Our COVID-19 Safety Protocols

There will be no formal screening process this summer. We ask that you monitor the health of your camper(s) and everyone else in your household. If your camper isn’t feeling well, please don’t send them to camp. If someone in your household is not feeling well, please consider the health of everyone in our camp community before sending your camper(s) to camp. Symptoms to be aware of are fever of 100 degrees Fahrenheit or higher, cough, runny nose, chills, sore throat, muscle aches, fatigue, or loss of taste/smell.

Each group at camp is its own pod or cohort, essentially functioning as a household. Campers within a pod do not need to maintain 6 feet of distance from one another. Different groups are not to interact with one another indoors. When outdoors, we will keep the groups separated, with the potential of less than a 6-foot distance for under 15 minutes in total. The intention behind keeping the groups separate is to reduce the risk of becoming sick and/or having to quarantine.

Keeping the health of everyone in our camp community in mind, we are connecting this summer’s masking policy to the community spread color levels. Since we come from a wide geographic area, we will align all of the Boroughs of New York City and counties of Rockland, Westchester, Bergen, and Hudson together. This means that if one county is experiencing a higher community spread level than another, we will adjust our policy to the highest reported community spread levels. We have been tracking community spread for the past several months, and our areas, as a whole, have been relatively consistent. We don’t expect our policies to change much during the summer, but want to build a system that reacts if the situation improves or worsens. This policy will be the same for campers and staff regardless of vaccination status.

Community Spread Level Green: Masks are not required outdoors or indoors. Masks are recommended indoors, especially when the distance to another pod is less than 6 feet. This includes daily bus routes.

Community Spread Level Yellow: Masks are not required outdoors or when groups are in their rooms. In communal areas, including hallways and bathrooms, masks are required. Masks are required on all daily bus routes.

Community Spread Level Red: Masks are required outside during arrival, dismissal, morning share, or when groups cannot maintain a physical distance of 6 feet from other cohorts. Masks are required inside, regardless of area. Masks are required on all buses, including daily routes and group hike/camping trips.

As of June 13th, 2022, our Community Spread Level is Yellow.

If you prefer your camper(s) wear a mask beyond these protocols, please let us know and our counselors will support this. Camp will have disposable masks available. Acceptable face coverings include cloth-based 2-ply face coverings and disposable masks that securely cover both the mouth and nose. Bandanas, buffs, and face shields are not acceptable face coverings.

All campers and staff are required to report their COVID-19 vaccination status (and dates of vaccine doses, if applicable) on their Health History Form. Vaccinated individuals must also upload their COVID-19 Vaccination Card to their CampInTouch account.

We are The Nature Place, and we spend the vast majority of our time outdoors. Indoor time will include campers dropping off/picking up their belongings in their room, using the bathroom, grabbing their lunch, and changing. In the case of light rain, we stay outside, wear our raingear, and use canopied/covered outdoor spaces. In the case of severe weather/thunderstorms, we move programming indoors, and activity leaders visit each group in their respective rooms.

For daily bus routes, campers, staff, and the driver will follow the same masking policy linked to the community spread data. When groups are on the bus for campouts/hiking trips, campers and staff do not need to wear masks as they are with their cohort unless we are in Community Spread Level Red, in which case everyone will need to wear masks in confined areas. Windows will be open regardless of community spread level for constant ventilation (barring inclement weather).

All windows and doors are kept open wherever possible to increase ventilation within indoor spaces.

If someone becomes ill with COVID-19, we will report it to our local health department and await their instruction.

To minimize risk, we do not provide snacks at camp. Campers bring their own snacks each day. For lunch, families have the option of packing their own lunch or purchasing an individually packed lunch from the Threefold Cafe. For Overnight trips, campers bring their dinner to camp with them, to be eaten later that evening on their overnight trip. Camp provides breakfast and lunch on the day following the overnight.

We are prohibiting non-essential visitors on our site this summer. Any pick-ups and deliveries are made in a designated location away from campers and staff. There is a designated ingress and egress on the perimeter of camp for parents/guardians picking up/dropping off their camper outside of regular arrival and dismissal times. Parents/guardians are not permitted on site.

In an extenuating circumstance where a visitor absolutely must come on-site, masks and health screening may be conducted.