Our Teen Camps often span several ages and grade levels. Please pay attention to programs with specific age or grade requirements!
Teen Camps
Outdoor Adventures Survival Skills Camp
Brought to you by UC Davis Outdoor Adventures
Outdoor Adventures Survival Skills Camp (Ages 12–14)
*Requires Additional Van Transport*
👉 Note specific age range
9 am - 3 pm
$325 |
Hosted by Outdoor Adventures, this week-long skills camp focuses on hands-on survival skills, outdoor recreation, and teamwork. Campers will learn how to set up shelters, practice essential survival techniques, and develop navigation skills while also exploring outdoor activities like rock climbing, paddling, and orienteering.
Each day, campers will practice a new skill, cool off in the pool, and challenge themselves on the climbing wall, all while building confidence, resilience, and a deeper appreciation for the outdoors. The camp will take place on the UC Davis campus daily.
Offerings
Week 5 | OUTSS5 | July 21 - 25 |
Junior Lifeguard
Brought to you by the UC Davis Aquatics Department
Junior Lifeguarding (Ages 12–14)
👉 Note specific age range
9 am - 1:30 pm
$300 |
The Junior Lifeguarding program is open to preteens and teens ages 12-14 with high-level swimming ability. A swim test will be given the first day. The focus of the program is to give participants an introduction to the basic skills of lifeguarding, including hands-only CPR, first aid, rescue techniques, recognizing and responding to emergency situations, and the responsibilities of lifeguarding. This class will prepare the participant for American Red Cross Lifeguard Training (but is NOT the certification course). Class is one week long, Monday through Friday. Participants will receive a whistle and a Junior Lifeguard T-shirt.
View the weekly schedule here:

Offerings
Week 3 | AQUAT1 | July 7 - 11 |
Week 7 | AQUAT7 | August 4 - 8 |
Bio Boot Camps
Brought to you by the Bohart Museum of Entomology and the UCD Museum of Wildlife & Fish Biology
Bio Boot Camp - Coastal (Grades 7–9)
✅ Applications for 2025 are available!
​​​​​​Modified schedule, see below
$475
Together with the UCD Museum of Wildlife & Fish Biology and Campus Recreation Youth Programs we launched Bio Boot Camp in 2011, a camp for junior high aged students who are interested in the natural sciences. There is limited enrollment and so we ask that the students themselves be part of the enrollment process. This is a day camp from 9:00 am-3:00 pm on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday based at UC Davis. Thursday is Juneteenth, a holiday and so there will be no camp that day. Then on Friday morning we travel to UC Davis Bodega Bay Field Station on the coast. We return to Davis on Saturday afternoon by 5:00 pm.
Bio Boot Camp overview
We get to know each other, play games, explore the UC Davis campus, and go behind the scenes at the two host museums: the Bohart Museum of Entomology and the Museum of Wildlife and Fish Biology. We go deep into standard museum practices from collecting data to preparing specimens including invertebrates and vertebrates. This can be hands-on or observational based on individual student's preferences. We also spend time outside mucking around in local streams, catching insects, observing birds and exploring nature with guest scientists. Bring a change of clothes and a sense of adventure! Friday morning the vans get loaded with campers and gear and we visit the Bodega Bay UC Reserve and Field Station to compare the nature and biodiversity of the Central Valley to the California coast. We stay at the field station and eat in the dining hall. We put into practice everything we learned at camp and we have a lot of fun while doing it.
Offerings
Week 0* (There will not be camp on Juneteenth 6/19) | BBCCT0 | June 16-21 |
Bio Boot 2.0 (Grades 10–12)
✅ Applications for 2025 are available!
​​​​​​Modified schedule, see below
$1200
Together the Bohart Museum of Entomology, UCD Museum of Wildlife & Fish Biology, and Campus Recreation launched Bio Boot Camp 2.0 in 2013 after much enthusiasm from Bio Boot Campers who graduated out of the junior high program. The camp spans 7 days and 6 nights, so Sunday at 1:00 pm to Saturday at 2:00 pm. Pick-up and drop-off will be at the museums on the UC Davis Campus. The first day the students drive up to the mountains in vans to get to know the ecology of the Sierra and each other and settle in at the UC Berkeley's Sagehen Creek Field Station outside of Truckee, CA . There the campers will conduct a group project and mini individual project and explore the area and discuss college and career paths. However, this is still camp, so there are wandering hikes, exploring Lake Tahoe, silly games, and a lot of fun throughout. We will be stopping at the UC Davis campus on Friday for part of the day to tour the museums and the campus before traveling to UC Davis Quail Ridge Field Station outside of Winters, CA for the last night of camp. Campers will get to compare the Sierra to the Central Valley, prepare for their presentations and have their costumed dinner party. Transportation (vans), housing (cabins for 6 nights and open "safari" group tents for the last night) and food will be provided (we do our best to accommodate diverse dietary needs), but campers will be expected to help prepare group meals and clean-up after themselves. This camp has an enrollment of 10 students and 3 instructors.
Offerings
Week 5 | BBCTT8 | July 20 - 26 |
*NOTE: Week 2 (June 30 - July 4) will NOT have camp programming scheduled for July 4th. The price will be prorated during registration.