Visit the Camper Registration page for details and registration about youth camp. Or see Family Camp for current or most recent information for family camp.

Here are a few quotes from the many positive notes we get every year, on our Testimonials Page.

The right age is when both parents and children feel ready. Many children are ready for overnight camp at 9 or 10, and some might need another year or two. Please review our Before You Register page carefully to help determine if your child is ready. It’s normal for children to need some encouragement to take the big step of going to a residential camp, and we’re here for you and your camper every step of the way! Campers should generally be entering 5-10th grade in the fall, and 10-15 years old. If your child will be 9 and you’d like them to be a camper, please contact the director to discuss an exception. At 16, your teen can apply to serve as a counselor in training!

We enjoy a wide variety of activities each session! The camper daily schedule includes time for both full and smaller group activities, free time, and service projects. Campers have more responsibility and choice than at many camps, and staff always support them in making friends and developing creativity and leadership. See programs and activities for more information.

We are guided by the Quaker testimonies of simplicity, peace, integrity, community, equality and stewardship and try to put these values into practice throughout camp and encourage them in campers and staff. Quakers teach respect and tolerance of all faiths and peoples, following our belief in that of God (or the Inner Light) that is in everyone. We welcome campers and staff from any religious background, or no religion in particular. We do not: uphold one religion or spiritual path over another, preach or attempt to convert anyone, or adhere to a "creed" or doctrine

Read more about how our Quaker values and traditions are experienced at camp here: Quakers and Mountain Friends Camp and contact the director with any questions.

Yes, we have a limited number of need-based partial “camperships” for campers who otherwise would not be able to afford camp. Many Quaker Meetings are happy to help, so please contact your Meeting or other possible sources first for financial assistance. In addition, parents or family members can volunteer at camp to earn credit towards camper fees--read more about Work Trades. We don’t want anyone to miss out on Mountain Friends Camp due to financial difficulties, so please don’t hesitate to contact us about campership, payment plans or other options.

All of our counselors and kitchen staff are carefully screened through application questions, interviews, references, and criminal background checks. They come from different backgrounds but share an enthusiasm for our program and a commitment to making Mountain Friends Camp fun, safe and rewarding for every camper. Staff range in age from 17-70+, giving campers a unique opportunity to find role models in a multi-generational community. We have a high staff to camper ratio of 1:4. To read more and if you are interested in joining this awesome team, see the staff pages. 

Every day there are times when campers are assigned to small groups, participate with the full group, and times when they can choose their activity. Campers sleep in yurts or tent groups called pods with 5-7 campers and 1-2 counselors, we intentionally balance new and returning campers, and will have a mix of ages. Campers and parents can choose during registration if they prefer a single-gender or gender-neutral/mixed-gender pod, based on what best meets their needs and experiences. We can take request to share a pod with a friend, but may not be able to meet all requests.

During "plork", campers are free to volunteer for a project and choose to work together. Our "small groups" are a mix of genders and ages. Read more about those programs and other activities here. As a small summer camp of up to 30 campers and CITs per session, we like that everyone gets to know everyone at camp each session.

Click for Location information and Driving Directions
Drop off is generally between 2-4pm and pick up is between 10-11:30 am. We can usually help to arrange transportation from the nearest airport or train station in Las Vegas, Santa Fe or Albuquerque, New Mexico. Contact Ana to join the parent carpool email lists to facilitate sharing rides, but transportation is the responsibility of each family.

We have all grown used to a world of constant, near-instant communication and virtual connections. Along with the benefits, we believe there are downsides too. Along with the well-documented dangers of excessive screen time and social media, children have increasingly fewer opportunities to make choices, resolve conflicts, make mistakes, and other necessary learning opportunities to grow into confident and independent adults.  Campers can gain all of these experiences at camp, so our decisions around communication during camp prioritize the overall experience of independence and growth.

The best way to keep in touch is an old fashioned letter! Send mail to (camper name) c/o MFC at Collins Lake Ranch, PO Box 472 Cleveland, NM 87715. Campers love to receive letters and postcards from loved ones. We suggest send mail early on as the mail and pickup from the PO Box takes a few extra days. You are welcome to leave a note at drop-off, and to send a few pre-stamped and addressed envelopes with your camper. Most campers do not receive a care package during camp, and we suggest sticking to envelopes. If you do send a package, please know that due to the proximity of wildlife, food is not allowed and please only send one package per session as a frequent stream of packages can be a distraction and create divisions between “haves and have-nots” at camp. Campers get to unplug and experience a break from electronics during camp including computers, cell phones, smart watches, e-readers, iPods etc while at camp. Contact the director with questions.

We have limited and use of a landline at camp, the director and other key staff are available by cellphone. Campers are not allowed to use the phones or make calls home during camp. We will ALWAYS call you if there is a concern about your child, and you can check in during camp with the director or other staff by phone or email. Due to the remote location and busy 24-7 schedules, staff will probably not be able to speak with you right away but will return your message. We send a general "all is well!" email to parents during the first few days of each session, aside from that please assume no news is good news and try to limit calls and emails just to check in about your specific camper. Our staff is small and everyone, including the director, is busy day and night with camp programs and building community in the precious time we have at camp. Please let the director know well ahead of time if you have any concerns about your camper’s behavior, needs, or potential adjustment to camp.

