She's happy, so we are too.Our Horse Program
Posted By: Kelly Marston on 5/5/2010
Plantation Farm Camp's horse program offers a unique experience to first time, beginning, intermediate and advanced riders. Our bareback curriculum emphasizes safety, riding skills and total horse care. The program is taught by experienced counselors and supervised by a CHA certified instructor.
Campers attend an orientation which covers basic horse anatomy, getting to know and how to work with your horse, basic knots and how a bridle works. They are also introduced to our three tiered riding program. Activities take place in the corral, the Alpine Meadow and on various wooded trails. Different skills are evaluated at each level and must be mastered before the rider can advance. Campers will learn good ground awareness and skills such as catching, leading, and grooming their horse. Depending on their confidence level, they will learn to steer, walk, trot and canter their horse.
Our goal is for any camper to be able to participate in, learn from and succeed in our horse program. For some, just being able to be around a horse, brushing them and talking to them in the corral is a growth experience. Perhaps a camper has had a negative experience while riding and is able to overcome that fear and ride in the meadow. For advanced riders, an all day ride to and from the beach may be the highlight of their summer. Each of these experiences is equally valuable to that child and helps grow their confidence, self esteem an awareness of the world around them.
Oliver's Travelogue: Installment #2
Posted By: Kelly Marston on 4/30/2010
When we last left Oliver, he was getting ready to leave Denver on his way to his next destination...
Illinois was next on my agenda and greeting me at O’Hare arrivals was the vibrant Michelle Welsh. Yes, you are right in thinking that Michelle and I had already seen a lot of each other, but how could I dismiss an opportunity to be a guest in the Welsh household? Her wonderful family made me feel welcome upon my immediate arrival as we sat around the table in the hub of the home – the kitchen – and chatted until all memory of the flight from Denver seemed long gone.
For five days, Michelle and I had a blast, exploring Chicago, eating plenty of food (we’re Plantation alumni so this is a given!), visiting a family friend whom was eager to hear of our adventures the previous summer at Camp and another certain someone whom was surprised to see our beaming faces, Jill Steffenson! Jill was kind enough to open her home to me and I accepted the offer and stayed with her for a night. It was simply fabulous to be with Jill again and her Camp spirit was awakened after our arrival at Pita Pete’s. Unfortunately though, my time in Illinois was limited and I had a bus to catch to Iowa...
A friend of mine from Bath University in England was undertaking his biology internship at the University of Iowa and I promised to entertain him for a week after 3 months of gruelling laboratory research in the name of science. I had planned my visit roughly half-way through my vacation so I touched base with a fellow Brit and re-energised the 
enthusiasm for Camp I’d rely upon during the remainder of my time in the States. It was great to catch-up with my buddy James but I was ready and oh so eager for what was to come...
After a short flight, I left the mid-west behind and was in Seattle, embraced by the beautiful and charming Lauren Weber. As gracefully as possible in such a situation, Lauren actually caught my eye in arrivals with a hand-made name-sign, freshly splattered with paint and dusted with glitter. We hopped in the car and I briefly filled her in with the gossip from my time so far in the States. Not long after we arrived at her apartment (overlooking Puget Sound!), the charismatic and also beautiful Jay Wyatt showered me with welcomes and titbits from his life after Camp. Two days in the Emerald City flew by in a whirl-wind of baking, Uno and roller-skiing and it wasn’t difficult to tell the same magic that poured from their very beings at Camp was the same soul and passion dedicated to life outside of summer employment. These two filled me with vigour and zeal for the opportunities available in life and with this in mind, we took one by driving from Washington to Oregon to stay with a very special Plantation veteran and sourdough extraordinaire...
Earth Day 2010: 40 Years and Counting
Posted By: Kelly Marston on 4/22/2010
Today is the 40th anniversary of Earth Day. That is exciting and at the same time sobering to think that we need to designate a 
day on which to honor the world around us. We are fortunate to be surrounded with amazing natural beauty. Every day at camp is a celebration of nature and the ways that people can live with nature respectfully.
