Summer Camp Volunteers act as assistant instructors for our summer camps and receive training in our unique approach to mentoring youth in nature, which focuses on curiosity, play and asking questions as much or more than a delivery of facts. You can learn more about this approach by exploring Coyote’s Guide to Connecting with Nature, available from our web store.
A week of fun, wonder, and adventure awaits! At Wilderness Wizards Day Camp, the forest is full of magic.
Your child will have an unforgettable week in nature at Wilderness Wizards Day Camp! This imaginative program blends nature connection with playful storytelling, creative exploration, and the joy of discovering magic in the natural world.
Throughout the week, Wilderness Wizards explore the forest through immersive, story-rich play and hands-on connection with the land. They may step into character during wizardly quests, learn the ways of local animals, craft talismans from natural materials, or gather in circle beneath the trees for tales of ancient magic.
The Magic Arts of Wilderness Wizards
✨ Wand and Staff Crafting
Campers will choose a branch that calls to them and learn the lore of different types of wood. Campers can decorate their wands or staffs with feathers, shells, stones, and other forest-found treasures.
✨ Stone Magic
We’ll explore common stones, combining naturalist awareness with imagination. Campers may use these stones in crafting, spell-play, treasure hunts, or as tools for grounding and focusing their “magic.”
✨ Potions, Wild Teas & Plant Scrolls
Campers will create their own illustrated scroll of common edible plants and the playful “magic” each one carries. Throughout the week, they’ll use these ingredients to safely make potions or wild teas, practicing sensory awareness while learning real-world plant knowledge.
✨ Runes and Nature Glyphs
A simple, camp-created rune system introduces symbolic writing. Campers can carve runes into their crafts, draw them in sand or soil while “casting spells,” or use them in quests and scavenger challenges.
Your child will enjoy:
- Creative, imaginative play in the enchanted forest
- Story-based adventures, wizard quests, and collaborative magic-themed games
- Making wands or staffs from different woods and decorating them with natural materials
- Exploring stone magic and learning the lore of common stones
- Mixing magical potions and wild teas using safe, natural ingredients
- Learning wild edible plants and their uses
- Learning to move like woodland creatures and read subtle clues hidden in nature
- Crafting forest-forged tools, talismans, and treasures
- Discovering PNW plants, animals, and ecosystems through hands-on exploration
- Experimenting, inventing, and following their imagination during free outdoor play
- Building confidence, friendships, and a lifelong connection to the magic of the natural world
