Our 6 year old daughter just completed a 2 week summer camp with Tree Frog Treks at the Christopher Playground location, and we were very impressed with the entire experience! The camp counselors - Najia, David, and Zita - were awesome. The kids were outdoors and active all day, learning about nature and the environment. Our daughter really enjoyed the field trips to Ocean Beach and Marin. As a 2 working parent family, we also appreciated the 9-5pm full day coverage (the only thing better would be an 8:30am start)! I'd highly recommend this summer camp, and look forward to returning next year. read more

My 6 yo daughter attended Tree Frog Treks at the McClaren Park location for two weeks this summer and absolutely loved it! She specifically asked to go to a camp where she could look at bugs, climb trees, and collect leaves all day long-- TFT delivered and then some! My daughter came home every day with a huge smile on her face, messy hair, dirty clothes, and lots of new facts about bugs and animals. It is exactly what you picture when you think of summer camp. The camp is well-organized. Good communication before and during camp sessions. The counselors are incredibly nice and you can tell that they love their jobs. I would happily re-enroll her at TFT next summer. Note: my daughter is fairly independent and responsible for her age. She enjoys imaginative play, makes friends easily, and speaks up when she needs help. Kids who need structure or hand-holding may not do as well in this camp. read more

This company is not following any guidelines administered by the San Francisco Department Of Public Health for COVID reopening. From the week of the 22nd-26th of June 2020 in McLaren Park the kids gathered in a group exceeding 50 kids without being spaced apart in the ampitheater for a bird demonstration. On other days the kids are bused there in smaller groups and then they all gather together. The camp counselors ARE NOT wearing masks around the children and conducting close interactions with them. Calling 311 to report this with the City, they said Park Rangers have already been out before responding to a previous report Furthermore the kids are allowed to use the public restroom with adults not associated with the camp unsupervised. If you have a child enrolled or think about enrolling your child in this camp you need to question their ability to care for your child. read more

Parents of Autistic children beware. Take your kids somewhere they will be accepted and safe. Not a place for your child if you're not ok with discrimination. I was incredibly traumatized and disappointed in the lack of care and professionalism that every single person on staff demonstrated while my son was in camp. I cannot imagine what my 4 yr old kid felt while he was there. He didn't even last a full session block. My child is not a high support needs child, yet the Campers, site manager and OWNER were all dismissive and unwilling to ensure my son was properly accommodated.. I spoke several times to the lead campers on how to redirect him when needed and we were made to feel excluded and under valued. In fact when I spoke to the owner he was extremely defensive and gaslit me the entire time while on the phone and told me I should take him to another camp for special needs, told me I should be GRATEFUL for him bc they have me a scholarship.... Even though it wasn't a full ride, and had absolutely nothing to do with the situation. They claim they have experience with "Neurodivergent children" when they didnt do a damn thing to accommodate him. They told us my son couldn't come back after we literally spoke about a game plan for how they would accommodate him and didn't even try. Your child is safer in other people's care, such a shame and a total disgrace of a camp read more

Tree Frog Treks offers supremely inventive summer camps for kids K-5 with a focus on science and nature. Kids meet up in Golden Gate Park and then disseminate into groups- or over-the-bridge organized day trips- to spend lots and lots of time outdoors hiking, exploring, collecting, drawing and creating art from objects in nature. Every week has a theme (this week was "Climate Pirates, 21st Century Conservationists!") with events and activities organized around that week's theme. Whether it's getting your kids excited about nature and the ecosystem by dressing up as pirates and picking up trash as "booty" to see what can be reduced/reused/recycled or a day trip to Pescadero to learn about watersheds, every day is a fun adventure. I've never seen my child get so dirty or have so much fun outdoors. A very talented staff of counselors insures your child is safe and well-cared for. All seem to have college degrees in biology and the sciences- and all are early 20-something's to keep up with energetic groups of youngsters. (I couldn't do it!) There are 7 groups (from Roly Polies to Pythons), broken up by age group in groups of about 16 children. 2015 cost was $425/week for full day camp 9am-4pm. There is before and after camp care for an extra, reasonable cost. I highly recommend this smart, fun, high energy camp that will both happily engage and exhaust your little darlings! read more

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Initially nervous about sending my non-athletic son to this camp, he ended up having a great time exploring, building a fort with tree branches and climbing trees. The counselors found ways to keep the kids engaged, educated (about science and nature) and most importantly keeping them active (every day involved trekking to a different part of the park). read more

My daughter has been attending TFT for the past 6 months and has absolutely LOVED it. The McLaren camp is entirely outdoors and is a mix of chillaxing on the hill with TFT's own reptiles, snakes and turtles... then eventually hiking to explore trees, wildlife, anything really. They have a good ratio of campers to counselors and communication with them is super easy if you need to drop off late or pick up early. There are CoVid protocols in place (masks at all times and hand sanitizer) so my anxious mind was immediately at ease... my daughter has been attending since Oct 2020 and we're sad our time together is wrapping up. Highly recommended! read more

