Echo Hill is my favorite place in the entire world. The food is amazing, the activities, especially water ones like water skiing / sailing, are always fun, and the staff and administration are some of the nicest people I have ever met. However all of this is nothing compared to the closeness shared with camp friends. I have bonds with camp friends stronger than anything I have ever experienced at home, and some of these friends I only knew for 2 weeks. At first it was a bit strange to shower with peers, but after a few days, it became a bonding experience: something shared between brothers. Time at camp is filled with love for peers and appreciation for life itself. EHC has affected my life and personality for the better in more ways than anything else in my life. It is the best thing that has ever happened to me and I recommend it to everyone. P.S.-Don't worry if you are worried about the prospect of sleep away camp - I am more campsick now than I ever was homesick at camp
Hi my name is Joseph Stith, I have been going to Echo hill since I was 8 in 2006. I love this place. I spend my whole (8 weeks) summer at camp. I've gone to Disneyland and Europe but nothing can top Echo Hill. The camp is a welcoming place. Everyone acts like a family all is peaceful. People come from all around the world China, France and Russia. It is very easy to meet friends. I went to another camp which was a YMCA camp called camp silver beach. It was very hard to meet friends and you basically only did stuff with your cabin mates they were also very strict on rule. But at this camp it is very easy to meet friends and camp enforces rules but in a good way there not strict. They also have great activities like water skiing, sailing and many more. If you ever need a place to send your child this is the place. The first three days will be a little hard but by Friday the wish they are not going to want to leave. In 2014 It will be my last summer as a camper and it will be the best !
This camp is like a family. There is so much love there. The waterfront activities are awesome, including water skiing, sailing and crabbing. The staff all love being there and make sure that the campers do to. It is definitely a rustic camp, but this just adds to the fun. I think that kids at this camp get to be themselves.
I went to Echo Hill as a child and nothing has made us happier than to send our son to Echo Hill. He was a camper for 6 years and has worked there for 4 years. Our son counts the days until camp starts every summer and we count the days until we have reunions! Echo Hill is the best.
I spent 7 summers of my life at Echo Hill, 4 as a camper and 3 as a counselor. There is no better place in the world. In just one day you walk barefoot to breakfast, tie dye every white shirt you came with, learn to throw a frisbee, shoot a bow and arrow, trail your toes in the water as the wind fills your sails, search the swim area for cold floating sodas, and water ski around the bay. At night you laugh at a lip sync contest, play a camp wide game of capture the flag, or splat huge amounts of paint on life size paper. But that’s not even the best part. Echo Hill is a place to be accepted for who you are, free from the outside world’s expectations and distractions. It’s a place to stay up at night whispering with the best friends you’ll ever make. And even now when I visit, so many years later, Echo Hill just feels like home. You can’t put a price on memories and experiences, but Echo Hill is worth every penny.
I went to this camp for 7 years. It is a wonderful place that helped me become who I am today. I made lifelong friends and learned many skills such as sailing and water skiing that I still enjoy doing many years later. There is a great deal of independence allowed to the campers in that they can choose what they want to do every day. This independence is sometimes received poorly by some, but overall I found this to be a wonderful way for me to find myself and my interests while still being in a safe environment. The staff are all well trained and most of them are once campers and understand what the kids want to create a great experience. If you are out going and willing to try new things, going to echo hill is one of the best decisions you could make.
I just referred a family to Echo Hill and am confident they will love it . My son has attended ECH for many years and has thoroughly enjoyed his time there. The leadership, counselors and peers are outstanding. Activities are well organized and well done. My son has developed his love of the outdoors and his community skills while attending ECH. He has also enjoyed many ongoing friendships made at camp.In short, the camp and staff mean a great to our family!
As one of 7 children we all went to Echo Hill Camp for varying amounts of time. I was a camper for five years and a counselor for four. Some of my brothers went for as many as 13 years. As a result of my experiences there, all three of my children are counselors now. There was never a doubt that they would go to Echo Hill. The best way to describe the experience for me is that it was the best time of my life and my favorite place ever. I can, without hesitation recommend Echo Hill to any parent that is looking for a wonderful experience for their child to return to year after year.I live in Northern Virginia and am happy to talk to anyone with questions about Echo Hill. The detail to the safety and wellbeing of the children is their top priority, as well as providing the happiest experience for your child being paramount.
I have been going to this camp for many years and it is undoubtedly the best summer camp there is. The staff is always helpful and super nice. The facilities are fine. The activities are outstanding including sailing, waterskiing, crabbing, many landsports, and more. The personal attention is great and if a child is homesick they get all the attention they need. Overall, this camp is unbelievably awesome and no words can explain the greatness of this camp.
