The West Experience
Timber Lake West is a traditional, co-ed four-week sleep-away summer camp. We power-pack a full summer of fun into an exciting four-week experience for every one of our campers. Located in New York’s Catskill Mountains, Timber Lake West is just over 2 hours northwest of New York City and 3 hours from Philadelphia. Set on a mountaintop, its 380 secluded acres features its own private spring-fed lake and an outstanding array of summer camp facilities.
At Timber Lake West, we foster the values of sharing, integrity, responsibility and respect in a friendly, safe and fun environment. Campers learn to value others by being valued themselves. They leave camp with memories that will last a lifetime. It is what Camp was always meant to be.
At Timber Lake West, our commitment is to provide the highest level of service and excellence in the camping profession. Constantly innovating and moving forward, Timber Lake West’s facilities, program and staff development are second to none.
“THE TIMBER LAKE WEST EDGE”
The Timber Lake West experience is designed to give campers the edge they need to succeed in every aspect of their development into young adults and beyond. We have built a program on a foundation of safe and fun play created to promote the kinds of growth that give every child “the edge” they need to reach their highest potential. What we start at Timber Lake West stays with our campers the rest of their journey to adulthood. And it makes a difference.
CHARACTER
Our unique STARFISH VALUES PROGRAM® teaches campers the importance of strong character, good values and understanding each individual’s important part in the well being of everyone around them. STARFISH is a part of every aspect of camp.
PLAY SKILLS
Through our experienced coaches and teaching philosophy our campers get “the edge” in perfecting skills in key sports and other activities all designed to ensure that they fully enjoy the experience of play. No matter what the level – everyone improves. And we know: the better you are at doing something the more confident you become and the more you like doing it.
SOCIAL SKILLS
The true key to success in life is happiness. And the basis of happiness is in knowing how to build and keep relationships. At Timber Lake West, at the core of what we do is teaching, practicing and perfecting the two core essential skills of relationships: making and keeping friends.
SELF-ESTEEM & CONFIDENCE
We create an emotionally safe, nurturing environment at every level of play and we train our staff and team of coaches on the importance of ensuring that campers go home – each day and at the end of every summer – feeling better about themselves and more self-confident. Self-esteem and confidence is an essential part of navigating the world around us and building strong, emotionally healthy adults.
RESILIENCE
In life you don’t always win, make the critical shot or accomplish what you set out to achieve. We teach campers to win with class, and if they must, lose with grace. We instill in campers the competence of grit, teaching them to learn from their experiences and the importance of getting up and bouncing back from disappointments.
Program Description
Timber Lake West’s unique four-week sleepaway summer camp program offers children a place to make new friends, try new activities and grow as a person. We believe that summer camp has to be safe and it has to be fun. That is what Timber Lake West is all about. We take all the fun, spirit, excitement and tradition of a full season overnight summer camp experience and power pack it into four weeks.
A Typical Day
| TIME | ACTIVITY |
|---|---|
| 7:45am | Reveille (Wake-up) |
| 8:05am | Line-Up |
| 8:10-8:40am | Breakfast |
| 8:40-9:25am | Clean-up/Inspection |
| 9:30-10:25am | Athletics |
| 10:30-11:25am | Electives |
| 11:30-12:25pm | Waterfront |
| 12:45pm | Lunch |
| 1:15-2:00pm | Rest Hour |
| 2:00-2:55pm | Athletics |
| 3:00-3:15pm | Snack |
| 3:15-4:10pm | Electives |
| 4:15-5:10pm | Waterfront |
| 5:10-6:10pm | Shower Hour |
| 6:10pm | Line-Up |
| 6:20pm | Dinner |
| 7:00-8pm | Free Play/ Lower Camp Canteen |
| 8-9pm | Evening Activity |
| 9pm - Curfew | Upper Camp Canteen |
Room
Campers live in modern, paneled cabins called bunks. Each bunk is equipped with full bathrooms and storage space for each camper’s belongings. Three to four counselors and eight to ten campers make up each bunk. Campers make their beds, care for their own belongings and practice good personal hygiene.
Our professional housekeeping staff maintains and sanitizes the bathrooms daily. A complete packing list and Parents’ Manual make the process of preparing for camp as easy and convenient as possible.
