summer camps in america

[becca114]

I have been looking into summer camp jobs in america teaching kids to ride. There seems to be so many camps offering these jobs and it all seems a bit daunting. Has anyone any experience of working at these camps? i am interested to know about the application/interview process and how much it costs/any hidden costs? thanks in advance, rebecca

 

[Cadfael&Coffee]

I don't know much about The process myself, but I know a girl who spent a few months doing this in Canada, and 3 years later she still goes on about it :-D

I think it's worth going for, no matter what the paperwork!!!

Usually the organisations have meetings you can attend, and they will helpyou every step of the way.

Good luck!!

 

[Minxie]

I did this but it was 20 years ago. I was at Camp Foss in New Hampshire. It was challenging as we were also the camp councillors so in the tents with the children themselves so it was a 24 hour / 6 day a week job.

BUT. And its a huge but.

The camp took scholoarships from extremely deprived children from New York. These children hadn't been out with a mile and a half of their homes their whole lives. i promise without a word of a lie they didn't know milk came from a cow and thought it was like Coke and just 'made'.

So you can imagine the look on their faces when we popped them ontop of a pony. It was absolutely amazing.

There are some stunning 'private' only camps but i loved the fact we had mixed groups and it was genuinely very rewarding.

The only downside was at that time, the Camp didn't own their own ponies and the dealer arrived one day with a wagon full. He turned them out, we had a go and if the head instructor didn't like them then they went back on and he came back the next day with another load. Meant we truly had a very mixed bunch of ponies with various problems. But I think that will have changed now and most camps will own their own animals.

 

[skye123]

I`m hoping to do it this summer and have applied with BUNAC http://www.bunac.org/uk/summercampusa/ there's also CCUSA, Camp America etc but I`m going with BUNAC as its the cheapest and has a v good reputation I`m also hoping to do horseriding Most of the stuff will be on the websites but any more questions feel free to ask, I feel like I`ve read that much about it I`m an expert http://www.summercampworldwide.com/chat/ I found really useful as well

 

[stroppy]

Be careful with bunac, it may have changed now but they used to be a bit of a rip off, the money wasn't great, they paid for your flights then take it out of your wages at the end of camp.

 

[Sussexbythesea]

My sister went on this to teach horse-riding in the mid-seventies she was at Camp Maplehurst - she had a great time and she met her first American husband there. She has been living in the USA (now Virginia) ever since (now on hubby number 3).

She had her BHSAI and I think you do need some qualifications to teach as I looked into it once. But things may have changed. I don't think you will regret the experience even if it is "challenging" - wish I had done it.

 

[HollyWoozle]

I spent two months teaching kids to ride at a summer camp in Michigan a few years back, arranged through BUNAC (Summer Camp USA). It was an enjoyable experience and I would recommend it but you may be required to do more than you think. I chose option 2 for horse riding on my application, meaning that I was experienced enough rider to assist teaching but not to teach myself (no teaching experience or anything and really just a happy hacker myself). I actually ended up teaching lessons by myself, sometimes 3 children (some as young as 6 or 7) on ponies which were only used for 2 months of the year... for an hour. Needless to say it was pretty hard-going sometimes! I was on morning groom duty sometimes which was supposed to be 2 of us working together but the other girl was a bint and often didn't turn up. This meant that I had to get in around 15 horses from a big field on my own and get them groomed, fed, fly sprayed and ready for the day, all before accompanying my cabin of children to breakfast at around 8.30am or before.

It was excellent for me to get away from home and to learn some independence. I met some great people (though I haven't seen any of them since) that I did travel with for a month afterwards. It also is excellent on your CV and a very rewarding experience. Do be prepared for lots of crazy goings on... there were other BUNACers there getting up to all sorts of stuff... drinking, drugs and one pair even having sex sometimes in cabins with children in!!!! It was a mad few months but I would actually consider going again so it's not as bad as that last comment makes it sound, you just have to be ready for the fact that not everyone will be there to work hard.

