Great site for birding! The all persons trail is handicapped accessible and suitable for all…read moreability levels

It didn't matter that it was 2° up in the Berkshires- because all hubs (and I) wanted to do is trek…read morefor a bit- even if we called it a day in 15 minutes because of the numb-feeling temperature. Hubs had located one of the many, many, many trails within the the area In Lenox and noticed the Yokun trail. Be warned though and drive slow to get here- as some roads in the area are insanely narrow right next to dropping woody hillsides. Breathe. From the little bit we experienced, trails around the area offer walking and hiking options to suit all levels. Even though we were suited up for the trek, it was still freezing and difficult to walk on the cracked ice so we cut our walk short. Real short. We ventured a bit more and drove to the main office where Rosie(y?) helped and answered all our questions. We liked it here- but I'm sure it's magnificent in the Spring and Summer mostly where you can see all the lushness and some wildlife. What I also liked about Yokun Trail is that it's well-formed and signposted. You could try to tackle and get to the tallest peaks in the area to see the beautiful landscape- but for that, hubs and I will wait for better temperature to explore more of the wilderness.

The best summer camp out there, especially for sports. There have always been a few constants --…read morethe sports facilities are great, the coaching is first class, the counselors are well-trained, etc -- but the place has an extra shine to it with all the renovations that Mike and Hillary have done since they took over. The bunks look brand new, the place is super clean, and (I really never thought I'd say this) the food is kind of incredible. I really can't compliment the new management team enough -- they've done an amazing job, the place looks great, and the kids had a fantastic summer.

Wonderful staff ,clean well run camp. Always something happening. Lake activities r awsome. The…read morekids love it. 4 years of them going. Next year's a given. My friends kids attend the day camp. They also love it n have made lots of friends. I highly recommend this camp for both sleep a way n day.

I came here for a birthday party and it was the first time visiting this farm. It is pretty cute…read moreand the birthday party was held in a small building with its own kitchen. The kids had fun feeding the farm animals. I will have to admit I had fun too. There are all sorts of farm animals, such as chickens, cats, dogs, goats, horses, bunnies, pigs and more. I am a cat person and I enjoy looking for the barn cats. The place is pretty clean for a farm and the kids enjoy the tractor ride. All the employees were nice and friendly. If you're planning a fun kids party, this is a great place for them.

You can't miss the iconic large red barn that has the word EGGS, but backwards on it. Flamig Farm…read morehas been in existence since 1907; located in West Simsbury. First visit, I got there around 4:40 and they were closing at 5; it was a short trip because I just wanted to get some eggs. The employee said they were closing soon and so was the petting zoo when I first walked in; I mentioned I was going to be quick and just wanted to get some eggs. I didn't know they had a petting zoo so I made a plan to go back again another time. The store was your typical farm stand, they had eggs, honey, cookies, apparel, and various of other knick knacks. They were having a sale, buy one dozens eggs ($7) and get one dozen free. The chickens were laying too many eggs and they wanted to get rid of as many as possible. The second time, I got in earlier in the day and purchased petting zoo tickets; $8 per person over 2 years old/under 80 years old and for an additional $2, you can purchase feed. I highly recommend getting the feed, the animals loved it. The petting zoo was bigger than I thought. There's even a playground with benches and picnic tables. The place seemed clean and the animals seem well taken care of. We saw pigs, llamas (my favorite), sheep, goats, alpacas, peacocks, cows, ponies (another favorite), donkeys, bunnies, chickens, and a black cat.Inside the shop, there were baby chicks, birds, and guinea pigs. There were signs explaining what type of animals, facts, and their story/names throughout. They also offer pony and tractor rides for an additional fee. There's a huge pavilion with picnic tables; you can bring your own food in. Also, there is an Airbnb onsite and people book their weddings there. There are many events hosted there as well; children programs and summer camps are popular ones. My kids and I had a blast petting and feeding the animals. I highly recommend!

