpack to carry it all in
  • Optional: Hat or sunglasses
  • Optional: Bug spray

Here are the items that campers are not allowed at Day Camp:

  • Electronics (cell phones, video games, tablets, etc.)
  • Money
  • Gum

Day Camps are overseen by a certified Emergency Medical First Responder (EMR). The EMR works with the Day Camp staff to identify and reduce risks in their activity plans. 

All Day Camp Staff are trained in First Aid, CPR/AED, Epi-Pen Administration, and Bloodborne Pathogens. All lifeguards are certified through the American Red Cross Lifeguard course. Lifeguards are on duty any time youth are swimming or in watercraft. All participants are required to wear lifejackets when in watercraft. 

Hunt Hill thoroughly trains our staff in Emergency Action Plans including Fire, Weather, Intruder, Lost Camper, Lost Swimmer, and other related emergencies. All staff members carry a walkie-talkie and first aid kit in order to respond to emergencies quickly. A stock Epi-Pen and AED are onsite in case of emergencies.

The camper to staff ratio never exceeds 10:1, which allows our staff to keep close watch over campers. Often we have two staff and a junior counselor with each cohort. All Day Camp staff are trained to prevent and identify abuse. We follow a three person rule, which states that whenever a camper is in a private space such as a room or building that is not publicly visible there will always be three people.

Your camper will never be required to swim, but they will be required to go to the waterfront each day with their cohort (except when the weather conditions are unsafe for swimming). Swim time is an important part of the Day Camp schedule. Most campers love swim time and look forward to it everyday.

Our summer staff members are certified lifeguards and there are always a minimum of two lifeguards on duty anytime there are youth in the water. 

If your camper does not know how to swim or is a weak swimmer, we recommend sending them with a lifejacket to help them feel comfortable in the water.  They will be restricted to the shallow end of the waterfront and actively supervised by the shallow end lifeguard. 

If your camper dislikes swimming, we still recommend sending them with a swimsuit and towel. That way they can still choose to get in the water in case they get hot and would like to sit in the water to cool down. They are welcome to bring something with them to the waterfront to entertain themselves such as a book, coloring sheets, etc. They are also welcome to just wade in the water to search for fish and tadpoles.

If your camper is a strong swimmer, they will have the option to complete the deep end test in order to swim in the deeper section of the swim area and jump off the raft. The deep end test includes swimming three lengths of the dock (approximately 25 meters total) followed by treading water for 60 seconds. Their test will be supervised by a lifeguard. If they pass the test, they will be able to swim in the deep end under the supervision of the deep end lifeguard.