Camps and retreat centers around Estes Park are built around the mountain summer: overnight sessions for kids, family weeks, and group space for churches and schools. Ten are listed here. Eight name Estes Park as their base, and the two Trail's End units of Cheley Colorado Camps are based outside town.
Before you book, ask what a normal day looks like. Some camps fill every hour, some leave you alone by the fire, and you want to know which one you're signing up for. I'm partial to the fire.
Around the valley
Summer here looks like camp for the whole family: mini golf, archery, roller skating, axe throwing, disc golf and horseback riding, and plenty of hiking. Winter swaps in ice skating.
The river is the point here. The suites and cabins on Highway 66, next to River Ridge Cottages and about two miles from the Beaver Meadows entrance, look onto the water, and the sound of it at night is what people mention.
Four weeks is the standard stay at Cheley Colorado Camps, out Fish Creek Road about four miles from downtown. Two traditional sessions run each summer for boys and girls 9 to 17, who live in separate units by age, with names like Ski Hi, Chipeta and Trail's End.
Down Salvation Lane, nearly seven miles from downtown, High Peak Camp is The Salvation Army's Christian camp and conference center, and the stated aim is to use the outdoors to share the gospel. Summer brings adventure camp, day camp, family camp, a camp for children with special needs, and programs for middle and high schoolers.
Seven miles out Highway 7 from downtown, this Christian camp and retreat center is a place to get away rather than a place to stay near town. Archery, hiking and camping fill the days, kids are a big part of who comes, and the meals get a kind word.
Out on Longs Peak Road, about seven miles from downtown, Camp Timberline is a camp that school groups and summer campers both know. The zip line is what kids talk about afterward, and fifth grade classes come up for field trips.
A one-year Bible school is the core of what happens out on Pole Hill Road, about three and a half miles from downtown. Ravencrest belongs to Torchbearers International, and the teaching rests on a single idea, that Christ lives in the believer.
Covered wagons instead of cabins. That is the defining detail of Boys' Trail's End, the Cheley Colorado Camps unit for boys 12 to 17, out on Dunraven Glade Road in Glen Haven, about seven and a half miles from downtown Estes.
Covered wagons instead of cabins. That is the detail that sets Girls' Trail's End apart from the other seven units at Cheley Colorado Camps, and it belongs to girls 12 to 17.
The University of Northern Colorado owns this retreat on Old Ranger Drive, about a mile from downtown, and runs it through its housing department in Greeley, roughly an hour's drive away. UNC departments, registered student groups, faculty, staff and students get affiliate rates, and the place is set up around them.
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Cheley Colorado Camps is an overnight camp for ages 9 to 17, owned and run by the same family since 1921. The main program is two traditional four-week sessions, with a shorter introductory session for younger campers and a Family Camp where parents join in. The two Trail's End units serve campers 12 to 17, who sleep in covered wagons.
YMCA of the Rockies is a casual family resort with rooms and cabins, dining, archery, horseback riding and ice skating, plus summer day camp open to guests. High Peak Camp is run by The Salvation Army and offers summer camps, including adventure, day and family camps, along with retreat rentals. Ravencrest Chalet is a Christian Bible school and retreat center with summer retreats and youth weeks.
Several centers are faith-based, so ask about programming before you book a group. The University of Northern Colorado's Old Man Mountain Retreat Center is also listed. Guests coming up from the plains may need a day to adjust, so build an easy first day into any schedule. Summer is the busy season, and winters are long and cold.
Cheley Colorado Camps runs overnight camps for ages 9 to 17. High Peak Camp offers adventure, day and family camps, and YMCA of the Rockies offers a summer day camp that is open to guests. Ravencrest Chalet runs summer camps and retreats.
Cheley lists a Family Camp where parents join in, and High Peak Camp lists family camp too. YMCA of the Rockies is a family resort with rooms and cabins. Dates are not in the listings, so call for current schedules.
High Peak Camp rents space for retreats, YMCA of the Rockies handles conferences and youth retreats, and Ravencrest Chalet and the UNC Old Man Mountain Retreat Center are also listed. Ask each about capacity and season.
Cheley is an overnight camp for boys and girls ages 9 to 17. The Boys' Trail's End and Girls' Trail's End units serve ages 12 to 17, with campers sleeping in covered wagons. Check with the camp for current session dates.
