A Typical Day
To be honest, with all the adventure, excitement and unexpected surprises at camp, there’s no such thing as a “typical” day … but we’ve tried our best to outline a normal schedule. We hope this helps you have a better understanding of what to (mostly) expect from a day in the life of a camp counselor! Since we have two different sets of staff (cabin counselors and activity counselors), we’ve separated the daily schedule by position.
A Day in the Life of a Cabin Counselor:
Morning
- 8:00 am: Wake-up campers and start cabin clean-up (campers and staff clean the cabin every day in preparation for cabin inspection)
- 8:30 am: Whole cabin heads down to central part of camp
- 8:35 am: Reflect at the Rock (an introspective start to our day, encouraging all of us to, “Make today better than yesterday…)
- 8:45 am: Breakfast! (we sit as a cabin unit at all meals and enjoy a family-style feast)
- 9:15 am: Head back up to the cabin for any last-minute cleaning before cabin inspection
- 9:40 am: Move cabin down the mountain for morning assembly
- 9:45 am: Morning Assembly (raise the flag and enjoy an exciting event to kick-start the day’s activities)
- 10:00 am: First Period
- 11:00 am: Second Period
Afternoon
- 12:00 pm: Take campers up to the central part of camp for “Free Time” before lunch
- 12:30 pm: Lunch!
- 1:15 pm: Back to the cabin for Rest Hour!
- 2:15 pm: Snack Time before heading off to afternoon activities
- 2:30 pm: Third Period
- 3:30 pm: Fourth Period
- 4:30 pm: Fifth Period
- 5:30 pm: Take campers up to the central part of camp for “Free Time” before dinner
Evening
- 6:00 pm: Dinner!
- 6:45 pm: Get dressed and prepped for tonight’s exciting Evening Program
- 7:45 pm: Evening Program!
- 9:30 pm: Head up to cabins to get campers cleaned up and quieted down
- 10:30 pm: ‘Lights Out’ for campers (one Highlander staff member is assigned to each cabin for “Cabin Duty” from 10:30-12:30 each night. All other Highlander staff are off-duty and free to socialize in the central areas of camp. Cabin counselors typically have cabin duty 2-3 nights each week.)
- 12:25 am: All staff head back to cabins
- 12:30 am: Curfew for ALL OF CAMP
Working at camp is one of the most demanding jobs I think I may ever have, but it’s also the most rewarding job I think I may ever have. Not only are the friendships with other staff members special, but the bonds and relationships that can be built with campers (and their siblings, and families, even) is something I’ll always cherish. Being able to work at camp for 4 summers (over 5 years), I got to witness the growth in several kids, but the coolest part about witnessing that growth, is being able to know that I played a small part in that growth.
A Day in the Life of an Activity Counselor
Morning
- 8:00 am: Wake-up
- 8:30 am: Head down to central part of camp
- 8:35 am: Reflect at the Rock (an introspective start to our day, encouraging all of us to, “Make today better than yesterday…)
- 8:45 am: Breakfast! (sit with your peers at all meals and enjoy a family-style feast)
- 9:15 am: If necessary, head to your activity to set-up materials/equipment for first period
- 9:45 am: Morning Assembly (raise the flag and enjoy an exciting event to kick-start the day’s activities)
- 10:00 am: First Period
- 11:00 am: Second Period
- 12:00 pm: Head to the central part of camp for “Free Time” before lunch
Afternoon
- 12:30 pm: Lunch!
- 1:15 pm: Rest Hour! Enjoy some quiet time to yourself either in your cabin or in the central part of camp
- 2:15 pm: Snack Time before heading off to afternoon activities
- 2:30 pm: Third Period
- 3:30 pm: Fourth Period
- 4:30 pm: Fifth Period
- 5:30 pm: Head to the central part of camp for “Free Time” before dinner
Evening
- 6:00 pm: Dinner!
- 6:45 pm: Get dressed and help set-up tonight’s exciting Evening Program
- 7:45 pm: Evening Program!
- 9:30 pm: Help clean up after Evening Program and enjoy the rest of your night off!
- 10:30 pm: Cabin Duty twice each week (one Highlander staff member is assigned to each cabin for “Cabin Duty” from 10:30-12:30 each night. All other Highlander staff are off-duty and free to socialize in the central areas of camp.
- 12:25 am: All staff head back to cabins
- 12:30 am: Curfew for ALL OF CAMP