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River Shredders Camp

$495-$665

River Shredders Camp

River Shredders camp is designed for participants 12-16 years old, and appeals to both experienced and new river lovers alike. Kids will get the opportunity to try out all kinds of river activities – whitewater rafting, sit-on-top kayaking, and stand up paddleboarding to name a few! 

Our goal is to encourage responsibility on the river, a sense of environmental stewardship, and the confidence to pursue things that bring them joy. Along with hydrology, river ecology, environmental stewardship, and whitewater safety, camp will be rounded out with lots of swimming, river island exploration, and good old-fashioned camp shenanigans. These activities can be relatively strenuous and require a moderate level of physical fitness. Previous river experience is not required, but participants must be comfortable swimming in moving currents.

At an age where it’s hard to keep these young adventurers entertained, a week with us will teach them to enjoy the giant natural playground in our backyard – the James River!

River Shredders Camp is held on and around RVA’s awesome, award-winning river and urban forest. Camp is led by professional river guides trained in swiftwater rescue.

This camp will be from 9:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M in Forest Hill Park and the James River Park System, Monday through Friday.

Quick Facts

Age:

12-16


Camp Times

9:00 AM - 4:00 PM

Photos + Video

Cost & Session Schedule

2023 Sessions - Monday through Friday.

River Shredders

The camp capacities listed below were last updated manually on 8/8/23. For real-time capacities, please click “Register Now” to enter the enrollment portal.

June 12-16

June 19-23

June 26-30

July 3-7

July 10-14

July 17-21

July 24-28

July 31 – Aug 4

Aug 7-11 – Waitlist only

 

In order to give our staff meaningful pay increases this year without pricing out many of our campers, we are implementing a sliding scale for camp payments.

  1. Pay what you can. ($495) – The community is supporting you to cover the full cost of camp
  2. Pay your way. ($575)  – This covers the actual cost of running camp
  3. Pay it forward. ($665)  – You are supporting those for whom the full cost of camp would be a significant hardship

If none of the sliding scale options are affordable to you, please email us at riversidecamps@gmail.com to ask about our scholarship program.


River Shredders Camp Faq's

  • My child is on the waitlist. How likely are they to get into that camp session?
    • I would not count on it. While it does happen from time to time, it is generally unlikely. Please refer to our cancellation and waitlist policies at the bottom of this page.
  • Will my child be in the same group as his or her friends?
    • If they are signed up for the same camp (River Shredders, Old Growth, Red Oak, etc) and the same week they will be in the same group.
  • Do you perform background checks on your staff?
    • Yes. We perform annual checks on all of our camp staff through a third party which covers local, state, federal and sex offender registries.
  • My child is turning _______ years old on ________. Can you make an age exception?
    • We almost never make exceptions in regards to our age groups. We have built into our camp structure a one year overlap in camps (i.e. a 9 year old could attend Sapling or Oak, and a 12 year old could attend Oak, River Shredders, or Old Growth).
  • I am trying to enroll my child in a camp but I’m not seeing the enrollment options for their age group.
    • It’s most likely that the camper’s age was incorrectly listed upon enrollment. Please email us at riversidecamps@gmail.com if you run into this problem.
  • Do you offer extended day programming?
    • We have built into our schedule a flexible pick-up time between 3:30PM and 4:00PM.
  • I’ve forgotten my password and when I try to reset it through the website I am not receiving any emails.
    • Most likely, the email you used to initially register your account is no longer current. Your email address is like a user name in our system so if that changes we need to be notified to change that on our end. If you can think of what email you initially received our confirmations from, that is the account to sign in on and book for the summer.
  • Do you have a Counselor-In-Training (CIT) program?
    • Yes! 16-17 year olds are welcome to apply as CITs for the 2023 camp season starting in January. Our CITs volunteer at our Sapling, Oak, Earth Heroes, and Mountain Biking camp for 2 weeks during the summer (preferably consecutive, Mon-Fri). They function as counselors and role models for the kids, are directly mentored by our experienced staff, and learn both technical and transferable skills in the education and outdoor recreation fields. If all goes well, they receive stellar references from us and are invited to apply to work with us as counselors once they turn 18.
**Cancellation/Refund Policy: All payments are non-refundable. Exceptions made at the discretion of our staff. If we are able to fill your camper’s spot through the waitlist, we will refund you all but a $35 per instance processing fee. See our waitlist policy below.**
** Wait List Policy: If we are filling spaces in a camp more than 1 month out from the start of that camp week, we will call one family at a time from the wait list on a first-to-sign-up basis and give them 48 hrs to accept the spot. After 48 hrs we will call the next family on the list.  If we are calling within a month of a camp session, we will call everyone on the wait list concurrently and follow a first-to-respond policy.**

All Camp Adventures

Sapling Camp

Sapling activities include arborist-style tree climbing, high ropes activities, giant tree swings, creative games, river exploration and even a rafting trip!

Age: 6-9
Price: $495-$665
Oak Camp

Oak activities include arborist-style tree climbing, high-ropes activities, giant tree swings, stand up paddleboarding, creative games, river exploration and rafting!

Age: 9-12
Price: $495-$665
Earth Heroes Camp

Earth Heroes camp activities include exploring Richmond's awesome forests and river, wildly fun hands-on science activities, nature-themed art and games, and natural outdoor fun!

Age: 6-9
Price: $495-$665
Mt. Bike Camp

Mountain Bike camp activities include trail rides, self-paced mountain biking skills development, goofy games, river exploration, and natural outdoor fun!

Age: 8-11
Price: $495-$665
Old Growth Camp

Rappelling, rafting, downriver stand-up paddleboarding, and advanced tree climbing techniques are just some of the experiences you can expect from this camp!

Age: 12-16
Price: $495-$665
River Shredders Camp

River Shredders campers will have a one-of-a-kind experience learning to paddle a variety of different crafts on the James River, as well as learning about river ecology, hydrology, and river safety.

Age: 12-16
Price: $495-$665
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