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Yosemite Summer Camps

Yosemite Backpacking Summer Camps Overview

Yosemite summer camps are the Lasting Adventures specialty. We offer a 6-day Young Adventurers’ Program for ages 11 to 13, a choice of a 6-day or 13-day program for teens ages 13 to 18, a 13-day Women’s Adventure Camp for young females, and a 27-day Junior Guide Leadership Expedition for teens ages 14 to 18 looking for a more advanced adventure.

For all our Yosemite Summer Camps, participants are equipped with top-of-the-line gear provided by Gregory PacksLEKI trekking poles and our other outstanding partners. The primary goal of our expertly managed, professionally outfitted Yosemite youth programs is to provide unforgettable experiences that intimately connect each child with nature, themselves, and the greater world around them.

Throughout our youth and teen outdoor backpacking programs, participants are guided along some of the most famous trails and to the top of some of the most iconic peaks within Yosemite National Park. Our experienced Outdoor Educators have extensive knowledge of the backcountry and a passion for the outdoors that they share through fun and inspirational activities.

Participants will actively engage in daily activities that are significant, challenging, supportive, and fun!  All programs have a daily circle time in the morning where the team engages in group games, shares highlights, offers praise to each other, stretches, reviews maps and daily itineraries, and sets individual and group goals for the day. Also, whether breaking on the trail during a storm or in the evening at the campsite after summiting a peak, our guides facilitate ongoing opportunities for youth to process the experience and develop a personal connection with nature. Problem-solving and initiative games are common, as are smiles and laughter.

The expansive wilderness within Yosemite National Park provides the ultimate backdrop to these transformative experiences. Most itineraries will have an average of one night a week in a front country campground, and the remainder of the nights will be in the Yosemite backcountry. Plan on backpacking 3-5 hours per day on moderate to strenuous terrain. Mileage can vary depending on terrain and age group, but plan on 4-8 miles per day. Throughout the experience, we take our time, take in the views, and break at some awesome watering holes. 

In addition to taking participants to many of Yosemite’s famous destinations, our leaders guide the groups to lesser-known areas, such as off-the-trail high alpine lakes (where fish are plentiful), through glacier-carved valleys, past backcountry waterfalls, alpine meadows, and spectacular vistas. Participants will walk on Yosemite’s fabled polished granite, experience the park’s famous sunsets from unparalleled vantages, and discover the nuances of its majestic wilderness teeming with life.

The primary mission of our outdoor summer camp is to foster environmental stewardship, teach responsible recreation, and provide opportunities for personal growth through the facilitation of impactful wilderness experiences. Through our nonprofit scholarship program, we also seek to provide disadvantaged youth, families, and communities the opportunity to experience America’s National Parks, regardless of their economic standing. In addition to unique individual backgrounds and certifications, our outdoor educators are trained in Adventure Based Programming, which challenges participants to improve their sense of self-esteem, worth, and confidence. Campers participate in daily goal-setting, group activities, and debriefing (usually mixed in with marshmallows around the campfire), all done within an environment of fun and support. All participants also learn basic backpacking skills, wilderness ethics,  and Leave No Trace principles. Along with creating lasting memories, our goal is for participants to finish their adventure with a greater knowledge and appreciation of themselves, the world at large, and the environments around them.

Yosemite Summer Camp Adventures

participants resting on one of our california outdoor summer camps

Junior Guide Leadership Expedition

This 27-day wilderness summer camp in the California high country is geared toward youth looking for an adventure beyond our other Yosemite summer camps.

Trip Highlights:

Difficulty:

Strenuous

Trip Length:

27 Days
young women resting on our Yosemite girls summer camp adventure

6 & 13-Day Yosemite Young Women’s Programs

This unique Yosemite summer camp for girls ages 13-17, led by our top female guides, focuses on showing young women their true potential in both an outdoor setting and in their day-to-day lives while teaching the practical skills of backpacking and outdoor safety.

Trip Highlights:

Difficulty:

Moderate-Strenuous

Trip Length:

6 Days
participants on our 13-Day backpacking summer camp adventure in Yosemite

13-Day Yosemite High Country Adventure

This 13-Day Backpacking Summer Camp in Yosemite combines risk-taking and challenges along with fun and support from others while camping and hiking beside high alpine lakes, rivers, waterfalls, and meadows.

Trip Highlights:

Difficulty:

Moderate-Strenuous

Trip Length:

13 Days
Participants relax during one of our West Coast Summer Camps in Yosemite National Park California

6-Day Yosemite High Country Adventure

This Yosemite summer camp adventure includes camping and hiking beside high alpine lakes, rivers, waterfalls, and meadows.

Trip Highlights:

Difficulty:

Moderate-Strenuous

Trip Length:

6 Days
Hikers enjoying the view on one of our Yosemite summer camp programs for kids

6-Day Yosemite Young Adventurer’s Program

These Yosemite summer camp programs for youths 11-13 offer shorter hiking distances and an introduction to camping, backpacking, and the outdoors among the natural geological formations surrounding us in the Yosemite high country.

Trip Highlights:

Difficulty:

Easy-Moderate

Trip Length:

6 Days

Trips by Destination

Trips by Type

Camping Programs
Lodge-Based Programs