General registration opens in January or February of the year camps occur. Registration for 2024 summer camps opened in February 2024.

All our camps have a waitlist, and additional spots can open based on cancellations. Please call or email our office to be on a waitlist.

For cancellations more than 30 days out we provide a full refund minus a $25 cancellation fee. Cancellations 29-15 days out is a 50% refund less a $50 fee. If cancellations are made less than 14 days out, there is no refund.

Please notify us as soon as possible if you can not make it to camp, or if you anticipate needing to cancel. Our camps have long waitlists and we appreciate being able to fill the spot.

Our overnight camps are primarily held at our Peterson Bay Field Station across Kachemak Bay. Campers take a 30-minute water taxi from the Homer Harbor, accompanied by our staff.

There are some exceptions:

• The Peatland Expedition usually takes place on the Homer side of the bay.

• Kachemak Camp is a hybrid camp with components on the Homer side of the bay, and across at the Field Station.

• Teen EcoAdventure Camp and Marine Science Expedition are held at multiple locations across Kachemak Bay, and may include the Field Station, Seldovia, and campsites at hiking trailheads. Drop off and pick up for these camps is usually at the CACS office in Homer, and transportation during the program is provided by staff.

Most activities at the Field Station take place outside or in covered outdoor spaces.

The Field Station has electricity in the main building and the yurts. There are no lights in the yurts, but each yurt has a skylight and windows that allow for plenty of natural light. There are also electric heaters and one outlet in each yurt, and extra blankets and space heaters are available if needed.

The main building is equipped with a full kitchen primarily used by staff and those preparing meals.

Single-occupancy bathrooms (outhouses and composting toilet facilities) are located nearby and are also options for private changing space. We do NOT have showers but the Field Station DOES have potable, running sink water.

Upon registering for camp, you will receive a confirmation email with initial details. You should receive a welcome email from the camp coordinator about two weeks before camp with information including: drop off and pick up time, a packing list, anticipated activities, and a waiver to sign.

You will receive a phone call from us if we need to discuss particular health needs or accommodations or if your camper is registered for a backcountry camp (such as Teen EcoAdventure, Marine Science Expedition, or Peatlands Expedition). We will first contact the primary phone and email provided, so please provide a working email and phone number. If you have questions in advance or have not heard from us, please contact our main office.

The camp coordinator will email you about 2 weeks before camp with a camp-specific packing list. Here is an example of a very basic two-day list for a youth camp at the Field Station.

Students will need clothing for exploring tide pools, hiking, hanging out, sleeping, and possibly swimming and kayaking.

For our backcountry and adventure camps, students will need backpacking gear that includes but is not limited to: a large internal or external frame backpacking pack, sleeping bag, lightweight sleeping pad, cup/bowl/spoon, and other. If you need to borrow gear, please let us know what you need once you receive your camp welcome email–we have most gear available to loan.

Drugs, alcohol, weapons, large amounts of money, or valuable items are not allowed at camp. Electronics, including phones, are also not generally allowed for youth programs (but are allowed for Family Camps). We recommend disposable or digital cameras and a shared album of photos taken by staff will be shared after camp.

Students will stay in yurts or tents in small groups. We have 5 yurts with 6 bunk beds in each, on average we assign 3 campers to a yurt. These spaces are for rest, not hanging out.

Staff sleep in separate facilities, and easily reached either in a nearby yurt or the main building.

Camp mattresses are provided, but participants should bring their own pillows, sheets, and blankets/sleeping bags. Yurts are minimally insulated, but are equipped with an electric heater and windows. Quiet hours are set depending on a group’s age.

On average we put three campers in a yurt. This number allows campers to look out for each other (i.e. having a bathroom buddy at night) without the space being crowded. We can often keep siblings, relatives, or friends together in a yurt, particularly if all are agreeable. Please let us know any preferences in advance.

Additional assignments can be made on the grounds of pairing a new and/or nervous camper with older returner campers. For Family Camps, each family is assigned to their own yurt.

