Mountain Camp
Mountain Camp on Ice House Lake in the Eldorado National Forest, PO Box 1348, Pollock Pines, CA 95726
About
Mountain Camp is a co-ed summer overnight camp for campers entering 2nd–12th grades. The program uses a minimal technology, non-competitive structure and takes place at a private resident camp that serves more than 1800 campers each summer. Camp tours are available any Sunday during the summer season that falls in between sessions and last 30 to 45 minutes.
• Ages: 7–17 years old
Founded in 1966, Mountain Camp operated in the Santa Cruz Mountains for twenty years before relocating to its current site on Ice House Lake in 1986, and it has seen many changes over the past 50 years. Mountain Camp states that its program is designed to make sure each child succeeds and to encourage independence while nurturing lasting friendships. The camp’s stated goal is to get campers outside, actively creating, playing and learning lifelong outdoor skills, and it describes camp as a “classroom” for learning these skills. Mountain Camp also states that it seeks to illuminate the special and unique character in every camper and wants campers to shine, with the goal of creating experiences, friendships and laughter that stay with campers the rest of their lives. The camp states that it is committed to making its community a welcoming and comfortable environment for campers, families, and staff, and that it is the responsibility of Mountain Camp and its staff to ensure that all campers feel safe, supported and celebrated in the camp environment, making every reasonable accommodation to allow campers and staff to participate in the way they feel most comfortable while respecting individual privacy.
A camper named Kyra, age 13, describes Mountain Camp as having campfires, fun games, songs, making new friends and lifelong memories, along with additional fun that she feels cannot be found anywhere else. A parent, Dayle B, reports that their children look forward to returning for four weeks every summer, come home happier and more self-assured than when they left, and that they appreciate their children getting a taste of independence and figuring out their own identity in what they describe as the safe, nurturing environment of camp.
Last updated March 15, 2026.
• Ages: 7–17 years old
Founded in 1966, Mountain Camp operated in the Santa Cruz Mountains for twenty years before relocating to its current site on Ice House Lake in 1986, and it has seen many changes over the past 50 years. Mountain Camp states that its program is designed to make sure each child succeeds and to encourage independence while nurturing lasting friendships. The camp’s stated goal is to get campers outside, actively creating, playing and learning lifelong outdoor skills, and it describes camp as a “classroom” for learning these skills. Mountain Camp also states that it seeks to illuminate the special and unique character in every camper and wants campers to shine, with the goal of creating experiences, friendships and laughter that stay with campers the rest of their lives. The camp states that it is committed to making its community a welcoming and comfortable environment for campers, families, and staff, and that it is the responsibility of Mountain Camp and its staff to ensure that all campers feel safe, supported and celebrated in the camp environment, making every reasonable accommodation to allow campers and staff to participate in the way they feel most comfortable while respecting individual privacy.
A camper named Kyra, age 13, describes Mountain Camp as having campfires, fun games, songs, making new friends and lifelong memories, along with additional fun that she feels cannot be found anywhere else. A parent, Dayle B, reports that their children look forward to returning for four weeks every summer, come home happier and more self-assured than when they left, and that they appreciate their children getting a taste of independence and figuring out their own identity in what they describe as the safe, nurturing environment of camp.
Last updated March 15, 2026.
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