• Camper Health & Transport Forms
• Transportation Notes
• Transportation Specifics 2008
• Enrollment Information
• Billing Information
• Equipment & Clothing
• Camp Calendar
• Driving Directions
• How To Contact Us
• Useful Links
• FAQ's for Parents
• GST Rebate Form
• 2006 Season Highlights
• 2007 Season Highlights

Start with this website. It contains good basic information and photos about the location, program and culture of Pathfinder. Pathfinder is an Accredited Member of the Ontario Camping Association, and is listed on their website www.ontariocamps.ca. As one of the founding members of OCA, Pathfinder conforms to hundreds of Standards ensuring health, safety, and professional practice in camping. Next, give the Director Mike Sladden a phone call or email (redcanoes@att.net) to chat about Camp and get a list of current camp parents who are happy to talk to prospective parents about the Pathfinder experience. Then, plan to attend one of Pathfinder's open house events this winter. Many parents visit Pathfinder with their sons and tour the Island to see it in action. Give us some advance notice so we can welcome you during the camping season.You can view and download enrollment information from this site, or request a package by mail from Camp's winter office in Rochester, NY.

Pathfinder was established in 1914, and has been in continuous operation ever since. Apart from founders William Bennett and Franklin Gray, Pathfinder's owners have always been men who attended and worked at the Camp. This tradition is also observed regarding the Staff: the vast majority are young men who worked their way up the ranks at Pathfinder itself, under the supervision of their Staff mentors, who were themselves influenced and taught by Pathfinder counselors a generation before. In 2003, Pathfinder celebrated 90 summers of outstanding camping and canoe tripping from its home island on Source Lake in Algonquin Park. With this long history, and the richness of world famous Algonquin Park to call home, Pathfinder has been successful by retaining its founding traditions: a homegrown Staff giving personal attention to campers, maintaining a small enrollment with a focus on wilderness canoe trips, and keeping the camp experience rustic, without modern technology and its distractions. A Pathfinder summer is meant to be a boy's experience of emerging independence and self-reliance, of wonderful friendships enriched by shared adventures and challenges, and one of personal connection to simple living in an incomparable natural environment. Pathfinder alumni are extremely loyal and active on the Camp's behalf. The most active alumni are Senior Staff members serving for years as directors of the camp. Alumni serve monthly rotations each summer as guest staff during the sessions. Other alumni administer a non-profit scholarship fund to aid needy families hoping to send a son to Pathfinder. Alumni donate their time and professional expertise to Camp in myriad areas. And alumni, who know the Pathfinder culture best, send their sons and grandsons to Pathfinder, and refer wonderful families to the camp so their sons can experience Pathfinder in their lives.

During a camp session, there are 65 or more Staff members at Pathfinder, including directors and counselors. Most of the Staff are men, who themselves attended Pathfinder and know what it's like to be a Camper in the program, and on the Pathfinder canoe trips. The Pathfinder Trip Staff have been trained from camper age in the arts and skills of back country canoe travel. They possess expert knowledge of Algonquin Park and its wildlife, and they are trained and certified in wilderness first aid, lifesaving, and canoeing. Their emerging leadership skills as junior counselors guide the Director and Senior Staff in choosing these young men from their peer group, to become Pathfinder Trip Staff. The Senior Staff are guided by the owners, with co-owner Mike Sladden as Camp Director. The assistant directors, tripping director and age-group supervisors average 15 years each at Pathfinder. They lead a staff of counselors, ages 17-70. Each year, the Pathfinder CIT Leaders program trains a small group of invited age 16 campers toward a role on the Staff. Senior staff members return to camp each summer from their professional lives as educators, guidance counselors, and outdoor sports instructors.

Pathfinder maintains a 1:2 ratio of staff to campers. Of the 65 active Staff members, virtually all are involved personally in instruction and supervision of campers on a daily basis. For programs in-camp the ratio will vary depending on the activity. On canoe trips, the ratio remains 1:2 at all times.

There are 110 campers at Pathfinder. Ages 7-8 and 9-10 are the Mic Mac and Chippewa tribes - capacity 20 campers. Ages 11-12 are the Cree tribe - capacity 40 campers. Ages 13-14 are the Ottawa tribe - capacity 34 campers. Age 15 is the AA tribe - capacity 16 campers.

Pathfinder campers come from 14 US states, 3 provinces of Canada, and several overseas countries. In 2004, boys are attending from Great Britain, France, Colombia, and Mexico.The majority of boys are from western New York State and southern Ontario Province. A number of boys attend from Vermont, Connecticut, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Florida, Illinois, Indiana and California

Mic Macs and Chippewas live in cabins on the southern shoreline. There are 6-8 campers in a cabin living with 2-3 counselors. An Area Supervisor and Mic-Chipp director oversee the tribe. Cree, Ottawa and AA campers live 3 boys and a counselor each in one of 30 wood and canvas tent platforms lining the waterfront and climbing the forested hill. An Area Supervisor is in charge of each tribe.

