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IN PARTNERSHIP WITH STONY CREEK FARMSTEAD
Wake Up with the Cows
NEW JERSEY … TRIP TO NEW YORK FARM … MIXED GENDER GROUPS … AGES 9-12yrs
The exciting outdoor adventure of Trail Blazers meets the thrill of living and working at Stony Creek Farmstead.
The 2024 Farmstead Program is now OPEN for Registration
From the gentle care required to gather fresh eggs, to the rhythmic kneading of making bread by hand, to discerning which vegetables are ready to be harvested, Farmstead Camp gives your campers the opportunity to attune with nature and themselves, while getting back to the basics of farm living.
When a camper signs up for Farmstead Camp, they are signing up for a one-of-a-kind adventure that will open them up to a whole new world.
Camping Adventures
Farmsteaders live in canvas-covered hogans while at Trail Blazers, connecting with nature through the simplicity of a cozy campsite. Our site at Stony Creek is large camping tents set up alongside a trickling stream, with a wide-open view of the starry night sky to blanket us while we sleep.
Hands-on Skill Mastery
Farmstead Camp at Stony Creek provides endless opportunities for experiential learning and curiosity-driven unstructured play, as well as time to hone exciting practical (and interesting!) skills.
Warm Connections
Our smallcamp group of 10 campers is led by three caring group leaders who are passionate about helping your child connect with the outdoors and with their new camp friends. Our mornings begin together, we eat all of our meals family-style, and we end each night singing and sharing around a campfire. With no screens or electronics, our campers can learn how to reconnect with one another. Your camper won’t just come home with lots of new knowledge, they will also come home with lots of new friends.
One hundred thirty-four years is a long time to perfect the art of youth development. Formal metrics confirm what anecdotal reports have always shown us: building strong social and emotional foundations set children up for true long-term success.
Every Trail Blazers program is designed with the same five building blocks – research-backed strategies, seamlessly woven into each day’s plan:
This approach – which looks different every day, within every program, and for every group – delivers a uniquely powerful youth development experience.
Arrive at Trail Blazers to meet your group and group leaders on the first day. Play a million games and sing just as many songs as you get to know each other and settle into small camp.
Eat a delicious dinner together and then gather with your small camp around the pow wow fire, singing songs and planning the week ahead. Settle into your cozy bed on your first night to the sound of your group leader reading a bedtime story while the embers of the campfire crackle and pop.
The first few days of program are full of activities at the Trail Blazers site, with a schedule that you and your smallcamp help put together. For your vagabond, your group will pack tents, sleeping bags, sleeping pads, and other gear for your trip to Stony Creek Farmstead (about 2 hours away from camp). While at Stony Creek, you will become an important part of farm life, helping farmers Kate and Dan with chores such as milking the cow, gathering eggs, and planting seedlings. You could also pick vegetables, pet sheep, feed chickens, and bake bread – there’s so much to do!
You’ll spend 5 days and 4 nights at Stony Creek, on a private campsite surrounded by a trickling creek and dozens of hiking trails that wind around the farm’s 100 acre property.
After breakfast on your last day at the farm you’ll head back to Trail Blazers where you’ll have three more days of camp adventures. What an amazing two weeks it’s been!
A non-exhaustive list of Trail Blazers activities includes:
Archery, Swimming, Canoeing, Row boating, Fishing, Mountain biking, High and Low ropes, Nature crafting, Maker space crafting, Spirit days, Unstructured play, Gardening, Wood Shop, Library book reading, Feeding chickens and goats, Stargazing, Night hikes, Nature journaling, Hiking, Orienteering, Lashing, Shelter building, Fire building, Outdoor cooking,
A non-exhaustive list of Stony Creek Farmstead activities includes:
Bread baking, Cow milking, Herding sheep, Feeding pigs, Farm tours, Sketching and drawing, Planting seeds, Harvesting vegetables, Helping with farm chores, Gathering eggs, Exploring the creek, Cartwheeling, Cooking soup, Making salsa, Making pizza, Making pickles, Creating a dream garden collage, Creek stomping.
Stony Creek Day 1– Arrival at the Farm
12:00 pm – Make your own wrap for lunch with farm-fresh fillings
2:00 pm – Farm tour and exploration: meet the animals, run through the fields, and get acquainted with your campsite
4:00 pm – Afternoon farm chores before dinner
6:30 pm – Farmstead Supper: Chicken or tomato soup, fresh-picked salad, homemade rolls
8:00 pm – Campfire talk “we are what we eat” and Nighttime Campfire
Stony Creek Day 2
6:30 am – Wake up, stretch, and complete your morning farm chores as a team
8:00 am – Farmstead Breakfast of buttermilk pancakes and eggs gathered the day before
9:00 am – Extended farm tour
11:00 am – Free time to blow bubbles, take out a sketch pad, or dip your toes in the creek
12:00 pm – Lunch at the Farmstead: egg salad, hummus, homemade pitas, veggie sticks
1:30 pm – Afternoon work crews: plant seedlings in the garden, weed around vegetables, harvest veggies, start pickles in the kitchen
4:00 pm – free time with friends before prepping for supper
6:00 pm – Campsite dinner: bean chili, fresh bread, tomato/cucumber/basil salad
8:00 pm – Nighttime Campfire and bedtime
Stony Creek Day 3
6:30 am – Farm Chores
8:00 am – Farmstead Breakfast: breakfast burritos and fresh milk
9:00 am – Morning work crew
12:00 pm – Picnic lunch and hike with Trail Blazers staff
4:00 pm – Help in farm kitchen prepping pizza night supper
6:00 pm – Pizza night supper and campfire! (A BIG hit with all the campers!)