As a former camper, and now an adult who has dropped off my nephew & picked him up over the past 2…read moreyears, I can say Hi-Rock is a special place. Is it perfect? No. It's a rustic camp in the middle of the woods with bugs, and most cabins don't have plumbing inside them (it's a short walk to communal bathrooms in every unit except the youngest, which does have indoor plumbing). But you know this going in! I don't think anyone comes here expecting a 5-star resort. We dropped off my nephew this past Sunday and found check in to be a well-oiled machine. We waited a little bit (and the line was longer later in the day), but I think that's to be expected for an overnight camp! I'd rather they do their due diligence, than just have us drop off and leave. We were able to explore the camp, have a nice, buffet lunch, watch my nephew take his swim test, and even show my son his potential cabin for next year. RedHawk bunks are 3 and a half walls, so they're open and somewhat exposed to the elements. They've been this way for 30+ years and the boys seem to really enjoy it (apparently they're getting renovated though!). The bathrooms could maybe use non-clear shower curtains. ;) If you've gone to Hi-Rock, you know how magical it is, even if every second isn't perfect.

I was a camper at Hi-Rock, and now my child attends (as well as many of my other former bunk mates…read moreand their children) and it continues to be a special place. The camp builds confidence and establishes a great connection to nature. I like what another fellow commenter said - it's not "perfect" in terms of standards that are unattainable by most camps - it's rustic, but I see that as a positive. I've also observed my child's social emotional benefit of being off screens from her time at camp, and that alone makes it an enriching time. The counselors and staff are all kind and patient. All of that, and it is a beautiful setting for camp.

I started as a camper here in 1995, became a counselor/specialist when I was in college and have…read moresince returned as adult staff. My daughter attends camp here as well, and I was thrilled she loves it here as much as I did when I was her age. The owners know everyone by name, all the staff are incredibly friendly and the overall environment is caring and adaptive. They consider each individual campers needs and work to accommodate everyone. They have many campers with gluten sensitivity and a separate food station for gluten-free food so as not to cross contaminate foods. The infirmary is staffed by experienced nurses and they always have a doctor on campus (in addition to the owners being doctors themselves). Color War is a time honored tradition that brings a camp together at the end of the summer. Win or lose, Apache relay is a fun tradition in which every single camper partakes in an important role. There is an ice cream parlor, a movie theater, a playhouse, an outdoor adventure zip line course in addition to an inflatable water park on the lake. The kids stay in touch year round and I still talk to people I met as a camper to this day.

I was a camp counselor for Camp Pontiac for the summer of 2021 and when I say this was one of the…read moreworst run businesses I have ever seen and the worst job I have ever had, I am in no way exaggerating. To begin with, the hours they have their general staff work is outrageous. There is no break, you never really get off time here. The staff lounge is a glorified hut with moldy couches and a TV that is can barely fit 1/5 of the staff at a time. The other places on the campus were not open to staff even though the management made it seem that way in the interviewing process. Which is only the first thing that they lied to their staff about. I was lied to about the parameters of my job, I was lied to about my hours, I was lied to about what I would be able to do with my off time. I felt like a prisoner in this camp, I wasn't allowed to leave once I got there, or else I would have been fired. The management DOES NOT care about their general staff, if you get sick, they will not give you adequate rest time to recover. Over 2/3's of the staff was sick throughout the summer. And then there was the covid outbreak. The covid outbreak that the management tried to blame on their general staff as if they weren't allowed families to come in to tour when it was a "bubble" as they marketed to their current parents. Of course, they would never point the finger at the management who frequently went out to eat for every meal at the local restaurants like the Pond or allowed their campers to leave to go boating on another lake. It was a poorly run business that had no care for its general staff. There were promises of things getting better throughout the summer in which they never did and the bonuses that were promised because the staff was doing double the work, were never delivered. The 'Wannabe Director' Micahel Etra has horrible anger issues that made him go off on counselors causing many to quit. His carelessness and ego lead me and many others to be stranded at the airport due to missed flights because he would not allow us to leave earlier to catch our flights even though we brought it to his attention. The group leaders did not care about their counselors, my went as far as to tell me to quit when I talked to her about being unhappy with the exhausting workload, even after I explained to her that paying $800 for a plane ticket home was not an option for me in my financial situation. And then of course there is the favoritism. If you were a camper here and you chose to come back to work, this is a dream job. You are given special treatment and access to the entire camp. You get away with taking 10 or 20 minutes here to there. You get away with taking time off to go and work on things for school. I was refused the wifi passwords to the buildings I worked at, the only places I had access to service to call my parents, but a former camper had them. Ultimately if you're a new counselor, the directors and owners do not care about you. This camp preys on young college students looking for interesting jobs and then locks them on the campgrounds and exploits them for seven weeks, throwing them away once they got their use out of them. I felt like the help most days, slaving over a bunch of spoiled rich kids. Counselors got fired for just disciplining the kids. Counselors got fired for trying to ask for adequate pay. Genuinely, this was an awful experience. For anyone looking to work here, if you have no sense of self-respect, you'll be fine. But understand the long hours and poor treatment that you are going to have to deal with. If you are looking to send your child here, the directors and upper-level staff do not care about your child. Your child is money to them and nothing else. They use the "interesting" specialties such as sports and arts & crafts to babysit your kid, very few of the kids enjoyed the everyday activities. The evening activities were more contrived ways of babysitting the kids so they couldn't be left alone to realize that camp life is nothing but a lie to get money out of the parents. Save your money and send them somewhere else, trust me, this camp is going to go under soon.

