| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| The Experience | What makes our summer camps |
| The WEA Advantage | What sets us apart |
| Programs | Our summer camp program categories & custom options |
| Food & Safety | Our food & how we keep kids safe |
| Financial Assistance | Ever kid deserves a camp Victoria BC experience! |
| Getting Here | How to get to Vancouver Island & Camp Barnard |
| What to bring | A general list of basic outdoor items |
| Gear Rentals | Available for our expedition programs |
Our goal is to create life-altering learning experiences for every young person involved with our camp Victoria programs. Our company uses the natural world to facilitate the learning of both outdoor skills (how to tie knots, set up tents, etc.) and, more importantly, personal skills (independence, responsibility, leadership, problem solving and planning, etc.). Choosing to participate in one of our summer camps will be a life altering decision.
We currently offer week long day programs, 6 and 13-day overnight summer camps through out the summer, and three summer expedition camp programs for young people of various ages and genders - hiking, canoeing and sea kayaking. Each expedition camp program includes theme specific activities and a multiday trip of varying length.
Our summer camps Victoria are educational in nature, they are not service based. We believe that our participants must be involved in as many aspects of program operations as possible in order to maximize their learning experience. For example, instead of our staff doing all of the food prep, route planning, cooking, etc. for our expedition camp programs, our participants are actively engaged in the process step-by-step. Every participant is given a day where they become mock staff members and are responsible for leading the group. The goal is to develop participant confidence and impart the ability to go camping, kayaking, canoeing or hiking on their own as they grow older.
What better way to learn outdoor skills than to actually do them within our summer camps, safely overseen by our expert staff. So, if you are searching for the best “summer camps near me” in Victoria, look no further!
We believe that youth programming should be safe, fun and staffed by the best people in the industry.
Our week long summer day camps allow participants to learn and/or refine specific outdoor skills such as canoeing, kayaking, hiking, archery, navigation, geocaching, fire building, camp cooking and swimming. Participants also join in running games, crafting and more - all under the guidance of our highly qualified staff.
Specific activities will vary from week to week depending on the weather and venue / facility availability. Our optional Wednesday night overnight is great for youth trying a night away from home - or for parents wanting a little alone time during the week!
On one of our 6-day or 13-day long summer overnight camp programs, your child will have a great time, make new friends and learn valuable outdoor and life skills! While getting to do all the same activities as our day camp participants, overnight campers get to experience much, much more. They will have the opportunity to discover themselves while staying away from home for an extended period of time. Participants stay in cabins and go on an either an overnight or 5-day hiking trip (depending on the length of the program). Additionally, participants learn important cooking skills while helping cook meals in small groups. Oddly enough, cooking is one of their favourite activities and is only available on overnight programs.
Our journey expedition programs consist of 3 segments:
Participants do all of the preparation for the trip under the guidance of our staff. This includes planning the trip route, determining what trip specific equipment and safety gear is necessary and figuring out an acceptable meal plan. This includes learning about food allergies, packing food, etc. Additionally, WEA summer camp program participants learn trip specific skills such as how to paddle (if on a canoe or kayak trip), water safety, tent & camp set-up, proper packing, etc. The preparation segment of our outdoor summer camps Victoria makes up the first 1-4 days of a program.
Every one of the summer camp journey programs include an extended backcountry trip in the form of a kayak, canoe or multi-day hiking expedition. One of the main goals of the summer camp joruney program is to give participants the skills necessary to run their own succesful expedition at some point in the future. Western Educational Adventure’s staff initially take the active role in day to day operations, but as the trip progresses and the participant and group skill levels increas, staff involvement decreases.
The final program segment, cleaning-up and debriefing, is when participants truly learn what it means to finish something. Participants are responsible for cleaning, packing and storing the gear, as well as dealing with the remaining food, trip waste, etc. Finally, and most importantly, participants are led through a debrief and reflect on their experience both individually and as part of the group.