Make Earth Day every day
We can move mountains, but it doesn't need to be all at once. Decisions that we make do add up. At camp, living in concert with nature is a part of life and we work to equip kids with tools to take home with them.
Take a tea cup shower: Maybe you aren't having to heat your water by building a fire, but taking a shorter shower each day will save immense amounts of water and the power it takes to heat that water. (Maybe you can even convince your parents that you don't have to shower every day). Even more ways to conserve.
Set up a compost: More cities have municipal compost, but it is very simple to set up a compost pile at home. You can be precise and scientific or just add the mix of paper, food, and leaves that you have at your house. Both will work.
Eat locally sourced food: At camp most of our food is as local as it can be. In fact much of it is grown on site. That's not possible for most of us, but we can sign up for CSA's (community supported agriculture) and have local farmers provide produce to your family, go to farmer's markets, and when we are selecting food choose whole, unprocessed food that was grown as close as possible.
There are so many ideas, so many things that we can each do. I once read that "the limits of the imagination are unimaginable" and know that if I apply that to each of our campers there is no limit to the impact we can have on making a better tomorrow.
Farm Tours and Southern California Dates
Posted By: Kelly Marston on 4/7/2010
Farm Tours
As the sun shines and the flowers are blooming we are going to be hosting tours of the farm. John, Kelly, Reilly, and Aidan will be
up on the farm this weekend, April 10-11, and conducting tours each weekend. We'd love to see current campers and prospective ones as well.
If you are thinking of coming, please RSVP so that we don't miss you while we're out doing chores or giving a tour.
Mark your calendar: the next Farm Tour will be May 1-2. Weather permitting, we will be getting the garden ready and doing projects around the farm to prepare for camp.
Southern California Dates
I will be in Soutern California meeting with current and prospective families from April 13-18. Here is the general schedule.
Los Angeles: April 15-16
San Diego: April 17
Santa Barbara County: April 18
I would love to see as many folks as I can, so please let me know if you are available, kelly(at)plantationcamp.com
Oliver's Travelogue: Installment #1
Posted By: Plantation Farm Camp Staff on 4/2/2010
Hey Plantation People. I’ve not long returned to England after an 8-week vacation in the States and I thought you’d like to read about my travels:
I left London New Year’s Eve and arrived into San Francisco in time for midnight. I celebrated the advent of the New Year in Marin with Amy Panek, Michelle Welsh, Alex ‘Stikey’ Stikeleather, Kelly ‘K-Mo’ Morton, Ruby Western, Tristan Brenner, George Altschuler and Jhenna and Raman Voorhis. We talked about Camp A LOT and swam in the pool of Plantation nostalgia until I felt all withdrawal symptoms from another amazing summer evaporate. This was a great start to my holiday (Brit term for vacation) but I had much adventure to come...
I spent my first week in America staying at the (Amy) Panek hotel. Michelle welsh also stayed in Burlingame and we were treated wonderfully. I am a huge fan of the Panek family and they had much to speak of Plantation – well, Amy and her two brothers have frequented Camp in excess of 15 summers!! Amy, Michelle and I formed a kinship that week and were often breathless from incessant laughter. We explored thrift stores and supermarkets and on a grander scale, San Jose and the HP Pavilion (Sharks lost to LA Kings), Redwood City and Sonoma County; that’s right, we visited Camp! We could barely contain our excitement whilst driving the 3 hours north and stopped regularly to admire the winter scenery. We bought burritos from the Taco Truck in Guerneville and coffee from Cafe Aquatica in Jenner. At Plantation, we were greeted by the Directors John and Kelly and some co-counselors. Camp was ineffably beautiful and serene. We caught-up, talked business and some of us helped herd sheep (I was too busy talking and playing with my goats P.S. the "baby" goat is HUGE). We were all pleased to see Ranch Manager Jenny but unfortunately Alyson was out-of-town. Eventually, it was time to split and we returned (via Cape Fear, Duncan’s Mills) to South San Francisco in preparation for the next stage of my journey...