Pathfinder campers are supervised at all times. On canoe trips, a Headman is the lead guide and counselor. He is a minimum of age 19 with a year of college experience, and has a demonstrated history of canoe tripping skills with Pathfinder. His assistants are a Second Man and a Third Man, counselors ages 16-18 who are trained in the Pathfinder program. The typical Pathfinder canoe trip is 9 men, including 6 Campers and 3 Staff. In camp, the counselors live with the campers in a 1:3 ratio. Area supervisors and assistant directors supervise the living arrangements and daily needs of the campers in four clusters arranged by age group: Mics and Chipps ages 7-10; Crees ages 11-12; Ottawas ages 13-14, and AAs aged 15.

Pathfinder's core activities are known as the Pillars. They include Canoe Tripping, Swimming and Water Safety, Paddling, Earth Lore, and Ropes-Challenge. Emphasis is placed on individual instruction in these Pillars, and boys progress year to year in their knowledge, confidence and expertise.
Supporting activities include: kayaking, sailing, mountain biking, archery, arts and crafts, and general athletics including basketball, volleyball, soccer and softball, tetherball, disc golf.

The daily program in-camp is usually a mix of structure and choice. The Camp gathers for morning Flag Pole and Breakfast at 8:20 am. Morning periods are just over one hour each. They are assigned activities such as swimming and ropes, or canoeing and earth lore. Small groups of boys in one age group attend these assigned periods.

After lunch at 1:00 pm and a rest hour, boys have their choice of favorite "optionals", and often use their choice time to work toward advanced levels in a particular activity they love.

Swimming and bathing are daily rituals at camp. Free swims are generally in the afternoon. Supervised soap baths are enjoyed after all-day treks, any canoe trip, and on Sundays prior to Chapel.

Each evening after supper, the entire camp gathers for the evening program. Ages 7-70 share a contest, game, or Pathfinder ritual. These can be any one of a number of Pathfinder traditions, including Capture the Flag games, relay race contests, all-camp dodgeball fests, free time on the lake in canoes and kayaks, council fires, trip reports and award presentations, camp movies in the Rec. Lodge, or all-island scavenger hunts.

Call to quarters is at 9:00 pm. The younger campers are in bed shortly after, and the older boys are 'lights out' at 10:00 pm each night.

View an example of the Daily Programme >>

Pathfinder guys claim they will eat anything! Something about the northern air, and days spent paddling, portaging, climbing, swimming and playing in Algonquin Park. Luckily for everyone, food is a high priority at Camp, with a lot of wholesome, nutritious fare fueling the Pathfinder season.

Pathfinder has its own chef staff, who prepare fresh meals daily on the Island. All the delicious ingredients are brought by water to the island. Our own baker takes care of the celebrated breads and desserts. These boys can eat tremendous quantities of food! The menu is home cooking, served family style in the Dining Hall at tables of six campers and two counselors. Special Sunday dinners include roast beef and ice cream. Awards banquets wrap up each session, and are famous for the menu and dessert tables. On canoe trips, the Headmen take pride in their open fire cooking. If you can pack it, they can use it to cook up a tripper's feast. Some freeze-dried trip food is used, but a great deal of Pathfinder trip food is fresh and staple foods. Steaks are often packed for the first night on the trail. Peameal bacon is a camper favorite on trips. Fresh vegetables and potatoes are worth portaging for the flavor around the camp fire. Pizza, beef stroganoff, chimichangas and vegetarian chili are trip favorites as well. Pathfinder trip fudge makes lifelong memories!

Camp practices are in accordance with our accreditation by the Ontario Camping Association, and with health, hygiene and safety laws of Ontario and Canada.

Pathfinder maintains an Infirmary on the island, with a fulltime Nurse, and a full-time on-call consulting physician in the local community. Huntsville Memorial Hospital is a Level One facility. The regional EMS system ensures professional response to health emergencies in Algonquin Park. The Director and key Senior Staff members are certified Wilderness First Responders (WFR). All the Trip Staff are Wilderness First Aid (WAFA) certified, and all are Red Cross or NLS certified lifeguards. Pathfinder has long-established fire and emergency procedures. The entire camp drills in these procedures when a new session begins. The Trip Staff are highly trained, and the guides are capable of handling a variety of emergencies on the trail. A number of Pathfinder trips, in fact, have rendered assistance to other parties while in the Algonquin interior. For details on Pathfinder's safety practices, please contact Mike Sladden directly.

At Pathfinder, parents are welcome to phone their children, but campers do not phone out. We advise parents to use their best judgment when considering a call to their camper. Sometimes excessive calls from home can tend to derail a camper's hard-won sense of independence. Of course, in cases when the Director recognizes the need, campers and parents are put in touch by phone. Old fashioned 'Snail Mail' remains an important tradition at Pathfinder. In fact, a camper's ticket to Sunday dinner is a letter written to mom or dad. The counselors help the younger campers write letters home and read letters from home. What could be more welcome to a camper than a newsy letter from home? Many parents have sent their first letter to camp before the kids are even on the bus. Canada Post can take a while to reach Algonquin Park, so parents are encouraged to write early and often! Pathfinder does not have visiting days for parents per se, but encourages parents to personally drop off or pick up their sons. These session change days are virtual parent visiting days. Parents tour the Island, meet the Staff, and chat with the directors. Boys attending Camp for the full season often have their parents visit during the mid-season changeover, to whisk them away for hot showers and junk food.