Activities

ARCHERY

  • Bows and Arrows never get old! Our range and expert counselors offer opportunities for all ages to learn and master the sport. We provide both recurve and compound bows in appropriate sizes for every camper. Come out and develop skills in precision and patience shooting from 5, 10, 15, 20, or even 25 yards at the Range.

  • No age requirements, will need to determine arm strength to pull back on the bows.

ARTS & CRAFTS

  • It is not just popsicle sticks and glue anymore! Campers learn to transform the ordinary into the extraordinary in arts & crafts. Whether they’re making bead necklaces or painting a set for the camp production, arts & crafts unlocks their creativity. Learning about color, texture, and design helps them make a good idea into a great project.

  • Kohahna-specific activity in the summer. Also available at family and weekend programming. Leelanau campers see Real Cool Activities (RCA) as a similar activity in the summer.

BLACKSMITHING

  • Heating iron to over 800 degrees and smacking it with a hammer! This is the real thing. Learn the ancient craft while making hooks, tools, and artistic designs out of steel.

  • For ages ten and up for summer camp. Parents may accompany younger children at the discretion of the counselor/staff during the family and weekend programming when offered.

CABIN DAY

  • Cabin Day is a highlight for everyone! It’s that special Wednesday afternoon when a cabin can enjoy the fun and companionship found in shared activities. Hiking the dunes, tubing the Crystal River, playing games at Bar Lake, working together on the ropes course, biking to Glen Arbor… whatever the cabin chooses to do, it’s a guarantee that there will be smiles and stories brought back to camp.

  • Cabin Day will alternate each week for Leelanau & Kohahna, for which camp is permitted off-camp versus on-camp.

CAMP CRAFTS/BORDER CAMP

  • Learning the hard skills to go camping is essential to summer camp. Building fires, tying knots, setting up a tent, and bringing water to a boil is just a few of the basics taught in Border Camp/ Camp Crafts to prepare the youth better for the camping trips to come!

  • All are welcome.

CANOEING

  • The primary goal of the Canoe program is to teach whitewater (river) skills. The program is formed around four skill levels. Starting on Lake Michigan, learning the basic strokes, basic concepts, safe launching in waves, and safety on open water, the campers progress to increasingly demanding rivers. Here they develop an understanding and skill in dealing with river currents. The campers learn to read the water and develop the necessary paddling skills to master safe river travel. They will learn canoe/camping skills, knots, carries, and advanced maneuvers. All skills are developed in tandem and solo.

  • No age requirements, but campers must pass the swim test at the beginning of the session with a level 2 or higher to participate.

CERAMICS

  • All it takes is imagination to transform a lump of clay into a beautiful work of art, and ceramics offer the opportunity for campers to work with their hands. They learn to make coil pots, pinch pots, and basic shapes. The potter’s wheel awaits them as they hone their skills with clay and kiln.

  • Primarily a Kohahna-specific activity in the summer.

DANCE

  • Does your camper want to learn ballet, jazz, tap, or maybe even a little hip-hop? No matter their experience on the dance floor, all are welcome! Classes include instruction from beginner levels to advanced. Each week various dance pieces are learned and practiced to be performed in An Evening of Art at the end of each session. Those with experience also have the opportunity to design, choreograph, and perform their dance. It is a beautiful opportunity to be on stage with their friends.

  • Primarily a Kohahna-specific activity in the summer.

DRAMA

  • Camp is a wonderful place to let the inner actor or actress shine! Campers practice improvisation, expression, and speech, reading from both classic and contemporary material. They also have the opportunity to create their own pieces to perform in front of camp audiences from our newly-remodeled stage area. The second session of camp offers the chance to participate in a more significant production which may include dramatic, comedic, and/or musical numbers. Our costume room helps actors get into character, and campers from Arts & Crafts and RCA pitch in to design and create sets.

  • All are welcome.

