Life At Camp

Life at Camp


Our Daily Schedule 

Time Activity
7:15am Wake up for Morning Activities
7:30-8:00am Morning activities: Polar bear swim, run, yoga, shower time
7:50am Wake up Bell
8:30am Breakfast
10:00-11:00am 1st Activity Period
11:10-12:10am 2nd Activity Period
12:30pm Lunch
2:00-3:00pm Rest Hour
3:10-4:10pm 3rd Activity Period
4:15-5:15pm Dip
5:30-6:15pm  Cabin/Unit time, Shower Time
6:30pm Dinner
7:30pm Evening Activity
9:45pm Evening Thoughts
10:00pm Lights Out


Overnight Camp Sessions
The camp program (general schedule) is the same week to week, with a few specialty sessions.

2023 DATES & RATES

Session   Details
Session 1 A smaller session, perfect for first-time campers looking for a smaller community setting.
Mini -Camp A shorter session, perfect for first-time campers.
Session 2 A smaller session, perfect for first-time campers looking for a smaller community setting.
Session 3 This session includes a forth of July celebration with a Wish Lantern Tradition and Flag Retirement.
Session 4A This one-week session can be combined with session 4B to make a two-week long session with a discount.
Session 4B This one-week session can be combined with session 4A to make a two-week long session for a discount. This week includes Christmas in July!
Session 5A This one-week session can be combined with session 5B to make a two-week long session for a discount (5ALL). For campers entering 8th grade and above, the two week option is a requirement. This session includes a backpacking trip to North or South Manitou Island for campers entering 10th and 11th grades.
Session 5B This one-week session can be combined with session 5A to make a two-week long session for a discount (5ALL). For campers entering 8th grade and above, the two week option is a requirement. This session includes a tradition of Candle Dipping, Wishing Boats, and Final Campfire (all done since 1926!)

Classes 
One of the great aspects of Newaygo’s  camp program is the variety of activities. There are over 30 activities to choose from, and the activity sign-up process was designed to allow campers to follow their own passions. Campers sign up for their classes the first evening of camp. They choose three classes per week, allowing them to build their skill level in three specific areas. Girls who come to Camp Newaygo can look forward to the following activities:

Archery, Challenge Course, Cheerleading, Team Sports: Basketball, Volleyball, Tennis, Sailing, Photography, Wilderness Survival, Yoga, Tubing, Zumba, Paddleboarding, Windsurfing, Arts and Crafts, Water Polo, Rugby, Hiking, Canoeing, Kayaking, Ukulele , Drama, Nature, Swimming, Fishing, Outdoor Cooking, Gymnastics, Fencing, Pottery, Synchronized Swimming, Animal Care, and more based on the talents and passions of our summer staff!

Our classes vary a little summer to summer based on the skills and talents of our staff. Campers register for classes with their cabin/unit, and the older units get first preference on class sign up. We do our best to ensure that every camper is able to sign up for the classes she wants, while balancing small class sizes.


Swim Tests
The swim test is the first step in ensuring a safe waterfront. On the first day of camp, campers will have the opportunity to take a swim test. The Camp Newaygo swim test is a 10 minute tread followed by a 50 yard swim.  The treading and swimming ability of the camper will determine what areas of the waterfront a camper can swim in and the boating classes a camper can take. During the tread, campers must keep their chin and ears above water. If a camper continues to have their chin and ears in the water, our lifeguards will ask her to climb out and her test will be over.


Overnights
Every Tuesday, every Cabin and Unit has the opportunity to spend the night in a tent. Cabin campers will camp on Camp Newaygo property. Our youngest campers might stay down at the waterfront or in the campsite located right behind Cabin 5  affectionately called “The Backyard”. Our Unit campers have the opportunity to camp off-site, and explore the beautiful parks of West Michigan. On Sunday night, campers sit with their counselors and decide as a group if they choose to go on a paddling or backpacking trip. Some trips for older campers might be more than one night. During Session 5, our Pioneer campers head to North Manitou Island for a four day backpacking trip.

Some of our favorite spots to frequent during the summer are the Muskegon River, The Pere Marquette, and the Manistee National Forest, which is nestled behind Camp Newaygo.

During trips, campers make dinner over a fire. They learn how to set up tents, work together, and stay positive even if the sun doesn’t shine the whole trip. Returning campers will talk about how the trips at Camp Newaygo are what truly bonded their group together, and campers look forward to new and more challenging trips every year they come to Camp Newaygo.

Tripping and transportation charges are built into regirtation costs.


Free Time
Camp Newaygo values free, unscheduled time just as much as it’s activity periods. Some of your daughter’s favorite memories may come from during a free time when she was jumping on the moss trampoline in the Wetland Trail or playing a game with her cabin mates. Counselors are trained to know where all their campers are at all times and also to offer special activities during free times. For instance, our Environmental Classroom boasts all kinds of Camp Creatures. Cabins might spend their Rest Hour adopting one the bunnies, or feeding the goats.


Evening Program
Who needs a TV when there’s life-sized-board games, Disney Princess Scavenger Hunts, Campfires and more?! Evening program is a time when campers come together as a cabin/unit(age group) or as a whole camp, and it usually involves some kind of dressing up in costumes. Part of the fun of camp is that there are so many surprises. Campers don’t know the plan until counselors announce it in the dining hall or in their lodges just before the event. Capture the Flag is always played once in Session 4 and once in Session 5. Be sure to ask your camper what her favorite evening program was!


The Zip Line
Camp Newaygo’s new Zip Line Canopy Tour is a three zip line course through the wooded canopy. The zip lines total 1,000 feet, is 90 feet in the air, and participants can expect to go over 20 miles an hour! Campers 50 pounds and over will have the option of signing up to do the zip line once during their stay at Camp Newaygo. If your camper is interested in the zip line, you can add this option as a part of regitration.