Where is Echo Lake Located? Camp Echo Lake is located in the Southern Adirondack Mountains, about 3.5 hours north of New York City. Where do campers come from? Our campers come from all across the country and even from around the world. Though the majority of our campers come from the Northeastern United States, we have campers attending Echo Lake from Florida, California, Canada, Japan and France! How long is camp? Does everyone start and finish at the same time? Echo Lake runs one session of 51 days for all of our campers, so all of our campers start and finish camp at the same time. How do campers get to camp? We provide luxury coaches from the New York Metropolitan area and Montreal, Canada for campers from those areas. Campers traveling from outside those areas typically arrive by plane at the Albany Airport, which is only 60 minutes from camp. What is included in tuition? Included in the Echo Lake tuition is canteen, linens and laundry, all day trips and bus transportation to and from camp. The only additional charges are to transport luggage to and from camp and for Senior Village extended trips (4 to 28 days in length). Is Echo Lake a uniform camp? Echo Lake neither requires a uniform nor any dressy clothes. Though prospective parents sometimes are concerned that a lack of a uniform may increase competition among campers, surveys we have done with Echo Lake parents consistently tell us that our camp culture strongly plays down that kind of competition, which parents truly appreciate. How many campers attend Echo Lake and how is the camp structured? Approximately 425 campers attend Echo Lake each summer, with campers entering 3rd through 7th grades living in our Main Village—which is divided into Boys Main Village and Girls Main Village, and campers entering 8th through 10th grades living in our Senior Village. Campers entering 11th grade—our Leaders-In-Training—live in our Main Village as well. How is the food at camp? The food at camp is good—and there is plenty of variety at each meal so campers and staff always have lots of choices. In addition, fresh fruit is available throughout the day in our Main Village Dining Hall. We have a vegetarian and salad bar available at every lunch and dinner. Who can I talk to when I have a question or concern? We are always ready and able to help you with any concern you have – and if we don’t have an immediate answer for you, we will put the right person on the phone, or get back to you as soon as we can with an answer. During the summer, our phones are picked up by our very helpful and seasoned Office Staff, led by Catherine Luiggi (her son Stefan attends camp) and Amy Leopold (her daughters Molly and Rachel attend camp). They will either help get you an answer or direct your call to Director Tony Stein, our Associate Director Laurie Rinke, or whomever will be best suited to assist you. What if I—or my child—becomes a little apprehensive about the upcoming summer? We are here to help! Sometimes a friendly voice from our office may be what would be helpful - or perhaps you might like the name and number of another parent who recently has finished their first season with Echo Lake. We can provide names and numbers of other campers—new or returning—in your area so your child can make a new camp friend even prior to the start of camp. In the spring, we host a New Parent Night for first-time Echo Lake parents. It is a wonderful opportunity to help you prepare yourself and your child for his or her first summer at Echo Lake! We also have a Big Brother/Big Sister program for new campers and host a New Camper picnic in the spring, where new campers get to meet other new campers. All these programs are designed to make the transition into Echo Lake and easy one—and a fun one!