HIGH ROPES COURSE

  • “Will you watch me transfer?” echoes throughout our Pine Forest when we open up our High Ropes Course. Develop confidence, teamwork, and push yourself out of your comfort zone on all 10 of our High Ropes Course Elements. At 22 feet in the air you can soar in trees from element to element with our trained and certified instructors managing the risk along the way.

  • Participants in this activity must be rising 6th graders or older.

HORSEBACK RIDING

  • The riding program is centered on safety, skill on horseback and on understanding the horse. The program develops through four skill levels. As a rider, the camper learns control maneuvers such as circles, half-circle and halts, as well as moving the horse forward. Riders will strengthen their balance and agility in the saddle at gates appropriate for their skill level. As confidence and ability develop, trail riding is added to the adventures of riding. The campers learn skills “from the ground” such as feeding, cleaning, saddling, bridling and leading. Each camper is required to clean up and care for all aspects of the barn and the horses.

  • No age restrictions for summer camp.

    During our family programming, we will ask that parents accompany their children under the age of 6.

KAYAKING

  • Leelanau & Kohahna’s 2500 feet of Lake Michigan beachfront are the perfect setting for sea kayaking. The beautiful scenery of the Sleeping Bear Dunes, high-quality touring kayaks and paddles, and the waves of Lake Michigan make kayaking at camp a memorable experience. Camp expert instructors teach proper safety techniques as well as advanced moves like the Eskimo roll and how to surf the waves forwards, sideways, and backwards!

  • Campers have to participate in a swim test at the beginning of their session to participate in this activity, and pass their level two or higher.

LAND SPORTS

  • Land Sports covers most major sporting activities: basketball, baseball, football, soccer, volleyball, and roller hockey. This activity works to foster a great work ethic and discipline in the campers as well as teaching them how to be gracious competitors. Our Land Sports counselors are often current college athletes with extensive training and experience in many of the sports we teach. Usually during the summer, we will have a couple of specialized clinics with professional college coaches or athletes who share their knowledge and experience with our campers. In the past we have had baseball, basketball, football, and volleyball clinics that have been very beneficial.

  • All are welcome.

MOUNTAIN BIKING

  • Learn balance, build confidence, and hit the beautiful trails on a Mountain Bike!

  • Must clear 5 feet to fit the Mountain Bikes available.

NATURE

  • Pyramid Point offers a natural classroom for the nature activity. The location offers four eco-systems to explore and learn in. The mature hardwood forests, the meadows, the sand dunes, and the wetlands are at our doorstep where tree, plant and fauna species are identified, bird and animal habitat are studied, and the beauty of it all thoroughly enjoyed. The nature counselors work to create exciting, project-oriented lesson plans that keep the campers engaged and enthusiastic.

  • All are welcome.

REAL COOL ACTIVITIES (RCA)

  • It’s all in the name: RCA=Really Cool Activities. RCA features a wide range of creative activities that have included: necklace making, painting murals, building model rockets, making candles, Leelanau’s very own version of Stomp, and more. RCA is a little bit different every summer, but it always offers an opportunity for creativity, artistic style, and craftsmanship.

  • This is a Leelanau-specific activity for all ages and abilities.

ROCK CLIMBING

  • Get on belay and get up high on our state of the art Rock Climbing Tower. With 4 sides and endless routes to the top you can spend day after day with a new challenge in front of you. Made of Fiberglass Reinforced Concrete the Rock Wall feels like, and climbs like, a pillar of basalt has been dropped from the sky right into our very own Pine Forest. Climbing class also teaches the necessary knots and belaying skills to take home for future high adventures.

  • All ages welcome as long as we have a harness that fits you.

SAILING

  • Nothing compares to the feeling of gliding along Lake Michigan at 8 knots and leaning back to do a head dip. With five Lasers and two RS Quests, Leelanau & Kohahna’s sailing fleet has a boat to match every skill level. Our top-notch boats combine with camp’s perfect location on the edge of a point creating ideal sailing conditions. And that means sailing at Leelanau & Kohahna is FAST. Variable wind and wave levels promise every sailor, no matter how experienced, an exciting and challenging ride on beautiful Lake Michigan.

