The best way to become familiar with Camp O-AT-KA is to visit during the season. You can call the Camp office to make arrangements for a tour. If possible, families interested in camp should visit the summer prior to their son’s first anticipated season. The Leadership team are always happy to answer any questions and share our informational materials. You can arrange for a personal visit from the Executive Director who can give you a more in depth idea about camp and answer any questions in your own home. We can also provide parent references so you can speak with a current family. Request info by completing our online form, calling 207-787-3401 or e-mailing us at info@campoatka.org.

The “right” age can vary greatly among boys. In our experience, one of the best indicators is the attitude of your son. If he is expressing interest and says he is ready, then he is probably right. We will accept campers as young as age 8, but most boys begin Camp O-AT-KA at age 9 or even 10. We view the opportunity to have your son at camp as an investment and hope that once he has experienced a summer at Camp O-AT-KA, he will return for countless summers thereafter.

In our experience, we have found that sending your child away to camp is harder on the parents than the children. Summer camp is a gift you are giving your child to give him an opportunity to develop coping skills on his own, build independence and confidence, self reliance and social skills that he will use throughout his life. A few tips we have found to be helpful include: involving your son in the decision to spend time at camp, give him as much control over the process of preparing for camp, talking about what to anticipate at camp, meeting staff or other campers before the opening day of camp when possible, and using a calendar to show the length of time your son will be away. We find most importantly that parents need to be careful in expressing their own anxieties or ambivalence to their son. Do not make a “pick up plan” or any deal with your son that you will bring him home if he does not like camp. This sends the message that you as the parent do not have confidence in your son’s ability to be on his own, and sets an expectation in his mind that he won’t like camp before he ever tries it.

We also know from research published by the American Academy of Pediatrics Council that what parents say beforehand is critical. Talking about homesickness does not cause it, but how a child is prepared to be away from home can make a significant difference. Also know that if your son is consistently homesick, our staff will contact you and consult you in how we are helping your son through this transition.

Each Unit (Junior, Middle, Senior) is overseen by a Unit Head, that reports to our Summer Director. There are 2 to 3 counselors in each cabin of 6 to 10 campers and additional non-cabin staff and members of the leadership team. Our cabins differ in size but the average is one counselor to every three campers.

As a robust non-profit, we are proud to offer aid to Camp O-AT-KA to enable some campers to be with us who could not otherwise be able to come. For information, please call 207-787-3401.

ACA accreditation means that Camp O-AT-KA complies with approximately 300 standards – including staff qualifications and training, water safety procedures, food services, health care, operational practices and emergency management.

ACA’s nationally-recognized standards program focuses primarily on the program quality, health and safety aspects of a camp’s operation. Accreditation indicates total commitment to health and safety and the highest quality experience for its campers.

Camp O-AT-KA has been accredited since the process started in 1974 and the most recent accreditation visit was done in 2023 and is valid for 5 years.

​Visit the American Camp Association website to learn more about accreditation.