I can't believe how fortunate I am to have gone to this camp as a child and to continue to be…read moreinvolved today. It was and continues to be my second home. My son will be going to WA WA this summer for his 5th year!! His favorite activities have been archery and sports and playing Magic the Gathering during free time on the side porch of the beautiful lodge that overlooks our private lake. I love that he gets to participate in the same activities as I did (and new ones too!). 30 years later, the only songs I know all the words to are camp songs I sang around the camp fire all throughout my childhood summers.

This camp is the real deal. Classic summer camp activities include daily swimming and boating, arts…read moreand crafts, archery, hikes, etc. Gorgeous setting right on the pond, with no other properties in sight! Great way to get your kids to unplug and remember that there's a whole world out there to explore, and a world of people out there to befriend. This is a relatively small camp and the community is tight knit. My son has been attending for a couple of years, and his little brother can't wait until he's old enough! The director Lily is incredible, and spends a lot of time training her staff so they can provide the a fun and SAFE experience for the campers. Very high retention rate for counselors! Very comforting for kids to be able to return and see the same familiar faces. Funnily enough, with all of the fun things going on there, one of my son's favorite parts is the food. Meals are mostly from scratch, and they can accommodate allergies easily. Lots of choices at every meal including a salad bar. Way better than what gets served up at schools or other camps! There are usually at least a couple open houses in the spring - I highly recommend attending so you can check out this beautiful place and meet the director.

Spent four years as a camper and one as a member of their AIDES program. Excellent place for boys…read moreto develop their character, make lifelong friends, and create incredible memories.

tldr: great views of nature, friendly staff, and good accommodations…read more Came here with a group of peers for a bonding overnight stay in late fall. Food was good and accommodated dietary restrictions, and sleeping accommodation provided a bathroom and mattress but no sheets (we brought sleeping bags and pillows). Everyone really enjoyed the big swing and Alpine tower activity. Our group was large enough that they split us up to do each activity - my group enjoyed the firestarting/survival shelter activity but not as much as the swing/tower. The swing is doable for anyone, and you can decide how high you are pulled up before swinging. The tower is challenging and only one or two of our 15-person mini-group was able to reach the top. Plan to wear clothes that you can move around a lot, and walk in the woods in. They did not have a large indoor meeting to sit 30-40 people, but we were able to fit in a room off the main cafeteria, with some people sitting on tables/the floor. The campfire at night was set up ahead of time for us, and they included materials for s'mores. The guide was sure we'd have enough supplies but we ended up running out of some parts (they're called s'mores for a reason!). The staff there ran a cultural sensitivity activity for us, which we enjoyed with everyone in our large group.

My daughter started going to this camp when she was 9 years old. She has had a tremendous…read moreexperience. She keeps in touch with a few other girls and visits them during the school year. She will be going for 6 weeks this summer and can't wait. Sue and her staff are amazing.

Great camp! My son went for the first time last summer and will be back this summer as well. This…read moretime he's coordinating to join a really sweet friend he met there last summer, who he has kept in touch with ever since. Camp Emerson is the most kid-centered place I've ever seen. The number and range of activities are amazing and there is great flexibility in allowing kids to try new things and adjust their schedules when they find what they love. As a result my son really stretched himself and had some amazing new experiences. The Camp's management of food allergies is unparalleled. My son felt safe and included the whole time and loved the food. The Director was so accessible and reassuring. All of my questions got answered and I felt totally comfortable while my son as there. We highly recommend this special place!