Campers often share that after a week or two at Mountain Friends Camp, it feels like home and is the best part of their summer, sometimes their entire year! Camp is a great opportunity for practicing independence and other skills. Many if not all of us have experienced homesickness at some point, at camp homesickness is seen as a normal and healthy process for many kids, and even adults. Our counselors are trained to recognize and support homesick campers, and do a great job helping campers stay busy, make friends and join in activities. If homesickness is more severe, preventing a camper from participating or enjoying themselves, staff will contact the parent/guardian to strategize about messaging, but not for a phone call with the camper since talking directly to a loved one tends to worsen homesickness. Within a few days, almost all campers have adjusted and find the experience of overcoming homesickness and succeeding at camp is personally empowering!

Here are some tips as you consider and prepare for camp:

• See the "are you ready for camp" quiz, to talk through some of the potential ups and downs, and especially to help decide if a 9-10 year old is ready this year. We find by 10, most campers are ready!
• Talk openly about the possibility of homesickness, that it's normal to miss home and loved ones, but that you can have fun anyways and get used to a new place and people. This can help campers reduce anxiety and understand their feelings.
• Talk about what camp might be like, look at pictures, answer their questions, we can even schedule a quick chat with the director or other staff! For younger and/or shy campers, consider roll playing helpful skills like asking a counselor for help, or introducing themselves to a new friend.
• Think about what parts of their daily routine at home, especially bedtime, that might be challenging to "transfer" to camp. Brainstorm, and if possible test out, ways for you camper to practice independence in their routines. For example they are used to cuddles and stories from a parent at bedtime, can they bring a favorite stuffed animal or blanket and read themselves a story? Or write down one happy memory to tell you about after camp?
• Practice spending overnights at a friend's or relative's home, 2-3 nights away is especially helpful!
• Do not feel guilty about encouraging a camper to stay at camp for the full session, or promise ahead of time to bring them home if they are homesick or not having fun (as that decreases motivation to try engaging and making friends!). Try encouragement and sharing your confidence that they can overcome homesickness.
• At drop off, try to stay cheerful and positive, and don't linger too long after you have checked in with staff and unloaded your camper's belongings. We have seen this approach is best for a successful start to camp. Our staff will step in to welcome and support every camper, and they will soon be engaged in activities and making new friends! We hope that by the end of their time at Mountain Friends Camp, your camper feels connected, more self-confident, responsible, and has had a lot of fun at camp!

The overall well-being of our campers and staff is our top priority. In making decisions and plans for camp health and safety,  we look to State and Federal guidelines as well as the American Camp Association and the Alliance for Camp Health for information and best practices, and consider examples from other summer camps. During staff training and throughout camp, we carefully assess activities beforehand, and include campers in setting “norms” to avoid risky behaviors or sharing germs. Of course, given the outdoor setting and group living, there are always some risks or accidents and infectious diseases at camp, so we prepare our staff in safety and emergency protocols.Several of our staff have CPR, First Aid, Wilderness First Aid training, our camp medic is certified Wilderness First Responder or higher level medical training. For anything that we can’t handle at camp, Mora has a small health clinic and EMT service a few minutes away, and both Taos and Las Vegas NM have full medical services about 45 minutes drive from camp.

We will always contact parents/guardians as soon as possible if there is a medical situation requiring treatment outside of camp, questions regarding health history or ongoing issues.

A trained (Wilderness First Responder or higher) staff member will store and distribute any medications. Please be aware that MFC can only administer prescription drugs in accordance with direction from licensed medical personnel (not parents or camper). MFC must have either a doctor’s written direction or the original labeled bottle of medicine. You must supply the camp medic with enough medicine for their full time at camp.Be sure to fill out the medical information form completely, and include details about any supplements or over the counter medications as well as prescription drugs. If the parent prefers and gives permission, the camper can keep emergency treatments like an Epipen or inhaler with them at camp. We may not be able to accommodate campers with every medical or behavioral challenge due to our location and limited staff training and resources.

Yummy! Our kitchen staff enjoy cooking wholesome tasty meals using as many local, organic, and made-from-scratch ingredients as possible. Many days campers will be able to volunteer for kitchen helpers. Some favorite meals include breakfast burritos and blended fruit smoothies; spring rolls, sushi, stir fry, spaghetti and sandwiches; pasta, pancakes, potatoes, and picnics! We offer both meat and vegetarian options, and regularly accommodate vegan, gluten free and dairy free meals, but do not maintain an allergen free kitchen or have the capacity to meet all dietary needs and requests. It’s important to explain all dietary requests during or before registration. Sometimes it is helpful for campers with severe allergies or restrictions to send specific food items, but you will need to discuss with staff ahead of time.

We work hard to make Mountain Friends Camp a safe and welcoming space for every camper, and value participation of many youth, staff, parents and families with diverse sexual orientations and gender expressions. We do not tolerate bullying or any type of hate speech, and are open to talking about and dealing with issues of bias when they come up at camp.

We are a gender inclusive camp, and have always given campers and staff options about what names and pronouns we will use during camp. The "gender neutral" sleeping yurt pod is open to transgender and non-binary campers and staff as well as allies, and so are the "girls+" and "boys+" pods.

See our Before You Go page for packing list and other important information. No drugs, alcohol, tobacco or weapons are permitted at camp. Campers, don’t forget to leave valuables and electronics at home or give them to camp staff for safe keeping, and keep in mind that anything you bring to camp may get dirty, damaged, or lost. Pack accordingly and we highly recommend adding labels to everything!

We are happy to put you in touch with recent parents/guardians who can share about their experiences with Mountain Friends Camp-- please contact the director to ask for references.