This is the best special education and summer camp around! My kids look forward to it every year and it just gets better with the Teen summer camp! Chris Giorni, the founder, is high positive energy, highly intelligent, and highly loveable! You can't help but just want to hang out with this guy! And if you do get the chance to hang out with him you will learn more about reptiles, amphibians, well any animal then you ever thought of! He keeps the kids active and learning with his motto, "Science is everywhere!" He has the coolest animals and places to go to explore, learn, and have the most fun of the kids summer! read more

A few years ago, when my daughter was about 6, she did a TFT summer program in GGP. She enjoyed it and was happy to go each morning. On the 4th afternoon I got a call that she had been stung by a wasp and wasn't feeling great; would I mind coming to get her early? I left work and headed over. When I arrived I learned that she had inadvertently sat on a wasps' nest. Okay, it happens. She had been stung not once, but several times, and those stings were where you might expect if you were sitting on a wasps' nest - her bottom and genitals. (Makes me want to curl up in a fetal position just thinking about it!) So here is why they get only two stars: because checking the injured area and removing the stingers and the 2 (by now, thankfully dead wasps) would have involved removing her underwear, the counselors - even the female ones - opted not to do it, but to wait until I could get there some 45 minutes after they called me and have me do it. They thought it would be open to "misinterpretation!" I mean, really? You are charged with ensuring a child's safety and you are too worried about how looking "down there" might appear to actually provide basic First Aid? You even spoke to me by phone and neither mentioned this nor asked my permission to examine her? No thanks. No amount of fun could make up for deliberately opting to not provide basic care and thereby endangering my child. read more

I was a nanny for a boy awhile back, and he went to this camp for three summers in a row. I have nothing but respect for the staff, quality, and freedom of this camp. The staff are so involved with the children and truly love what they do, everything is perfectly structured, and what more could a child want than exploring, learning, discovering, playing, and building friendships. read more

Tree Frog Treks is the best. We have hired them several times for years at our school. I have also been lucky to attend events at libraries with my own family where they were present. The staff is so professional, responsive, warm, great with kids, knowledgeable, and have such an infectious love and care for animals, the outdoors, science and the environment. I tend to be weary and try to balance a love for animals with how we use them for our own entertainment (aka zoos). But it's clear the team here have a mission to serve animals and really care for them as generous as they can. I haven't used it myself but have also heard great things from our families about their summer camps. read more

My 6 year old daughter is somewhat of a Tree Frog Treks groupie. She has done the summer camps, the after school programs and the kids play nights. And she has loved it all. If you have a kid who loves nature and relishes the chance to get up and personal with snakes, lizards and other creepy crawlies, then this is heaven. Let's put it this way: my daughter has never not loved a TFT anything. She always wants to go back, stay longer or do it again. read more

Tree Frogs Treks is a great program and they offer an AMAZING camp experience! My two children have gone for three summers and they love it! The counselors are helpful, knowledgeable, professional and fun. They do interesting science experiments that fascinate and educate the kids. The animals they bring are always a big hit and the counselors work with the kids on handling them properly and taking care of them. I am also impressed with how patient the teachers are with the kids. They are great at explaining everything and always work with the kids on safety with the experiments and animals. If your kids love nature, animals, getting dirty and having fun -- Tree Frog Treks is for you! read more

This was our child's first year at Tree Frog Trek camp and he loved it! Kids hike around Golden Gate Park and learn about Flora and Fauna. Best of all, they really are outside all day! The kids climb trees, look for bugs and handle snakes, lizards and other critters that are brought in by the instructors. All instructors are awesome; N. will be back! read more

This camp is like Wild Kratts but in real life! Our daughter comes home every day full of stories and new wondrous facts about the natural world. The counselors are dedicated and long-term employees, not like other camps. read more

Tree Frog Treks has one of the best summer camps in town! By far it's my son's favorite camp every year. They spend the day outside exploring, learning about nature, about our city, about the environment and doing all sorts of science experiments. The camp leaders are qualified, competent, kind, educated and totally engaged in the children's learning. While it's one of the more expensive camps it's truly worth it! read more