8:00 pm – Nighttime Campfire
Stony Creek Day 4
6:30 am – Farm Chores
8:00 am – Campsite Breakfast of soaked oatmeal, farm-made yogurt, maple syrup, and fruit
9:00 am – Trail Blazer led activity
12:00 pm – Farmstead Lunch of homemade mac & cheese and salads
2:00 pm – Farmstead kitchen activity: bread baking (making rolls for supper), making yogurt
6:00 pm – Farmstead Dinner of hamburgers and hotdogs, summer salads
8:00 pm – Nighttime Campfire
Stony Creek Day 5
6:30 am – Farm Chores
8:00 am – Campsite Breakfast of soaked oatmeal, buckwheat, farm-made yogurt, maple syrup, and fruit
9:00 am – Orienteering game
12:00 pm – Lunch at the Campsite: soup and bread
1:30 pm – Afternoon work crews: garden work, trail maintenance, work with animals
4:00 pm – Free time with friends/Trail Blazers activity
6:00 pm – Farmstead Dinner: bean and cheese burritos with fresh salsa
8:00 pm – Nighttime Campfire
Stony Creek Day 6
Final goodbyes!
Depart after breakfast – return to Trail Blazers
Stony Creek Farmstead is owned and worked by Kate and Dan Marsiglio, who live on the farm with their two children. Since 2005 they have been growing vegetables, meat, and eggs for sale, and adhere to rigorous free-range, organic, pasturing, loving practices for all of their animals.
Along with farming and selling their products, Kate and Dan welcome guests of all ages to their farm to participate in day camps, farm stays, workshops, and apprenticeships. Theirs is a farm full of love, learning, and laughter — and they can’t wait for your camper to join them this summer!
Farmstead Camp at Stony Creek is open to boys and girls entering grades 3-7, who will be 8-12 years old this summer.
This two-week program is held during each session of the Overnight Camp, running from Sunday through Friday of the following week.
Session 1: June 28 – July 12
Session 2: July 15 – July 29
Session 3: August 1 – August 15
All Trail Blazers programs are offered on a tier basis, loosely linked to family income. Your tier is self-selected during the application process.
Tier 1 (<$50k) = $800
Tier 2 ($50-75k) =$1280
Tier 3 ($75-100k) = $1920
Tier 4 (>$100k) = $2720
Full Price = $3200
Please note that additional scholarships on top of the tier rates are not available for this program at this time.
Enrolling and Payment
A 30% deposit is required upon registration. Payment in full is due May 1. A 5% administrative fee is charged for all Trail Blazers programs.
During registration, you can set up an automatic payment plan or choose to make payments manually. Please email us at registration@trailblazers.org if you have questions or would like to discuss payment arrangements.
We strive to make camp accessible to all! If you cannot access the registration system online, please contact our registration team to enroll over the phone or to schedule an in-person appointment.
This policy has been updated to reflect the operational and financial realities of operating our program and aims to strike the right balance between ensuring the financial stability of the organization, our ability to support and underwrite families who need it most and prepare for the summer in the most effective way.
Please note: Preparing for camp programs is a year-long endeavor, with substantial full-time staff working to prepare safe and exciting camping experiences. Our refund policy reflects the expenses associated with this.
Learn more about Trail Blazers other overnight camp programs! We focus on small group living experiences and environmental engagement, with challenging adventures driven by camper choice and interest. No two sessions are ever the same! Programs are available for children ages 6 through 17.
Trail Blazers also offers a day camp based out of Brooklyn’s Prospect Park, with three drop off/pick up locations and aftercare available until 6 pm. This exciting, play-based program takes us all over the park, on field trips through New York City, and even up to our overnight camp for day trips to explore the forest. Choose the days that work for you, and know that whether your child is with us for one week or the full summer, they will be with the same consistent, caring group leaders throughout.
Learn more about Stony Creek Farmstead, owned and worked by three generations of the Marsiglio family. In addition to raising and selling meat, eggs, and vegetables both at their farm and delivered throughout the tri-state area, the farm is also the perfect place to escape the hustle in rustic and relaxing platform tents.
why choose us
Two fantastic programs come together to offer your camper one amazing experience! Our adventure begins at the beautiful forested grounds of Trail Blazers. Our days are filled with outdoor adventures guided by the interests of the group. They will enjoy biking, hiking, canoeing, campfires, archery, swimming, high ropes, and nature crafts…just to name a few! Then, we journey to Stony Creek Farmstead, nestled in the Catskills in the town of Walton, NY. We’ll milk the cows, herd the sheep, work in the garden, plant seeds and seedlings. We will play and explore the barn, the farm, the creek, and wooded trails leading to fantastic vistas. We will prepare our own meals and see what “Farm-to-Table” looks like up close. It is a program full of new experiences and a deeper understanding of life outside of the city. Join us!
What Our Parents say
“My daughter helped grow and cultivate veggies….and then she ATE them. And she liked it! She likes to eat healthier now, and that is a practice I have always wanted to instill in my child.” ~ Parent
“The farm program was an amazing experience for our son. He is a city kid and had never been close to farm animals. I couldn’t believe it when he wrote a letter home and said he milked a cow.” ~ Parent
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