Application was very easy... I applied through BUNAC and the application went to several places. Then the owner of this particular camp just phoned me up and asked if I'd like to work for him. That was basically that! Went to London to get my Visa arranged from the Embassy and that took less than 30 mins (and I saw Kylie Minogue!). I had an interview of some kind on the same day which was a breeze, can't remember the exact details. You get paid hardly anything, mine was around $100 a week, you just go for the experience. You will need to pay your own flights and travelling afterwards clocks up to more than you think so do have some savings ready (or kind parents in my case).

Feel free to PM me for more info. I hope I haven't made it sound bad, like I said, I'd go again! As long as you are prepared to get stuck in and to just go with the flow then you will find it very rewarding and often a lot of fun.

 

[mashnut]

Bunac is cheeper than Camp America by hundreds if you dont have the cash before you go. Yes they take the flights out of your pay but most of them do that.
I've been to Girl Scout camps in the midwest. Best experience ever.
Minxie - Our horses (herd of 20) all came from a dealer (apparently he had over 200 on his property). We had a similar experience to you with our horses. Including 2 that would stand quietly enough to be tacked up but could not be tied anywhere.
Not all the camps require teaching qualifications. I had none but was a counsellor to the horse riding campers (we had specialist to help). It was a steep learning curve though. We rode western! Bit of a change from English that's for sure.

 

[HollyWoozle]

Bunac is cheeper than Camp America by hundreds if you dont have the cash before you go. Yes they take the flights out of your pay but most of them do that.
I've been to Girl Scout camps in the midwest. Best experience ever.
Minxie - Our horses (herd of 20) all came from a dealer (apparently he had over 200 on his property). We had a similar experience to you with our horses. Including 2 that would stand quietly enough to be tacked up but could not be tied anywhere.
Not all the camps require teaching qualifications. I had none but was a counsellor to the horse riding campers (we had specialist to help). It was a steep learning curve though. We rode western! Bit of a change from English that's for sure.

Wait, maybe you're right and that you lose the flights from pay rather than paying them yourself... I can't even remember! How bad is that?!

 

[mashnut]

Ah but when I returned I paid my own flights up front so I took everything I earned the second summer. There are choices. Letting the companies do the flight thing is usually cheeper and easier (unless your camp is in the midwest or west coast {most are east coast anyway}). Plus you travel with other people going to camp and can learn loads from them.

 

[skye123]

They take the flights out of your wage so you`ll get around $900 I think it is. TBH if you want to do it for the money its best to stay home and get a normal job, everyone seems to just do it for the experience!

 

[BlairandAzria]

Hi,

I did camp america through BUNAC in 2003 for the first time, i was a general counsellor in the horse programme, but ended up running the whole horse programme in the end. I went back several times throughout my uni summers and when i got made redundant last year i went back again. (the pic in my avatar is from camp) I absolutely cant recommend it enough. The experience was life changing for me.

Yes it is hard work- you will be more exhausted than you think possible, but if you can still manage to smile, be enthusiastic and sing songs even when all you can think about is sleeping then it is for you. I would never have thought that would have been me before i realised i was doing it!

You will be expected to do whatever the camp need you to do, and before the kids arrive that means fixing fences, moving beds and any odd jobs you can think of. Its hot, sticky, where i was - in maryland - it was 90% humidity most days, you will be sweaty, and want to shower alot more than you are able to.

When i did it the first time i had a group of six girls in a cabin on my own, when i say cabin- it was pretty much exactly like a garden shed but instead of windows there was broken fly screens. There is NO privacy at all. Mine was in the middle of the woods, and there are bugs, lots and lots of bugs. The bath house was down the hill, and kids wake you up several times in the middle of the night to take them to the bathroom (even though theyre not supposed to, and they each have a 'buddy' to go with). You will learn camp songs, and be singing them in your head FOREVER! You will learn to LOVE hots dogs, and sloppy joes, and bug juice. You will know the american pledge of alleigance off by heart because every single morning you will have to stand with your cabin on the field and they will raise the american flag and say it with hands over heart. You will be challenged in ways you cant even imagine, physically and mentally, but you will learn so much too.

