No. The majority of Kennolyn campers do not come to camp with a particular friend. We think of camp as one of the best and easiest places to make new friends. Our counselors are trained to include all campers in activities and create cohesive cabin groups regardless of whether campers know each other outside of Kennolyn or not.

Kennolyn Camps has been in operation since 1946. We know how to run summer camps. The structure, facilities, and program of Kennolyn Camps Huntington Lake have been designed to capitalize on that experience. This camp is unique in that the small camp size, coupled with experienced leadership, allows us to fully support and encourage each child. Your child will walk through camp and be known and know everyone else. Not just their cabin group. But the cook, the head lifeguard, and the director. And that person will have the TIME and the BANDWIDTH to engage with your child. This is a strong, relational experience that your child will co-design.

In the education world, study after study have shown that as class sizes are reduced, student performance improves. And those gains are stronger the longer the child participates. It’s the same in the camping world. All the core Kennolyn beliefs are here – acceptance, connection, and excitement. The small camp size supercharges that feeling of belonging and empowerment as other counselors and camp leadership focus on the child as an individual. Like small classes, a small camp gets down to the needs of each child and improves their emotional and interpersonal intelligence. And the small size allows campers to have the confidence to speak up without the competition of a larger group. Along the way, campers discover they can express (and sometimes form) their own unique individual identity.

Our program has been designed to reinforce the value of a small camp size with opportunities for your child to just be themselves such as:

• Open Lunch – our counselors spread out and campers sit where they want to allow for relationships outside the cabin group.
• Flexible scheduling – campers create their own schedule each day to allow them to pursue their interests on their own or with new friends.
• Long activity periods – remember the days of having the time to create or let the sun dry your skin after a dip in the lake? Weaving a friendship bracelet from start to finish in one sitting? That’s how we want a week at Kennolyn Camps, Huntington Lake to be.  Be active all day every day or find a shady spot by the lake and relax.

Huntington Lake is 45 miles south of Yosemite Valley as the crow flies. We are in the heart of the Sierra National Forest 60 miles northeast from Fresno. Our location is truly one of the best kept secrets in California. The road past the lake literally ends 24 miles later over a high boulder strewn pass. Our location is an ideal jumping off point as the wilderness playground is our back yard!

Huntington Lake is at 7000 feet and covered in snow in the winter. It was constructed in 1912 as a part of the enormous Big Creek Hydroelectric Project and is 7 miles long and one-half mile wide with four dams. This clear alpine lake is known for the High Sierra Regatta – an annual sailing race – which takes advantage of the consistent light afternoon breeze. The town of Lakeshore is charming and tiny. It is comprised of a post office, general store, and restaurant all within a few hundred feet. Other than a small gas station and volunteer fire department station the rest of the area is privately owned cabins and public campgrounds with a couple places to rent boats. Think Lake Tahoe in the 40s and 50 – this amazing place is a relatively unknown gem – and ours for exploring.