Let me know your opinion on the following scenario: It's a nice day at the local park and there is summer camp spending the day at that park. There's approximately ~15 kids ages ranging from about 3-5 there. There are 4 supervisors monitoring the children when a stranger walks up to you (you:adult not associated with the group) holding a dead squirrel and asks you if you have lost a "cat." (Referring to the squirrel). You respond with "no" and the stranger walks up to a group of the kids holding the dead squirrel by it's tail with a napkin. The supervisors of the group then proceed to let the children touch the squirrel with their bare hands and the supervisors turn their back on the children for a few minutes. Meanwhile, the stranger (who may or may not be associated with the group) let's the children touch the squirrel. The children then proceed to play after touching the squirrel without sanitizing their hands in any way. Now that above, is the situation that happened today. I was an adult by stander (the person who said no) to this situation. This was EXTREMELY appalling to me. I 100% understand this a science camp (Science rocks :) ), but my concern is that the children were touching a dead squirrel that could carry diseases and germs that could be passed onto the children. It was a real health concern. Gloves seem to be appropriate or at least proper hand washing post touching a dead animal! Children tend to rub their eyes and put their hands in their mouth! That's a HEALTH HAZARD! Also, the children seemed to be running around without proper situation. The supervisors seemed to always have their backs turned! read more

Beware that this past weekend the Tree Frog Trek Science group was hired to come to a birthday party for our fellow parents' 6-yo child. We attended the party...The parents hired the science guys who showed how to create mini rockets out of film canisters and baking soda etc. Towards the end they demonstrated launching larger plastic soda bottles using air pressure (pumped up with a bike tire pump while the bottle was locked in a base launcher device). The soda bottles did launch quite high (over 100 feet)...until a disastrous event occurred...the final plastic bottle was pressurized and exploded before it could be released. A piece of the bottom blew out and flew into the chin of a nearby party guest (6-yo girl who was standing a few feet away watching the expected launch). The shrapnel tore into her chin and she bled quite badly --- 911 was called and the party ended very abruptly as paramedics arrived to help stop the bleeding. She ended up in the hospital that afternoon with seven stitches. Tip: Avoid any such "science package" when booking with this company. WE LOVE their services usually...just need to know about the "rocket launching" --- no more!!!! read more

We had an amazing time with Taj, Tony, and Jorge at Mount Diablo. It was a guided tour for my friend's birthday, and these guys were informative and fun to hike with. I highly recommend booking a guided tour with Tree Frog Treks, it's a totally different experience than hiking on your own. For instance, I probably would never have noticed the baby rattlesnake we saw on the side of the trail :) read more

Have dropped my kid for the Saturday night programs and also an excellent one-day photo camp, they seem to hire enthusiastic, fun counselors who definitely like kids, nature and the outdoors. Wonderful program that has added much science education to our city. read more

What an amazing way to engage kids in learning about the natural world. Fun, playful, safe, creative space and activities that build interest in the outdoors. You'll love it! read more

This is seriously the most amazing science exposure for you kids. It's brilliantly low-brow and has a lot of local naturalist info weaved into the curriculum. My son has experienced a truly enriching experience as opposed to being simply entertained. They are all dedicated, spirited, and talented teachers over there! read more

Tree Frog Treks is both a parents and child's dream!!! I cannot say enough about this one-of-kind program that Mr. Science has developed and runs for kids. All our kids love him, the activities, the adventures-and they even sing the Tree Frog Treks songs all year long. And we, as parents, love that we can rest assured knowing that our little loved ones are in excellent hands with kind, caring, knowledgable, engaging, and awesome trustworthy staff! There are animals, games, experiments, songs, comradery, learning, and all in a FUN environment. If you haven't already checked Tree Frog Treks out...DO IT (your family will thank you)!!!!! read more

My twin boys just finished a week of camp with tree frog treks and I could not be happier. They came home each day dirty (in a good way!), tired and excited to share everything they learned and did. They are talking about when they can go again and said "tree frog treks is the bestest camp". We will certainly schedule more than one week next year. A+ all around! read more

Two of my kids have gone through TFT with different feelings. It is a friendly, chilled out, in the park all day, throw in some science as we walk about, camp. Great for stick-finding, imaginative kids who like independence and don't mind the weather, not so great for kids who need more structure or affection as the counsellors are cool dudes mostly who only respond to major cries for help, not subtle cues. Not your touchy feely camp for sure, but really works for independent outside kids. read more

WHAT FUN = heard them at the Atherton Library, and they were great! Wish we lived in SF so we could take advantage of more the programs they offered. They know how to work with kids, and have fun with the kids. Everyone loved it - even the adults. read more

Highly recommend Tree Frog Treks for its fun and its education. My son loves the summer camps and the one day camps. The staff is great and really let the kids get into what they are doing, learn, lead and have fun. They come home dirty and psyched and my kid knows who Marie Curie is now, which couldn't make me more pleased. read more

TFT is great. The kids get to be scientists and stewards of the environment. It's a great way to be outside, to get dirty, to learn about respecting your natural environment, to touch and interact with things that might otherwise be scary (snakes, bugs etc.) and to have fun. Our guys have been to all kids of TFT iterations in a number of different places and always come back willing to go for more. read more