You will get up before 7, sing, work, sing, play, teach, do 15 horses, teach archery and canoeing, cook dinner on a camp fire,do evening rides, put 15 horses to bed, learn to make native american crafts, sing more songs, lifeguard, be a friendly ear, confidente, peace-maker, mother, friend, say goodnight, organise day trips to rodeos, and gymkhanas for the weekends, then be on duty until midnight, get up at 2 am to search the woods for teenage girl who has sneaked out to meet up with teenage boy, get up at 4 because camper has wet the bed / had a nightmare / is homesick....get up at 6.30 and make sure all kids are showered, dressed and really to plegde to the flag at 7 again......and do it all again the next day......


It is relentless.


The first year i did it, i was exhausted yes. But i learnt soooo much about myself that i didnt know before. I coped, i did more than cope I excelled. I learnt the balance between being your campers friend and being their counsellor. I learnt that i could teach and that i loved it. I was enchanted with America and americans, the daily wierdness never ceased to amaze me. I found love snow-cones and swedish fish and grew to appreciate the delicacy that is a hot -dog cooked on an open fire, and smores.... I found that nothing beats pancakes with bacon and maple syrup in the mornings. I learnt more about myself in 10 weeks, working harder than i had ever worked before, and I loved it. Yes i had pangs of home-sickness, pangs of loneliness, and if you are working on the riding programme you will always have less time to yourself than the other counsellors and resent it.


Would i change it - no. I gave it my all, but it gave me so much in return. Through doing it, i got to camp out in a tipi, learn about and live in another culture. i got to ride wild mustangs, and climb the blue-ridge mountains, visit a native american reservation, go to a rodeo, canoe down the gunpowder river , i learnt to shoot a gun, and and most importantly really feel like i got to make a difference in the lives of the children i met and lived with.

There is a thing in america that they say all camp counsellors 'hook up' with each other over the summer, and to an extent its true. many a summer romance has blossomed in the camp situation. Its intense. Its like bigbrother- you cant leave, you see the same people day in day out, you cant watch the news - although its different now that everyone has phones with internet etc... its not so cut-off. But yes many people fall in love. But summer romances fade fast once summer is over, but I fell in love with america, and the camp experience.

Sorry to have gone on and on, and have been quite trite in parts. But if you are tempted and not put off by long hours and american children then go for it. Regret the things in life you do- not the things you were too afraid to try!

i have made life long lasting friends from it. Many of us worked there at the same time during uni, and i think its testament to the camp that many of us returned for several summers. The director spoke to me the other day,and asked me if i could recommend anyone to work in the horse camp.......so if you are interested pm me.....


Anyway sorry again about the length of this post. Hope it helps give you more of an idea. And if you need any help at all with any part of the process give me a shout!!

xxxBxxx

 

[mashnut]

BlairandAzria - You are far more eloquent than I. That was my experience too. *hug* unless that invades your personal bubble.

 

[BlairandAzria]

BlairandAzria - You are far more eloquent than I. That was my experience too. *hug* unless that invades your personal bubble.

haha thanks! ((((hug)))) back at ya! I cant believe you actually read the whole post, i got abit carried away...its an epic one!

 

[maxapple]

I did it through BUNAC - but a long time ago (1993!)

It is a great way to spend the summer. They do take the flights out of your wages at the end (but I'm sure they all do that). I think you get a good deal - they call your wages 'pocket money' as they are not that high, but everything else is paid for (food / accommodation etc) and there is very little to spend your money on so I saved most of it for travelling afterwards.

Mt camp was a sports academy, so full of rich children from all over New York state. (Cue some huge 'tips' from parents at the end of the summer too)

It is VERY hard work. You live with your group of kids in the same cabin and spend a lot of time with them - all meals / evening activities. The only real down time you get is one day off a week.

That aside it is an amazing experience. When I went I had just graduated with a degree in accounting and finance and planned to start looking for training jobs in London. The camp experience really did change my life - and I ended up doing a post graduate teaching qualification and have been very happy as a teacher ever since.

