Inside Basin’s Summer Climbing Camps

Inside Basin’s Summer Climbing Camps: What Your Kid Does All Week 

Every summer there’s a kid who shows up to camp on Monday morning hiding behind a parent’s leg, convinced they can’t climb. By Thursday, that same kid is coaching the new friend next to them through a route, yelling encouragement like they’ve been climbing for years. 

That’s the whole point of camp at Basin, and it’s why we run a full slate of them every summer at our gym in Hewitt. 

What camp looks like 

Camp runs Monday through Thursday for kids ages 6 to 13, with some options for 5-year-olds as well. Your kid will spend the week with Basin coaches in a small group; each day a mix of real climbing instruction with games, challenges, and the kind of activities that turn a group of strangers into a crew by Wednesday. 

First-timers and experienced climbers are both welcome; no experience required. Coaches meet each kid where they are, so the 6-year-old who’s never touched a wall and the 11-year-old who climbs every weekend both leave better than they came. 

All climbing gear is included. Shoes, harness, everything. You don’t need to buy a thing. 

What your kid gets out of it 

Tired legs and a big smile, for starters. But climbing gives kids something most summer activities don’t, a place where trying and falling and trying again is the whole point. Every route is a puzzle, and kids learn fast that falling off a wall isn’t failing; it’s information. They figure out what to do differently and go again. 

One of our young members, Thomas, put it better than we could: “It is so fun, and it makes you a lot stronger! It has so many climbs that you can do easy and hard.” 

And it’s all screen-free, air-conditioned, and supervised by coaches who do this because they love watching kids surprise themselves. 

The practical stuff