Spring 2025
School of Environmental Education
Starting April 17, 2025
Description: Schools from across the Southeast send groups of campers to GRP for 2, 3, or 4-night programs, where campers experience a taste of classic GRP life. Campers go on Mentor Hikes both in the morning and the afternoon. Staff work with a close-knit team of experienced outdoor educators to do all parts of the program, from mealtime procedures and skits to rose bud thorn and evening programs. Mentors also lead hikes.
Openings: Mentors aka Outdoor Education Instructors, Support Staff, Kitchen Staff. Climbing experience a plus! For more info, email Programs Director, Lauren.
Summer 2025
Staff Training
Full Staff Training
June 1 - June 12
Expeditions Staff Training
TBD
Mentor Training
Week of May 25th
Wilderness First Aid
Week of May 25th
Lifeguard Certification
Week of May 25th
Description: All new staff are required to attend our Staff Training before camp. We learn GRP policies and procedures, how to work with children, and we grow together as a community. We also do a full practice CampOut, where we share skills and learn so much about trails, emergency scenarios, and each other.
For 2025, we are offering a Wilderness First Aid Course (2 yr cert) and Lifeguard Certification (2 yr cert) the week prior to staff training. Because of the nature of our jobs, we are asking Mentors to obtain this certification as a minimum requirement. We also hold an epinephrine administration class (4 yr cert) for all staff during training.
Rotating Mentors / Counselors: If you are a return staff member who won't be here the whole summer, we still recommend attending as much of Staff Training as possible. Lauren will reach out prior to the season with the weeks’ schedule and recommended sessions.
2025 Base Camp SEssion Dates
Session 1- Rookie Camp Sun, June 8 – Thu, June 12
Session 2 Sun, June 15 – Fri, June 20
Session 3 Sun, June 22 – Thu, July 3
Session 4 Sun, July 6 – Thu, July 24
Session 5 Sun, July 27 – Thu, August 7
Sessions 3, 4, & 5 all have a 2 night/3 day campout and Group Learning Project (GLP) days.
All camper sessions begin for staff at 4:00 PM on a Saturday and end by 5:00 PM on a Thursday, except for our 2nd and 5th sessions.
At the end of Session 5, we will have an all-camp cleanup followed by a staff celebration and the completion of some time-honored, end-of-season GRP traditions. All seasonal staff should plan to remain onsite until the morning of the following day, August 8th, unless special accommodations are made ahead of time.
Expeditions
Base Camp Expeditions
We have 2 week-long Base Camp Expeditions (BCE) throughout the summer. We are hiring 2-3 leaders to lead these trips with up to 8 participants in grades 6th-10th for the summer. BCE’s focus on diving deep into a particular adventure like Mountain Biking and Rock Climbing. While exploring this outdoor activity, Expeditioners and their leaders campout on the GRP property living together in a small community and also learning Leave No Trace principals, outdoor cooking, and mindful living skills. Please check out our website for more details.
2025 Base Camp Expedition Dates
Both Climbing & Mountain Biking BCEs will run Sun, June 15 – Fri, June 20
High School Expeditions
We offer Expedition Programs for our high school campers throughout the summer. Leaders work in teams of 2-3 with 8-12 participants.
Blue Ridge Expeditions are typically the “next step” for our former Base Camp campers. These trips are shorter ranging from 12-16 days and the leaders will lead 2 to 3 of these trips each summer. Like all GRP experiences, these leaders are role models and vital to the integrity and safety of our trips.
The culminating GRP experience is our Leadership in Training Program. We offer two different programs throughout the summer running simultaneously with our base camp sessions. These Expeditioners are campers however they are making the transition to staff and this experience helps facilitate that growth. The 2-3 leaders for these trips will balance providing feedback for their Expeditioners, creating programming to meet their needs (service projects, backpacking trips), and creating a safe place for them to push themselves.