Questions Parents Ask about Devil's Gulch Ranch Farm Camp

These pages summarize information that is presented in more detail (and with pictures!) elsewhere on the website. We hope you will explore some of the links provided here for more detail on specific topics.

How much does it cost and how do I reserve a place for my child?
For day camp, fees are $440 if received before April 15, or $465 after. Overnight camp is $995 before April 15 or $1035 after. Please read information on the registration page before downloading the application.

What is the total enrollment of the camp?
We limit the total enrollment to 20 - 25 students per week.

What is the student-to-staff ratio?
For most activities, there are no more than 5 students to one adult staff person. For safety and optimum instruction, some activities are taught 1 to 1. Please see the Arts, Crafts, and Traditional Skills and Recreation pages for descriptions of some of the activities.

Are you accredited?
We are applying for accreditation with the American Camp Association and expect to complete the process this summer for the start of summer of 2010. We are in our fifth year of running the summer camp and are happy to connect you with families who have been with us for years.

Will my child be safe swimming in the reservoir?
Children love swimming in the reservoir, but many parents ask about safety. We take safety very seriously and want parents to be well informed as to the precautions we take.

There is risk involved with swimming anywhere, and it is understood that ponds, lakes and reservoirs are more dangerous to swim in than pools. This is because the water may cover a larger surface area and be deeper and more turbid. That being said, much can be done to reduce the risk and make the special experience of swimming in natural bodies of water as safe as possible. Here is what we do.

The pond is buoyed off to create a swimming area the size of a swimming pool. This limits the amount of space that the lifeguards must scan and the time necessary to respond to a swimmer who is in trouble.

Opposing corners have qualified lifeguards whose only task is to scan the water. Meanwhile, the rest of the staff watch the kids who are on shore so that the lifeguards can focus all their attention on the swimmers.

The registration packet includes a page on water safety. On this page, parents indicate whether they wish their child to participate in the water/waterfront activities. Parents who permit their children to swim then indicate their assessment of the child’s ability. This information becomes part of the staff’s camper profile, which is given to each staff person at the beginning of the week. Only those students with their parents’ permission are allowed at the waterfront.   

In order to swim or wade, campers must pass a swim test which includes swimming twice the width of the swimming area and treading water for 90 seconds.

To be able to use the zipline, the students must be able to do a chin-up, swim the length of the opposing corners and tread water for 120 seconds.

Although the total student body is 20 – 25 children, it is rare that more than 12 swimmers are in the water at any given time.  Because the water is cold, swimmers tend to divide their time between swimming and warming up on the dock!

The 2 lifeguards on duty are certified. There will be a PADI Dive Master on duty.    

What medical staff are available?
Many of our staff are first aid/CPR trained or Wilderness First Responder certified and current.  Nicasio Firehouse is 2 miles from the ranch and is notified of our activity schedule. We have a nurse that comes by each day to treat any small injuries.  

Are there accommodations for special needs students?
We will do what we can, and in the past have accommodated a wide range of needs.  Decisions as to whether we can make arrangements for a given camper are made on an individual basis. The ranch is not wheelchair accessible.

Will lunches be provided?
Overnight campers receive all meals at camp. Day campers must bring lunches from home. No lunch is provided for day campers. Because lunches and snacks from home are not refrigerated, please send sack lunches and snacks that are nonperishable! We provide bottled water.

What is a typical day like at Beginning Agriculture Camp?
The families meet by the baseball diamond in the town of Nicasio, where the students hop on a 100-year-old buckboard that takes them on a scenic ride up to the ranch.  The kids stow their lunches and other belongings in the crafts building, then meet in the horse arena to hear announcements. Morning chores follow, with campers shadowing a staff person.

On Mondays, we then head out on a hike to Samuel P. Taylor State Park to spend the rest of the day having fun, getting to know each other, and enjoying the area’s natural resources.

The staff assess the interests of the current campers in order to plan the best activities for the rest of the week. We consider this first day to be an important part of camp; please see our philosophy about Undirected Free Play.

Tuesday through Friday mornings after chores, the students collect into classes for skills or activities until lunchtime. After lunch, campers again choose activities. Many elect to swim and explore around the reservoir.

At the end of the day, the day campers load up on the buckboard and head back down to Nicasio to be picked up by their parents at 4:00 p.m. Campers 9 and up who have chosen overnight camping spend the rest of the afternoon and evening doing staff-coordinated challenge activities and enjoying campfire camaraderie before climbing into their sleeping bags on cots in tents provided by the camp.

What will a typical day be like in Advanced Agriculture (Animal Science) Camp?
This new program is an academic camp with 4 hours each day studying animal anatomy and physiology working with pigs, sheep, rabbits, horses, and poultry. During the rest of the day, the campers participate in traditional skills, crafts, and recreation.

How much choice do campers have about activities?
The staff plan the week on Monday night after finding out what the students are excited about, what their expectations are, and what is happening at the ranch with crops and livestock. 