 

[skye123]

Oo I cant wait Not looking forward so much to the early mornings though BlairandAzria sounds like you had an amazing time

 

[feefeeb28]

Do it do it do it! I did it was the making of me. Loved every second. It was hard work but so rewarding. I made some amazing friends, got to travel and it made me grow up and gain so much confidence

 

[Leg_end]

I would definately reccommend this 220%

I did a few years ago (Summer 02) and went with Camp America. They did a masive roadshow in London where loads of camp directors came over and interviewed you. I dont have any qualifications but have comp experience so took my pictures with me and went to this place: http://www.dude-ranches.com/gallery.php

It was totally amazing, we were in the middle of nowhere, had one day off a week and I lived in a bunk with 6-8 children aged 8-10. Not all counsellors had their own bunk if they weren't keen on looking after the kids but I didnt mind. The horse care surprised me - this was not a cheap camp - but we had 6 horses rock up on the back of a wagon (one of which turned out to be about 3 and unbroken) which were then tried by us and accepted/rejected. I also had to stretch myself a bit as I was teaching beginners and had to teach western to some of them which was amusing as I hadn't ridden western ever until I got to camp!!

Horses all had one day off on the camp day out day which was cool - but manic to look after so many kids in an open space!

I would definately 110% do it - I made friends for life

 

[LisW]

I worked for the YMCA at YMCA Camp Fitch on the shore of Lake Eire in Pennsylvania but it was 25 years ago! Still remember it as the best expereince of my life! The YMCA pay was very little, but they paid the flights & we didn't have to pay them back. I got my keep & pocket money, plus a 10 day trip at the end travelling by minibus to see various places of interest.
Remember it will be Western riding. I couldn't work out how to girth the sadle at first.
Hard work at times, but great fun. Go for it!!

 

[superpony]

I have always wanted to do this! But unfortunately can't get someone to look after my horses for 8/9 weeks.

BlairandAzria it sounds even more amazing than i thought!

 

[Willow1306]

I've done this twice. Been through Camp America and Camp Leaders. Camp Leaders were a better deal and better to deal with than Camp America by far.

Also, second time around I applied to camps i liked the look of directly and then went through the agency from there.

It's a great experience - go for it!

 

[skye123]

For those of you who taught the horse riding did you enjoy it or did you wish you`d taught something else? I`m unsure whether to have swimming or horseriding as my first choice activity

 

[markh4032]

Hello, I saw this thread and thought I could add some good info - so here goes.

Soph and I met at camp years ago, she's from Yorkshire and I'm from Liverpool. She ran the riding program and I worked on the lake. Summer camp is tough, looooaaaads of hours, pay doesn't really exist and so on. We had to keep going back, year after year. You really get to know the other staff and kids as it's residential and the experience is a huge positive for the kids.

The barn was a fun place. Soph was responsible for 20 horses and had a a team to help her. There was a HUGE pasture that the horses spent the night in, she ran classes in the day. Hard work, lots if fun.

We both got made redundant because of COVID and we've started a company called FireSide Camps to send people to camp, it had such a positive impact upon us, we want to share that. It's a family business, we'll get people ready for a great summer.

It isn't for everyone, you have to be up for putting a shift in everyday for the full summer, but the people you'll meet will open the world to you. My opinion is - if you can do it, if you're up for the challenge, it'll be the summer of your life.

 

[suebou]

I did this but it was 20 years ago. I was at Camp Foss in New Hampshire. It was challenging as we were also the camp councillors so in the tents with the children themselves so it was a 24 hour / 6 day a week job.

BUT. And its a huge but.

The camp took scholoarships from extremely deprived children from New York. These children hadn't been out with a mile and a half of their homes their whole lives. i promise without a word of a lie they didn't know milk came from a cow and thought it was like Coke and just 'made'.

So you can imagine the look on their faces when we popped them ontop of a pony. It was absolutely amazing.

There are some stunning 'private' only camps but i loved the fact we had mixed groups and it was genuinely very rewarding.

The only downside was at that time, the Camp didn't own their own ponies and the dealer arrived one day with a wagon full. He turned them out, we had a go and if the head instructor didn't like them then they went back on and he came back the next day with another load. Meant we truly had a very mixed bunch of ponies with various problems. But I think that will have changed now and most camps will own their own animals.

It’s still fairly standard for the horses to be rented in for the season. Seems to work for everyone.....