We believe that a good experience starts with good nutrition. Proper diet and eating habits are lacking in today’s society - a result of readily available fast foods, processed foods and a lack of nutritional education. We strive to provide quality, simple, wholesome meals with limited processed ingredients – in addition to the occasional smores and limited other tasty treats. This is why we include our participants in all meal planning, purchasing and cooking on our expedition programs.
We are also very experienced in dealing with dietary restrictions and serious food allergies. Great care is taken to avoid serious participant food allergens whenever possible. Where this is not possible, we take great care to avoid cross contamination of ingredients.
"Landon guided an overnight trip for our family on the Juan de Fuca trail. Healthy eating is important to us. Landon helped our kids build an outdoor oven and they were soon baking an amazing dinner. It’s an incredible feeling knowing that you can look after yourself in the outdoors."
-Carole Damnjanovic
My 6yr old son had a wonderful time at WEA’s summer day camp! The staff are amazing and supportive, very responsive to camper needs and dynamics. The week’s activities include incredible diversity, flexibility, skill building and fun adventures ensuring the kids are engaged, learning outdoor education, building self confidence and physical/emotional strength. WEA staff were also great at accommodating my son’s dietary needs for the overnight camp, making our family comfortable and relaxed for his first night away. Can’t wait for camp next year!!
-Gypsy Fisher
Western Educational Adventures takes safety seriously. Not only do we want our participants to have an exceptional time, but just as importantly, we want them to return home safe and sound. All of Western Educational Adventures staff are certified in high level first aid and have years of experience managing risk in the outdoors. You won’t find a more qualified staff team anywhere else!
"Our Daughter spent two weeks last Summer at Camp Barnard. She really enjoyed herself learning how to paddle in a canoe, make a campfire, and build a shelter. Landon is a great leader and his company makes it easy for kids to get out into the wilderness in a safe and inclusive environment."
-Stefano Mosi
We believe that everyone deserves the chance to experience and learn through the outdoors. Unfortunately, not everyone has the means to afford our programs, which is why we offer a broad range of financial assistance options.
All our scheduled camp BC programs currently run at various locations on Vancouver Island. Program specific information including program start (drop off) and program end (pick up) locations is listed on each program page. We have many excellent transportation options and we are always willing to do whatever we can to get participants to our start locations.
You can drive directly to where our day camps, overnight camps, hiking, kayaking and canoeing programs start or take advantage of our company transportation.
For our expedition programs, we offer a pickup service from the major airport nearest to the starting location, either Victoria or Comox airports. Air Canada, Westjet and Pacific Coastal service both of these airports. Victoria also hosts other airlines such as Alaskan and Horizon
Upon request we can also pick-up from the nearest BC Ferries terminal.
**Please Note**
Many of our individual program pages don’t specify exact pick-up and drop-off locations/times. This information will be provided during the registration process. We do this to ensure that we can tailor our exact times/locations to the needs of the individual participants.
We may charge extra for pickup and drop off services depending on the method of transportation used for the majority of the group.
Many of our camps operate out of Camp Barnard. The camp is located at 3202 Young Lake Rd, Sooke, BC V9Z 0J6 on Vancouver Island. Transportation services are almost always available to and from Camp Barnard from various locations in Greater Victoria. Not from Greater Victoria? Refer to the Vancouver Island instructions in the section above.
In general the participants are responsible for bringing their own items such as:
Each program has a specific packing list that is communicated during registration.
If you do not have some of the required items, Western Educational Adventures Inc. has various gear kits available for rental or purchase. These options will be made available to you during the registration process.
We highly recommend renting our cleaned and sanitized gear, or purchasing our new gear, as it is chosen specially to address the needs and conditions encountered on each program. It also saves you time and the hassle of purchasing your own equipment.
**Please Note**
Gear rentals are for overnight/sleepaway camps only. Furthermore, Western Educational Adventures does not offer personal clothing or footwear for sale or rental.