Families may select a boys, all-gender, or girls yurt/tent option upon registration (yurts at the Field Station, tents on backpacking trips for older students).

The all-gender housing option is a more gender inclusive option participants and families may select. Facilities, experience, and expectations are the same across all sleeping options.

Please select multiple options for housing assignment if your camper would be comfortable or indifferent to being in more than one option (i.e. either the boys or all-gender yurt). It’s helpful for us to know when making housing assignments.

Weather across Kachemak Bay on the Kenai Peninsula is often rainier than Homer–it's a rainforest over there! Summers in the area are often between 40 degrees Fahrenheit and the high 60s. There are regular breezes along the coast.

Most of camp activities happen outside and will happen rain or shine (like exploring the tide pools or hiking). Our outdoor pavilion provides protection from the rain and has space heaters. We rarely go inside the Field Station’s main building, but can use that space depending on weather severity. Additionally, some activities may be adapted to take place under the pavilion, rescheduled, or canceled. Packing warm clothes and rain gear is essential–expect to be out in the weather!

CACS provides all meals and snacks during camp. We do our best to accommodate dietary restrictions and picky eaters. Students share youth-friendly, healthy meals that vary each program and utilize locally sourced ingredients when possible. Campers may bring a single zip lock bag of personal snacks. Please avoid candy.

Staff expect and model respect and wellbeing as core camp values. Camp begins with a discussion and community agreement about safety and behavior during activities, in common spaces, and in sleep spaces.

Behavioral challenges, home sickness, discomfort, and injury or illness are addressed in a timely manner by staff trained in positive youth behavior management and first aid. If necessary, staff will contact families by phone. A staff member is always nearby–usually in the main building next to the yurts–and available to support campers.

Respect is a guiding value of Coastal Studies; for each other's time and the schedule, other’s needs and wellbeing, the natural and built environment, and one’s self. Students discuss these values at the start of camp and create a community agreement with additional goals. We use a three-tier system for addressing behavioral challenges, see our Behavior Policy here. Minor incidents will be addressed timely with the opportunity for campers to show improved behavior. If participants continue to be disrespectful, a check-in/out meeting will be implemented at the start and end of each program to set agreed expectations with participants, staff, and families. Bullying, harassment, hazing, or any actions that harm oneself or another will be taken seriously and addressed immediately; these more serious incidents will send students home early.

Students may have the opportunity to kayak at camp if weather, staffing, ability, and behavior permit. Kayaking to the nearby oyster farm for an interactive tour on their dock is a camp favorite!

Family Camp participants may add on kayaking as an activity for an additional fee. Contact us to learn about options.

Swimming in the Peterson Bay lagoon may happen during the height of summer if the weather and temperatures permit. Swimming is not always permitted for safety reasons, but campers may pack a bathing suit and towel on the chance it does.

Please do not send campers with personal fishing rods. There is not enough rods or space for everyone to fish at the Field Station, and fishing permits add undue complexity. Though campers might have the chance to dissect salmon for dinner!

Some COVID-19 mitigation protocols will be in place for camp. These mitigation protocols will be updated in spring 2024 to reflect the most recent science and recommendations for overnight camps. Please contact katieg@akcoastalstudies.org or 907-235-6667 with questions about the protocols.

For general questions about registration, billing, or offerings call our main office 907-235-6667 or info@akcoastalstudies.org

Peterson Bay Field Station Camps Coordinator (Kachemak Camp, Between the Tides, Fins & Scales Camp, Marine Mammal Camp, and Family Camp):

Alexa Helm | alexahcacs@gmail.com

Backcountry Camps (Peatlands Expedition, Teen Camp, Wilderness Weekend, Marine Science Expedition):

Grady Walsh | gradycacs@gmail.com

Accessibility and accommodations:

Joscie Norris | josciecacs@gmail.com

Scholarships:

Katie Gavenus | katieg@akcoastalstudies.org

Homer Wilderness Leaders (HoWL) Camps:

Molly Mitchell | howl@howlalaska.org