  • Campers have to participate in a swim test at the beginning of their session to participate in this activity. They must pass level 3.

SILVERSMITHING

  • Rings, earrings, necklaces – oh my! In silver-smithing campers are introduced to different forms of silver and endless design ideas including stamping, engraving, and soldering. With the help of an expert instructor they learn about various tools and techniques to free their creative spirit, and craft a beautiful piece of jewelry to keep for themselves or to take home to Mom!

  • Campers must be 10 years of age to participate in this activity during the summer.

    Parents may accompany children under the age of 10 during Family Camp at the staff's discretion.

RIFLERY

  • Ready on the range? Firearm safety is paramount and learning the Big Three Rules of firearms at Camp is the best place. Also, learning to quiet oneself, focus, aim, and express precision and consistency is something worth taking home. We use .22 caliber long rifles for the summer program.

    For adult programs we may occasionally offer something stronger.

  • Must be 10 years old or older to participate at summer Camp.

    For family programs when accompanied by an adult as young as six can work.

SWIMMING

  • Swimming is a fundamental skill at Leelanau and Kohahna since each waterfront activity requires a certain proficiency level. All campers are evaluated in their swimming ability the first day of each session. Each camper is then assigned a swimming ability level that will enable them to participate in waterfront activities. Campers can sign up for swimming as an activity to enhance and improve upon their swimming ability. Standard Red Cross swimming levels are taught by our swimming staff and are evaluated by a certified Red Cross water safety instructor. Parents will often request that their children be signed up for swimming to improve their skill and confidence in the water. We also have some campers and counselors who swim competitively in school, and work together at setting up training times during the day.

  • Campers have to participate in a swim test at the beginning of their session to participate in this activity. If they cannot pass the swim safe test, we will place them in swimming to enhance their skill proficiency.

TENNIS

  • Our tennis program features four well-maintained outdoor courts, where campers receive high level instruction from counselors who know how to play the game. Throughout the summer, campers are taught proper form and technique and have numerous opportunities to play and practice. At the end of the summer there is opportunity for a competitive co-ed tennis tournament that invites some of the top tennis players from both Leelanau and Kohahna to participate.

  • All are welcome, and classes will be offered by skill-level whenever possible.

TRIPS

  • Our trips program is the foundation of camp. There is no better place to learn and grow than on the trail. A schedule packed with thirty trips in seven weeks allows each camper the opportunity to take a backcountry journey. Leelanau & Kohahna’s trips program is focused on wilderness camping in destinations that are minimally populated and well-protected from the outside world. Carefully selected expert instructors facilitate a safe and valuable experience that is fun and educational. Learning to rely on one another, handling issues as a group, overcoming self-imposed limitations, and applying Christian Science to meet challenges are all lessons that are thoroughly covered on the trail.

    Additionally, each camp boasts famous competitive camping trips—the Flag Trip for Leelanau and the Challenge for Kohahna—that are some of the most fun and intense experiences anywhere. Anyone who has participated in these trips can tell of the lifelong memories and the new understanding of one’s identity as God’s child that are always part of these trips.

  • Trips will be curated based on skill level and ability to ensure that campers are able to participate in a trip that is suited to them.

WATERSKIING

  • With its crystal clear water and its warm summer temperatures, Glen Lake is the ideal location to run a waterskiing program. Waterskiing has long been one of the most popular activities at camp and it’s no wonder with two great ski boats, excellent ski equipment, and a gorgeous lake to ski on. Also included in our waterskiing program are opportunities to kneeboard, use trick skis, and wakeboard.

  • Campers have to participate in a swim test at the beginning of their session to participate in this activity. Must pass level 3.

ZIPLINE

  • Usually offered at Summer Camp as an afternoon activity, this is a great way to overcome fears and feel completely free!

  • All are welcome as long as we have the correct size harness for the individual participants.