We are excited for another summer of Camp, where our promise to parents is to return your child at the end of the day “tired, happy, and dirty”!
Chester Bowl Camps are based on a philosophy of nature play, positive social interaction with peers, teen mentors, and adult staff, and immersion in nature. We see campers thrive in an environment where they are given age-appropriate amounts of choice, responsibility, and risk. A typical day may include unstructured play time on the playground, group games and activities with both the full group and smaller groups, arts and crafts, hiking through Chester on the way to a local field trip, fort building, making boats from natural materials, playing in the creek, smiling, laughing, making new friends, and asking “do I really need to go home now?” at the end of the day.
Camp is Monday through Thursday, June 9 through August 14, and campers are signed up by the week. Campers can be dropped off starting at 8am and must be picked up before 5pm each day. There are no early drop-off or late pick-up options at Chester Bowl. Parents are required to adhere to the camp drop-off & pick-up times and there will be no exceptions made to the times listed above.
Campers must be between 6 years old (or have completed kindergarten) and 12 years old at the start of camp in order to attend. We have found that campers that can hike at least 2 miles are successful at camp.
Camp is offered at three unique locations in Chester Bowl Park. While each site has different amenities, the programming is very similar at each location.
Lower Chester- located at 1417 E. 5th Street, Lower Chester Park is an awesome resource for our camp. Aside from awesome hiking trails, a great swimming hole, and being a short hike away from Upper Chester, Lower Chester has a paved hockey rink perfect for skateboarding, biking, and scootering. Campers can come with their helmets and wheeled devices to take advantage of the rink.
Middle Chester- The chalet at the base of the ski hill is home to our Middle Chester location. Close the playground and central to the trails in the park, Middle Chester is an awesome place to spend summer!
Upper Chester- Located just past the chalet, Upper Chester is located at the end of the road in the park. Upper Chester has a perfectly paved space where campers can do chalk art, and play games. This location is close to the creek and has access to some of the finest fort building locations in the park.
Parent Handbook: Parents are required to read through our parent handbook before sending their kiddos to camp. This not only will inform families about camp but will ensure that campers and parents are aware of our expectations for behavior. To view the parent handbook follow this link!
REGISTRATION TIMELINE & AVAILABILITY
Registration is managed through Regpack which is an online registration system. Parents will need to create an account, complete health forms & other necessary forms, and then register their children.
The scholarship request period opens on February 10 and closes on February 26. Please see below for details on the scholarship program.
Registration opens to returning families at noon on Tuesday, March 4. A link will be emailed out at noon to all families that attended fall or summer camp 2023 or 2024. This link is not to be shared and if a new family gets the link both the family that shared the link and the new family will be removed from camp.
Registration opens to new families on Thursday, March 6 at noon. The link to register will be posted right here at that time. Registration will remain open until filled. If some weeks are completely filled, we encourage families to sign up for a wait list, as camp spots will often open up over the course of the summer.
COSTS, REFUNDS, & SCHOLARSHIPS
Costs: Each week of camp costs $180 per camper and there is one-time $75 family registration fee.
Refunds: Tuition is based on registration, not attendance, and camp must be paid in full by May 1, 2025. You can cancel weeks and receive a partial refund (there is a $20 fee applied for each week of camp being canceled) up until May 1, 2025. After that date, if you cancel you will not be eligible for refunds.
Scholarships: We recognize that Summer Camp can be too expensive for many families to afford. We are excited to be able to offer scholarships to support families in need so that they can be part of Chester’s summer programs.
Scholarship funding was raised through Fall Fest gate donations, an annual silent auction and raffle, the November Warren Miller film screening, donations from individuals and businesses, and through a generous grant of $12,500 from Essentia Health Community Contributions.
Total scholarship awards are limited to $32,750, and we do expect requests to exceed funding that is available. We will be prioritizing the families with the greatest need.
Please fill out this form by February 26 to request a scholarship.
All families requesting scholarship support will be required to pay the $75 registration fee even if they are otherwise awarded a full scholarship. Chester Bowl staff will contact families by the end of the day February 28 to share scholarship award results so that families know their scholarship award before registration opens. Each camper will receive one week of summer camp at no charge beyond the registration fee. The remaining funds will be dispersed to families based on their need as described by the current HUD income guidelines.
The deadline to apply for a scholarship is Wednesday, February 26. We expect that scholarships will be fully awarded based on the requests, so please register by February 26! Once families register we will apply their scholarships to their balance and then parents are responsible for paying their balance by May 1, 2025 or they will forfeit their camp spots. Please note that receiving a scholarship does not guarantee registration- you will still need to sign up for camp while there are open weeks.
SUMMER CADET PROGRAM
We will be offering the Summer Cadet Program, a teen volunteer opportunity, again this summer for those that have completed 7th grade up through those who are 15 years old. Registration for the Cadet program will open later in the spring. Find out all of the details here: https://www.chesterbowl.org/summer-cadet-program/
QUESTIONS
Getting registered for camp can be challenging especially for new families. If you have questions about camp, registration, or anything else please email sam@chesterbowl.org.
