The YETI (Youth Engaged in Transformational Inquiry) is a high-elevation summer camp for youth ages 10-14. 

This is the 3rd year of the YETI Summer Camp held at the Golden Trout Wilderness School in the Southern Sierra - positioned at 10,000 ft in elevation and 3.5 miles from the Cottonwood Lakes Trailhead. Balanced Rock is excited for this partnership with the Golden Trout Wilderness School to offer this powerful program to youth in a remote mountain setting.

The theme for the YETI Youth Summer Camp is discovery through the lens of curiosity, attention, and wonder - skills taught in John Muir Laws Nature Journaling.  

Classes and experiences offered during the camp week include:

• Morning Mindfulness: (stretching, listening activities, meditation, breath work)

• Wilderness Adventure:  daily hiking, scrambling & wilderness exploration

• Donkey 101: help with and learning how to care for donkeys

• Art: daily art classes and time for art (there will be a journal requirement for students including both art and writing activities).

• Nature Journaling: daily journaling and time for reflection in a journal

• Wilderness Skills: navigation games, whittling, knot tying, map reading and more!

Heather Sullivan will serve as the Program Director, and Camp Instructors are Lupin Amstutz, M’so Jones, and Luca Perretti.

• Pre-trip meeting (In-Person or Zoom Call) with trip instructors, youth, and parents/caregivers

• Highly-skilled instructors and educators with Wilderness Medicine training

• Nature journals will be provided for each student

• Hand lens & knives for whittling during structured times

• Nature journaling and art class instruction by professionals in the field

• Play time by alpine creeks and lakes

• Games and group-forming activities

• Daily hikes and exploratory adventures, option to try rock-climbing

• Visits to the ancient foxtail pines (trees almost 4,000 years old)

• Astronomy lessons, stargazing, and the opportunity to sleep under the stars

• Breathtaking views of Mt. Langley (14,000 ft peak) in the High Sierra

• Opportunities to fish in fully-stocked high alpine lakes

• Delicious, healthy meals prepared by a dedicated camp chef

• Geology, geography, and other lessons

• Student-led performances and games

• Inspiring and fun campfires

• Facilitated discussions

Schedule Overview

The Week at-a-Glance

Sunday, June 22nd (Arrival Day)

·      Arrival at the trailhead by noon.

·      We have a 3-mile hike with an elevation gain of approximately 500 ft to the camp.

·      Arrive at camp, and settle in by dinner.

We strongly recommend spending a night at the trailhead (or other higher elevation location) before the retreat to help with acclimatization to altitude for a more comfortable experience.

Monday, June 23rd (Acclimatization and Orientation to Camp Systems)

·      Day 2 will include an orientation to camp and learning the systems to ensure each student is comfortable.

·      In the afternoon, we will likely enjoy a short exploratory walk for altitude acclimatization, and an art session.

·      Camp games and icebreaker activities

Tuesday, June 24th (Sense of Place Day)

·      Deeper exploration of our surroundings: hike, art activity, nature journal, & games

·      See tentative daily schedule below. Also, we will likely offer an afternoon outing.

Wednesday or Thursday, June 25th & 26th (Adventure Days & Challenge Hike Days)

·      Depending on weather and acclimatization, we will have one day that involves climbing instruction and a scrambling adventure, and another day as a challenge hike. For those who are returning to the camp, there may be opportunity for a one-night overnight camp-out. We will also have our closing campfire on Thursday.

Friday, June 27th (Departure Day)

·      Hike out after breakfast, departing by 8:00 AM.

·      Arriving at the trailhead by noon for good-byes and departure.

Sample Daily Schedule

• Pre-breakfast: Morning Mindfulness session

• 8:00 AM: Breakfast and pack lunches

• Morning: Art or Nature Journaling, Hike, or Adventure

• 12:00 PM: Lunch

• Afternoon: Games, Adventure, Hike, Wilderness Skills

• Free Time: (supervised by chaperones)

• 6:00 PM: Dinner

Evening: Campfire or Evening Program

Our retreat will be based out of the Golden Trout Wilderness School. Operating under a Special Use Permit from the Forest Service, the Golden Trout Wilderness School offers education programs throughout the summer. We are thrilled to partner with them for this incredible summer retreat.

Facility Amenities:

• Running water

• Composting toilets

• Sweet and mellow donkeys that remind us how to relax and simply be

• Shared tent cabins with cots

• Gear for learning wilderness skills, nature journals, & yoga mats

Arrival Location:

We will meet at Cottonwood Lakes Trailhead, on Sunday, June 22nd @ noon. Here are is the Google Maps link to our meeting point. Please ensure you DO NOT go to the Cottonwood Pass Trailhead. 

There is a walk-in campground at Cottonwood Lakes Trailhead, and we recommend you spend a night there before the trip to help your body acclimatize to the altitude. There are bear lockers at the trailhead, and you will need to empty your vehicle of any food and scented items prior to hitting the trail. You can safely park your vehicle at the trailhead for the duration of the trip. 

We encourage carpooling and will create space during the pre-trip Zoom to discuss and help coordinate carpooling if there is interest. 

$1,495/person

Balanced Rock strives to offer affordable programming to all of our interested participants. If you need financial assistance or are seeking scholarship opportunities to attend this program, please contact us to request an application.

Every registered participant will be emailed a very specific gear list, along with multiple opportunities to speak with our staff and trip leaders about gear so you feel fully prepared for this adventure.

Balanced Rock has limited gear available for loan, or can offer guidance on renting gear. Please inquire with our team if you need assistance or have questions regarding what to pack.

All participants will be required to read and sign the Health & Safety Policy for Programs at registration.

We understand plans change. If you cancel your registration more than 1 month prior to the trip start date (before May 22, 2025 for this program), you will receive a full refund minus a $50 registration fee to the credit card on file.

If you cancel your registration less than 1 month prior to the program start date, you will not be eligible to receive a refund. As a small nonprofit, we are not able to make any exceptions to this refund policy.

All participants will be required to read and accept our Cancellation and Refund Policy upon registration.