Life on Campus

Our goal at camp is to create an environment for campers that makes them feel comfortable, supported, valued, and the best versions of themselves. Our “Bring it Out” philosophy underscores our commitment to this, and we make every effort to treat each moment at camp as one that could ultimately be the most important one of the summer to your child. Although the time at activities throughout the day captures our campers’ attention, their experience with others in their own cabins, divisions, and on campus will forever be most important to making the summer spectacular.

There are three distinct campuses on the Chestnut Lake property. For our rising 3rd through 8th-grade boys and girls, there is a Boys Campus and a Girls Campus. For our rising 9th-graders and older teens, we have a Varsity Campus. Each campus is a self-contained camp community unto itself, as we use the campus to break down the larger camp community and a camper’s experience to be more manageable and intimate. While campers on all campuses will interact each day, the campus becomes their “neighborhood.” 

Boys and Girls Campuses are comprised of buildings arranged in a semi-circular shape (you can check out the Campuses in our Virtual Tour). Boys Campus has 13 cabins divided into 9 buildings, while there are 14 cabins divided into 7 buildings on Girls Campus. When there are two cabins in one building, each cabin has its own separate rooms for only those campers/counselors, but there is a shared front porch. Cabins have their own sleeping area (for campers and counselors), locker room storage room, and bathroom (with 3 showers/3 toilet stalls/3 sinks). The design of each cabin – whether in a stand-alone building or on one side of a larger building – is the same, and the interior dimensions are close to identical. In 2021, we added new air-movement systems on thermostats that take full advantage of the many windows and cross-circulation to keep the climate comfortable during the day and night. The buildings with cabins are in a semi-circular shape facing the center of the Campus, and there are two additional buildings interspersed: Campus Leaders cabin (where supervisors of the counselors/cabins reside), and a Head Counselor Office. On the campus, the campers will find seating areas, outdoor recreational activities (like a GaGa Court, Ping Pong Tables, or Cornhole games), and other assets to make the campus a fun place to be. Each Campus also has a flagpole that is used each morning when the girls or boys gather to begin their day with the Campus Leaders and counselors.

In keeping with the down-to-earth and comfortable culture at Chestnut Lake, we reduce the clutter inside the cabins by housing only 8-15 campers (in most cases, we will have 12-14) with 3-4 counselors. No chests of drawers, under-bed storage containers, throw rugs, or other unnecessary items are permitted so that the spaces can be kept neat and usable for campers to relax and sit together. One small cubby (open shelf unit) will be attached to the wall next to every camper’s bed, and campers will have use of one or more lockers (open shelving unit) in the locker room space (you can see the dimensions of each of these by clicking here). The only storage unit we encourage otherwise is for campers to bring an end-of-bed shoe organizer (see an example from Amazon here).

On Varsity Campus, we have different types of residential accommodations that are more “dormitory-style,” where there are multiple rooms for teens and their counselors to live in that vary in size and are on both sides of a long hallway. The number of teens in the buildings will change a bit from session to session (and summer to summer), and there are separate buildings for all high-school-aged boys and girls. 

Campus life is much more than cabins and shoe organizers. More than anything else, it’s about the people. We are proud of the culture at Chestnut, which has been formed over the years. Campers enjoy a camp experience within a low-key and informal environment, and they benefit from a relatively diverse community make-up. Campers and staff who live with them will not all be from the same place, they will not all have the same backgrounds or interests, and the most significant thing they have in common is being part of the same camp family. We want each camper to be able to see another camper and staff member that they can easily relate to, but we also value giving campers a chance to be around others who will be part of the tapestry of camp that can be extra special. Camp friendships are sustained because they’re built into camp and because the connections between people at camp can be genuine. 

In choosing assignments for cabins for the campers and making the choices of beds within the cabin in advance (so that counselors can unpack each child and make their beds before they arrive), we take everything we can into consideration. Aside from giving parents the opportunity to make limited requests using the Bunk Request Form in MyCLC (which we try to honor as best we can), we consider all that we know about the campers. Things like whether they are returning to camp or coming for the first time, where they are from, their personalities and interests, details shared by parents before the summer, and other information all go into our decisions. In most Divisions (these are the groups that each camper will be separated into which are by gender and grade as of September 2025), there are 2 or 3 cabins. Sometimes (like with some of our youngest cabins), there may be just one cabin per Division. But with no more than three cabins to choose from in a Division, we’re able to build these communities thoughtfully and effectively.

From session to session and summer to summer, we work hard to keep close friends together. As long as campers are in the same grade, we can keep a core group of a handful of kids together consistently. Of course, this is based on the mutual desire for these campers to be in a cabin group together. We will blend these campers into a cabin of others that may be going the same session (First or Second), or for Full Summer (7 weeks). We do not, however, aspire to keep an entire cabin of campers together forever. The community at Chestnut is so special because we are a welcoming place. Focusing on keeping close friends together allows us to make room for the continual introduction of new friends to groups and the development of a cohesive community.

One favorite aspect of Chestnut for our families is the flexibility we offer in session. Not only can families choose a 7-week, 4-week, or 3-week experience (and a special 5-day Discovery Camp program for first-timers in 2nd through 4th grades during the Second Session), but we also offer campers the chance to extend from the First Session (4 weeks) to the Full Summer (7 weeks), even able to make that decision with their parents support during the First Session itself. The opportunity to extend is only dependent on the space available during the Second Session for your child, so we do encourage you to discuss this possibility in advance of the summer to be sure there is flexibility to allow it. You can also share your interest through the Extension Form in your MyCLC portal. We will provide any extended campers the Full Season tuition rate (which is less than simply adding the Second Session tuition to their account).

Life on campus will be one of the most important aspects of your child’s summer with us. With the leadership of our counselors, the Division Leaders who will supervise each Division’s campers and staff, our amazing Assistant Directors who will take charge of the campuses, and other leaders (such as Division Leaders, Wellness Coaches, and other members of our year-round team), your child’s campus will be like home in all the best ways.

Want to access the rest of the Chestnut Essentials? Just click here to review the full series.