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Why Offer Fishing at Camp?

Every camp wants excited campers who love to be at camp!  At a day camp I know, one question that is asked frequently is, “When are we going fishing?”  Fishing isn’t for everyone, but for certain campers it is a great reason to come to camp.

If you have access to taking your campers fishing, you will find that it is a favorite activity for many of them.  Some of them already know how to fish and will bring their own fishing rods and tackle if they know they’ll have an opportunity to fish. 

Some campers may not have had an opportunity to fish before.  If your camp has a few rods, tackle, bait, and other fishing supplies, you can provide them with a unique experience that could end up one of the highlights of their time at summer camp. It might help them to develop a lifelong hobby.

Taking Care of Equipment

Fishing equipment can get a lot of wear and tear over the summer, so be sure you have an adequate storage area and someone on camp staff who will regularly check the equipment and keep it in order.  Since fishing is a favorite for some campers, you’ll want to develop a system for knowing who has what equipment and for making sure it gets returned.  There are likely to be tangled lines and other problems resulting from campers not knowing how to properly use the equipment to fish.  So you’ll need a patient staff member who can demonstrate and teach them.

Fun Camp Fishing Ideas

You might want to have a fishing derby on one day of camp, with prizes for the biggest fish caught and the most fish caught.  Outside of the camp season, having a fishing derby makes a great fundraiser in which campers (or potential campers) and their parents have a fun day of fishing together.  You can charge a certain amount of money to fish and offer prizes at the end of the day.  Perhaps the fundraiser could be for purchasing new fishing equipment to be used in your summer camp program.

Some camps which offer adventure programming plan special off site fishing trips.  These can include camping and hiking to fishing spots or a combination of a canoe/fishing trip.  These can be just for regular campers or could be done for parent/child weekend retreats.

Whatever your approach, you will find that fishing will get the interest of a certain segment of your campers, and they will excitedly look forward to returning to your camp next summer for more fishing!

Click the photos below for information on how to purchase these fishing products that can be used at your camp. Then enjoy the cute camp video at the bottom of the page!







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By thinking creatively, you can take a game or activity that you use at camp and change it to give it a unique twist that relates to your camp theme.

For instance, there is an old game commonly called “Streets and Alleys.”  Players stand in horizontal rows with their arms outstretched so that their fingers touch the fingers of the player next to them.  The rows between them are called “streets.”  When the leader says, “Alleys,” players turn 90 degrees to their right, now touching the fingers of the players who were formerly in rows behind them.  Throughout the game, when the leader calls out “Streets,” players go to the first position, and when she calls out, “Alleys,” players go take the second position.

This is a tag game that children and teens alike enjoy.  The person who is “It” chases a player who runs down the streets or alleys which are being formed according to the leader’s calls.  When “It” tags the person being chased, those two join the rows and two other players are chosen to be “It” and the one chased.

Here is how to take this game and adapt it to fit various summer camp themes.  Just use different words to indicate the changing rows.  If you are having a “Wild West” theme, call “Cowboys,” and “Indians” or “Horses.”  “It” could be called the “Chief,” and the one being chased could be called the “Buckaroo.”

If you are having a “Mexico Day” as part of an “International Week” camp theme, try calling out “Buenos dias,” and “Buenos noches.”  Perhaps instead of tagging, “It” has to get a sombrero on or off the head of the one being chased.

If your camp theme is “Water Fun,” the leader could call out “Slip,” or “Slide.”  You could play it under sprinklers, or the person who is chasing could try to hit the other person with a wet sponge or squirt him with a squirt gun.

If it’s “Crazy Week,” use made up words and have the chaser and the one being chased wear big baggy pants while they are running up and down the lanes.

I’m sure you get the point.  Think about how you could change an ordinary counselor hunt into a Grinch Hunt for a Christmas theme, into a Clue game for a “Mystery Week” theme, for a search for “animals” during “Safari Week,” or into a hunt for a lost native American tribe during “Native American Week.”

These simple changes can turn an ordinary camp game into numerous adventures that campers will never get tired of. A variety of summer camp themes keep camp from seeming like the same old thing to campers who come for several weeks.

The “Bob the Weasel” game featured in the video below could be adapted by passing something related to the camp theme. For instance, if the theme were “Christmas week,” a Santa hat or Christmas ornament could be passed. If it’s “Easter Day” during “Holiday Week,” an Easter egg or a Stretch Rubber Chicken could be passed.