The week’s plan incorporates many choices for the campers. There is some flexibility with the chores that start the day, but everyone can’t do the same thing— chores need to get done! Some of these are feeding pigs, weighing rabbits, collecting eggs, feeding and watering chickens and game birds, gardening, and tasks with chicks. moving day-old chicks into brooders. In general, we give first-time campers an overview of all the chores, while repeating campers may choose to specialize.

After chores come more choices, typically with five options each admitting about five campers. For example, in a given week, the Tuesday morning options might be pottery, archery, tanning buckskin, making soap, and gardening.

The registration form asks what the enrolling child wants, and they may express their interests personally on the Let’s Get Acquainted page. With our small student population, we have much flexibility to accommodate the campers’ wishes. At the same time, we can’t possibly do every one of our large array of activities in one week! Depending on the interests of the campers who come to us, we may go for weeks without making a friction fire, creating jewelry, doing photography, or rappelling. On the other hand, we may do all of these things in the same week. The needs of the ranch also have much to do with available options. Branding, surgeries, and other seasonal tasks will be featured in some weeks and absent in others.

Do you provide transportation?
We pick day students up each morning in the town of Nicasio and return them each afternoon.  Some students fly in for overnight camping programs; we meet these campers at the airport. If your child will be flying in, please indicate this on the registration form.An additional fee will apply, as the roundtrip to the airport takes about six hours, assuming there are no flight delays!

Parents who would like to share their contact information with others to arrange carpooling are invited to do so on the registration form.

What are the drop-off and pickup times and location?
Regular drop-off is 9 a.m.; regular pickup is 4 p.m.  For an additional $150 weekly, we offer a 6 a.m. drop-off. For an additional $150 fee, we offer a 6 p.m. pickup.  The drop-off and pickup location is the northwest end of the baseball field in the town of Nicasio. Our land use agreement does not allow parents to drop their children off at the ranch itself or to pick them up there.

Are there any discounts?
New campers pay the new camper rate for their very first week.  After this, any subsequent sessions receive a “returning sessions” discount. Discounts also are available for early registration. Sorry, we do not offer sibling discounts.

The camp is in the process of applying for not-for-profit status (see under Funding, below), which will make us eligible for grants to provide camp scholarships in 2009.

What is your refund policy?
A refund minus a $25 processing fee will be given on cancellations requested at least four weeks prior to the starting date of the session being cancelled. 50% refunds will be given on cancellations requested at least one week prior to the starting date of the session being cancelled. If you wish to cancel a session less than one week prior to its starting date, no refund will be given.

If you request to change session dates at least four weeks prior to the starting date of the session for which your child is enrolled, the change will be made at no charge, provided space is available in the session you wish to add. If you request to switch sessions later than four weeks prior to the starting time of the original session, a $25 fee will be charged.

Bullying of campers, cruelty to any animals, or failure to follow rules or instructions will terminate the child’s session. In such cases, the parent is responsible for immediately picking up the child, and no refund will be given.

How are you funded?
At this point, all funding is coming from tuition. Devil's Gulch Ranch Educational Services is currently filling as a not-for-profit corporation separate from Devil's Gulch Ranch. Devil's Gulch Ranch Educational Services rents the use of the land, facilities, equipment, and livestock. 

Can I donate money to Devil's Gulch Ranch Educational Services?
Yes, please! However, until we receive our not-for-profit status, donations are not tax deductible.  For those wishing to provide financial aid for less advantaged students, moneys can be contributed to the Catholic church in Nicasio, earmarked for sponsorship of students in Devil’s Gulch Ranch Camps. The church then allocates funds to students who have applied to the church for help with camp costs.  We also have programs available for sponsoring horses.

Can parents come to camp?
If you want to be a camper or attend workshops, we offer family camp and adult workshops.

We also welcome applications for volunteer staff! Please fill out a staff application and mark it as volunteer.  All volunteers must be screened and fingerprinted and go through the regular staff training.

We regret that we cannot accommodate visitors to camp; however, we do provide three open houses each spring. In 2008, these are on March 1, March 9, and April 5. Contact us if you ar interested in attending.

Is there poison oak? Should I worry about ticks?
Poison oak is abundant on the ranch and adjacent lands and is an important food source for deer and birds, which are not allergic to it as some humans are. Each week, the staff will point out this problematic native to the campers.  Young children tend not to be sensitive to poison oak, while teenagers are more likely to break out when exposed. Parents that are sensitive can get the rash from contact with their child’s clothing (keep this in mind when your child runs to give you a hug after an adventurous day in the forest!)  It is advisable that your children have long pants and shirts available for hikes and that the clothing be washed as soon as possible after retuning home.  The rash may be slight, requiring little or no attention, but in severe cases it can require medical treatment.

Ticks may be present in the forest. You should check your child each night for ticks, not forgetting to look at ankles, behind the ears, and in armpit and crotch areas. If a fever or a bulls-eye rash develops within a few days of exposure, seek medical attention.                    

Devil's Gulch Ranch,