I am sorry to hear about the bottle rocket accident over the weekend. While this is an unfortunate incident, I don't believe that it is indicative of their exceptionally run programs. Our family has been to several Tree Frog Treks events over the last few years - community outreach events, birthday parties, after school programs & summer camp. Every interaction with TFT has been very positive, if not outstanding. Our child is excited about science & nature - something I was not fortunate enough to be exposed to when I was her age. In a few weeks, she'll be able to participate in their after school enrichment program, and she cannot wait until next summer because that means she'll be able to go to camp all day long. We are lucky to live in a place where our children have access to such an amazing resource. read more

I'm so glad that I booked a guided nature walk with these guys. We spent a beautiful Sunday on Mount Diablo with Tony, Taj and Jorge and hiked for around six hours. I believe that Tree Frog Treks usually just do events like summer camp for kids or family adventure walks, but I'm glad I requested a hike with just me and my non-family, twenty-something year old friends. We learned all kinds of things about plants, butterflies, reptiles, and birds. Although it was pretty dry out, we were still able to see some flowers and quite a bit of wildlife. Also, how often do you get to see grown men run around and catch butterflies with a net or see someone almost get his face get snapped at by a rattlesnake and is still super stoked about the thing or get musk sprayed on you by a beetle that you found by overturning dead logs? Can't say enough good things about these guys. Super nice, really knowledgeable, and they will get you home in time to watch the world cup without feeling at all rushed. read more

This was my 7 year old daughter's first time at TFT Summer Camp in Golden Gate Park. I also have an 11 year old son, so I have seen lots of camps. This one is truly impressive. It is simple, well-planned and the instructors step back so children can take the lead in their own play/learning...She says her favorite thing was "Everything!" See other reviews for examples of activities. She wants to go back next summer. read more

I was in a pinch since my son's kindergarten didn't start until after Labor Day. I enrolled him in the last week of camp and was concerned since I had heard of Tree Frog Treks, but didn't know much about it and didn't have time to do any research. My son has a peanut allergy and so I also wanted to make sure they were conscientious about hygiene. My fears were alleviated immediately when they called to ask about the allergy. My son had an incredible time and learned so much about natural science. I'm sending him back next summer for at least a week and will utilize the Saturday 5:30 - 9:00 evening events for children (parent date night). David and Tony were amazing. A quote from my son "I wish this was my school." read more

Tree Frog Treks came to my son's school- they are awesome!! so wonderful with kids. They had a burmese python who was very mellow, and my son had a bearded dragon sit on his head. What a wonderful experience for them. We have also done their camps in San Francisco and really enjoyed them. read more

Excellent! We tried Saturday kids play night and it was great. Interesting with snakes, lizards, frogs. Everything a young kid could ask for! The teachers seemed friendly and it was in a good location. read more

This is place is great for kids! They teach children to have a great appreciation and respect for nature. We did a birthday party here as well as kid's play night ( great for date night ). Both instances the staff was wonderful and really attentive. We are going to enroll our son in the summer camp program. read more

Our 8 year old daughter loved her month of Tree Frog Trek camps. The days have thoughtful, creative lesson plans which teach kids in an impressively fun way. The camp director Dave is hilarious and camp counselors are friendly and welcoming. Their love of nature and science is contagious. Tree Frog Treks is a great camp experience for school age children. We had initially paid for another summer camp which had no programming and our daughter did not enjoy. Tree Frog Treks gave her wonderful summer memories in Golden Gate Park and surrounding Bay area nature sites. Thank you. read more

I jogged in GGP most fridays. Today, i witnessed a little boy about four years of age standing by himself. Initially, I just ran past him but stopped out of concern. I looked around to figure out to whom this boy may belong to. A man ahead had a stroller with a small child. I thought he may be his son until the man walked away the opposite direction. Another man, also showing concern, questioned who this kid belonged to ass well. We noticed a group of people with signage of Tree Frog around. The man went to talk to the group while I approached the kid. He couldn't tell me his name just that his "mother brought him there". He pointed to the back of his pants and turns out his name was Jaden with a tiger on it. Sure enough, he belonged to the camp group. I ushered him towards the group as a counselor came and retrieved him. Evidently he has been "doing this for three weeks now". The kid was about 700 feet away from the group without an adult eye him. He was also continuing to walk further away to god knows where. This is gross negligent if you ask me. Who's to say he won't encounter a kidnapper if this continues. I called the Tree Frog group and reported my concerns. Hopefully they will do something about it. The children they take on into these camps should have supervision at all times particularly a young child like that. read more

Over the past couple years I have heard nothing but wonderful things concerning tree frog treks. The accident below sounds terrible, but I also hope it does not harm this amazing community resource. read more