Food
Breakfast:
At breakfast, campers may also choose to have oatmeal, hard-boiled eggs, toast, a large selection of cold cereals, juices, milk and yogurt.
Lunch and Dinner:
Lunch and dinner always have a very large salad bar, featuring everything from lettuce and fresh cut local vegetables, grilled chicken, tuna, chicken and egg salad, hummus, dried fruit. Campers are also welcome to make their own sandwiches at every meal at our full fresh cut deli bar. There is always hot soup, as well as pasta with or without sauce at every lunch and dinner.
Snacks:
Fresh fruit is available all day at various spots on campus, and every day at 3:10 is Snack Time at camp, during which we serve a cold treat including ice cream and ice pops.
Special Dietary Needs:
At Timber Lake West, we cater to most dietary restrictions and allergies. Our facility is staffed with a Special Needs Chef, whose job entails creating and cooking meals for campers who have diabetes, celiac (gluten free) and other assorted food allergies. We also cater to campers who are kosher and vegetarian.
Health
Timber Lake West’s commitment to the health and safety of every child is unsurpassed. At West, a child’s emotional safety is as important as his or her physical safety. Timber Lake West is accredited by the American Camp Association (ACA), and every member of the staff undergoes an extensive safety training program.
Our modern health center is staffed 24 hours a day by 4 registered nurses as well as a Medical Doctor on our grounds. Camp is located 20 minutes from the Catskill Regional Medical Center.
Description
Timber Lake West’s unique four-week sleepaway summer camp program offers children a place to make new friends, try new activities and grow as a person. We believe that summer camp has to be safe and it has to be fun. That is what Timber Lake West is all about. We take all the fun, spirit, excitement and tradition of a full season overnight summer camp experience and power pack it into four weeks.
Athletics
Our summer camp athletic program includes clinics, instruction, inter-camp tournaments, and plenty of games played just for fun. We create the right balance between competition and good sportsmanship, allowing every camper to be comfortable joining in, while also promoting teamwork and spirit. At Timber Lake West, winning is great but our goal is that every camper walks off the field or court with more friends and feeling better about him or herself....
Basketball, Baseball, Softball, Soccer
Lacrosse, Golf, Tennis, Volleyball,
Ga-Ga, Inter-Camp Games, Leagues, Tournaments
Waterfront
Two periods each day are devoted to swimming and water sports. Our emphasis is on safety, instruction and fun. Our experienced Red Cross certified waterfront staff provides special attention to improving swim skills with the main emphasis, of course, on safety. Timber Lake West’s two heated pools set us apart from others. Our Olympic size pool makes free swim a favorite activity while our completely private spring-fed lake, right in the heart of camp, provides the thrill of water-skiing and an extensive boating program, featuring instruction in canoeing, kayaking, row boating, surf bikes, paddle bikes, and banana boating. Campers also enjoy bouncing on our inflatable obstacle course complete with a water trampoline and numerous inflatable slides!
Electives
Each day campers select two activities from a wide variety of athletic, adventure oriented, and performing or creative arts electives. Combined with our scheduled sports and waterfront activities, the Elective periods allow campers to customize their summer program. With over thirty activities to choose from, our extensive electives feature experienced teachers and coaches to ensure that campers get the highest quality of instruction in the areas of their greatest interest.
Adventure
Adventure at Timber Lake West comes alive when our campers challenge themselves to try activities they have never done before. Whether it’s hiking in the mountains, scaling our 35 foot climbing wall, mountain biking through the trails in the woods or soaring down our zip line, camp is meant to be an adventure.
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All deposits are fully refundable through December 31st (or 30 days after enrollment, whichever is later), less a $450 Administrative
Fee. The $450 Administrative Fee is also fully refundable through Sept 30 (or within 30 days of enrollment, whichever is later).
All payments above deposit are fully refundable prior to Apr 1st.
Company
Timber Lake West is a traditional, co-ed four-week sleep-away summer camp. We power-pack a full summer of fun into an exciting four-week experience for every one of our campers. Located in New York’s Catskill Mountains, Timber Lake West is just over 2 hours northwest of New York City and 3 hours from Philadelphia. Set on a mountaintop, its 420 secluded acres features its own private spring-fed lake and an outstanding array of summer camp facilities.