At midday, Jan 6th, the three of us had agreed to drive 24 hours along Route 80 (known only to truckers in retrospect) to 
Boulder, Colorado, where Amy studies. The road-trip was not unentertaining (especially with Amy’s cat in the car) if not only because we had BOTH Glee soundtracks to penetrate our sanity. With a few rest breaks, Amy was able to drive most of the way and experience temperatures as low as -40C in Wyoming, wildcats in Utah, ‘little Vegas’ in Nevada and confused Safeway deli clerks in Reno (who doesn’t know what grilled cheese is?) Upon arrival into the Centennial State, we crashed for the day and spent the subsequent 24 hours recovering from hypochondriac’s frost-bite, sleep deprivation and Glee syndrome. Michelle left the next day and we left her with her aunty in Golden.
Amy and I had another week together and we discussed Camp 85% of the time: I missed my goats and she missed skunks; we both missed the hikes, the food, the communal atmosphere and indubitably CTF in the BBD! 7 days passed and I was bidding farewell to Ms Panek at Denver Airport, eager to reach the next State...
Healthier food at summer camp
Posted By: Kelly Marston on 3/21/2010
Plantation Farm Camp was featured in a San Jose Mercury News article today. Journalist, Lisa Fernandez's piece investigates the 
growing importance that the quality of food has for parents in selecting camp.
"Summer camps for city kids can be amazing athletic playgrounds, where TVs are turned off and youngsters are thrust outside to play dodge ball, hike in the woods and swim every afternoon.
Some camps, though, end up counteracting all that great exercise with, as one Los Altos Hills mother puts it, endless streams of 'crappy cafeteria food.'
But with today's increased awareness on childhood obesity and the positive benefits of zero-transfat, organic diets, there is a strong network of parents opting for camps with a focus on healthful meals to combat the packaged-food mentality."
Raising and serving premiere quality food is an important part of the camp experience at Plantation and the article highlights some of the components of the delicious meals we eat at camp.
Ed Tunheim: Plantation's Forester in National Geographic
Posted By: Kelly Marston on 3/13/2010
Many of you know that Plantation Farm Camp is a certified green business, but you may not know that the forest surrounding
camp has also been certified a green forest. Ed Tunheim, our closest neighbor at camp and the man who has been entrusted with maintaining our beloved redwoods since Abe and Eve started Plantation, has been a proponent of sustainable forestry for many years. By practicing sustainable forestry with a focus on protecting each stand of trees for generations to come he and his partners have protected tens of thousands of acres of forests from complete deforestation.
In October 2009, National Geographic recognized the work that he has been doing. The article follows the work that Ed and his partners have been doing. It also includes wonderful pictures of the coastal redwoods and the landscape that we cherish at camp.
Beth Lutt: A Camping Legend
Posted By: Kelly Marston on 3/9/2010
This evening I got to meet Beth Lutt who founded Camp Cazadero with her husband Bob in 1957. She knew our founders, Abe and Eve Crittenden, as Plantation was just 5 years old when the Lutt's founded their camp. She is a visionary and a person who is dedicated to creating an excellent camp experience year in and year out. Over the years that I've run Plantation, many people have asked if it is "Camp Caz", a music camp that is nestled in the redwoods about 45 minutes inland from Plantation. While I've explained the difference and that we are out on the coast, etc it has also given me a sense of connection with Camp Cazadero.
So, you can imagine how gratifying it was when Beth not only knew of our program, but commented that it was a special place and that she thought it was an excellent camp. Our camps focus on very different program elements (we don't have symphony musicians on staff and they aren't on a farm nor do they have the range of activities) yet, at the core, we are camps that are committed to helping kids have a rewarding summer where they grow, learn new skills, and become more confident individuals.
The freedom to wonder
Posted By: Kelly Marston on 3/5/2010
Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods, has shown how important it is to allow kids to connect with nature. In doing so we let their imagination's grow, they learn more (and retain it), and become more resilient. In this interview he talks about the simple quality of wonder that a child experiences while exploring under rocks, trees, in the grass, out in nature.