Mission & Philosophy
At Timber Lake West, we foster the values of sharing, integrity, responsibility and respect in a friendly, safe and fun environment. Campers learn to value others by being valued themselves. They leave camp with memories that will last a lifetime. It is what Camp was always meant to be.
At Timber Lake West, our commitment is to provide the highest level of service and excellence in the camping profession. Constantly innovating and moving forward, Timber Lake West’s facilities, program and staff development are second to none.
Our camps’ mission is to teach children the skills of making and keeping friends, while building their self-esteem, self-confidence and resilience.
Meet Our Director
Justin & Cassie Mayer, our full-time Owners/Directors, have an extensive background in summer camping.
Having been campers, counselors, division leaders and ultimately head counselors within the Timber Lake Family of Camps, (Justin at Timber Lake/Tyler Hill and Cassie at Timber Lake West) Justin and Cassie have experienced the full range of what camp has to offer. Their daughters, Jolie and Sydney, spend their summers at West, so they really understand how it feels to be camp parents! Most importantly, Justin and Cassie consider all of their Timber Lake West campers and counselors to be their second family. During the winter months, they stay in contact with parents, campers and returning staff while also spending a great deal of time interviewing and hiring new staff members for the following summer.
Justin adds a sense of fun to everything he does at camp and is committed to providing West campers with the best possible summer experience. He spends his days and nights at camp working with campers and their families, guaranteeing that their needs and expectations are being met.
Cassie spends her summers working with prospective and current families, as well as West’s “camp mom,” a role that allows her to take care of our campers while also maintaining close ties with their parents. She does everything from clip campers’ fingernails to tuck campers in at night and her passion for West is evident from the minute that you meet her. Her Masters Degree in School Psychology provides her the base to give her all to each and every one of our campers.
Our Staff
Unique to Timber Lake West, and an integral piece to the puzzle, is the role of our Leadership Staff at camp. Each group has a Head Counselor and a Friendship Coach who act as the liaisons between parents and their children throughout the course of the session. Mature Division Leaders are the direct supervisors of the campers and counselors in their group and assist with all activities, bunk issues, and staff performance/evaluation. The role of the Coach is actually very similar to that of a parent. The Coach will provide attention and care to each camper by paying close consideration to the relationships and interactions they have with other campers and staff, monitoring that all special needs are being met, and serving as a compassionate and empathetic adult figure.
The key to your child’s great summer camp experience has everything to do with the quality of the staff. At Timber Lake West, we adhere to a simple formula: we want the BEST staff, at the BEST pay, trained to do the BEST JOB. With a 1:2 staff to camper ratio, we work to ensure the best possible care, instruction and supervision for our campers.
Facility and Location
Campers live in modern, paneled cabins called bunks. Each bunk is equipped with full bathrooms and storage space for each camper’s belongings. Three to four counselors and eight to ten campers make up each bunk. Campers make their beds, care for their own belongings and practice good personal hygiene. Our professional housekeeping staff maintains and sanitizes the bathrooms daily. A complete packing list and Parents’ Manual make the process of preparing for camp as easy and convenient as possible.
Other Facilities:
Four regulation lighted Basketball Courts
Regulation Hockey Rink
Regulation Baseball Field
Two regulation lighted Softball Fields
Go-Kart Track
Lighted Soccer Field
Six Tennis Courts
Golf Driving Range & Putting Green
Outdoor Amphitheatre
Regulation Lacrosse Field
Beach Volleyball Court
Two Volleyball Courts
Two heated swimming pools
Two Ga-Ga Courts
Social Hall
Dining Room
Planet West Canteen
Art Barn
Skate Park
Indoor Basketball Court
Movie Theatre
Dance studio
Rock-climbing Wall/Ropes Course
Gymnastics Center
Fitness Center
History
Started in 1988, Timber Lake West, was the FIRST summer camp to focus solely on shorter session camping. Timber Lake West provides the complete experience of a full season summer camp, power packed into 4 weeks. Each session is independent and has a beginning, middle, and end.
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