I loved Echo Hill and spent 11 summers there after my parents tried many other camps in the MD/DC/VA area. The camp offers a rustic outdoor experience with a focus on the waterfront. It features a pristine Chesapeake shoreline and open-air canvas tents. Children have the freedom to choose their daily activities within a structured 5-period schedule. For example, I could sign up for sailing (highly recommended given the location), waterskiing, and soccer all in the same morning, then do different activities in the afternoon and the next day. Most campers return year after year, and almost all of the counselors were campers themselves. It was by far the most formative experience of my childhood -- instilling in me a love for the outdoors, an appreciation of community and friendship, and the ability to express myself creatively and comfortably.
Echo Hill is a place I hold near and dear to my heart. I grew up there as a child and spent 12 summers there as a camper and counselor. EHC is a truly unique camp; it's family run and most of the staff attended as kids, it's rustic, beautiful, and full of people that love being there. It's a place were the magic of childhood happens on the Eastern Shore. Each day the campers choose what they want to do, encouraging them to try new things. From water skiing to sailing to landsports to art center to drama to lifeguard training, you really can't get bored. The food is great and Miss Cindy is the best! I really can't say enough good things about this place- I mean, I met my husband there when I was 12 and all of my best friends, even now, are from EHC. It's a summer place like none other. Call anyone on the reference list and they might keep you on the phone for hours! Simply put: Send your kids! They'll be well cared for and have a BLAST!
My kids have gone here for 7-8 years, and I can't say enough good things about Echo Hill. The kids literally count down the days (and then hours!) on Facebook until camp starts. Especially recommended for kids who love water-related activities--it's in a gorgeous setting right on the Chesapeake Bay. Sailing, water-skiing, etc. are well taught and much enjoyed. Best of all is the overall culture and attitude: very inclusive, non-judgmental, and welcoming. Counselors come from all over, and genuinely care about their campers. Be aware: Echo Hill calls itself a "rustic" camp. This means it's not a 5-star hotel. Tents have wood floors but no walls—canvas covers and mosquito nets. Most kids don't wear shoes very often, and get bug bites. It's a very outdoors-oriented place. No texting, no smart phones or other digital devices—a blissfully unplugged summer. My kids enjoy their creature comforts the rest of the year, but they don't even miss them at camp. They're too busy having fun with
The time I spent at Echo Hill could never be replaced. Long summer days filled awesome activities. I learned how to sail, swim, tour mysteries, pick crabs, dance like a nut, play in a rock and roll band, throw a Frisbee, and make life long friends (to name a few). I would recommend attending, working or being a part of this awesome community in any way you can. Long Live Echo Hill!
I spent 6 of my happiest summers at Echo Hill. When my daughter was old enough I sent her too, as did many of my friends and relatives. Echo Hill is not a place, it's a frame of mind. Campers can be themselves without being judged, learn new skills, gain confidence and make lifelong friends. Most return year after year, generation after generation. A beautiful location and safe environment, I recommend Echo Hill to anyone who wants to enrich their child's life experience.
EHC is the best! It is small, family run and counselors come back year after year with a large majority having been campers themselves (many actually had parents who were campers and counselors!) I was a camper for 5 summers and worked for 5 more. I made lifelong friendships both as a camper and counselor with people of all ages. I viewed my counselors as role models, and still am in touch with them today. I came back for many years in large part due to the relationships I had formed with my own campers who I saw grow up from 11 and 12 year olds to 16 year old girls. In addition to the invaluable relationships I formed, nothing can compare to the location and activities echo hill has to offer. I learned to water ski & sail on the gorgeous Chesapeake Bay and then got to teach these skills to campers. This is truly a special place run by the amazing Rice family and I recommend it to everyone!! I hope one day I can send my kids to echo hill so they can have the same experience I did!
I was a camper for seven years at Echo Hill and was profoundly changed for the better by my experiences there. The staff was caring, supportive, and excited to be there. They knew how to handle every situation from homesickness to helping a camper learn to swim. I learned how to sail and water ski at Echo Hill and the memories I made there are the best of my life. I also met my best friends at camp and, 4 years later, am still close with them. This place is truly magical and I hope to one day send my own children there.
Over the past 13 years, I have sent my three children to Echo Hill Camp. Echo Hill came highly recommended from friends who had sent their children there as well as from my daughter's private school. Echo Hill has provided a safe and nurturing summer experience for my children: My children are part of the Echo Hill family and have dear friends from all over the country and the world. Echo Hill has wonderful, dedicated, and highly trained counselors and staff. My kids learned water sports and are now avid water skiers and sailors; my kids also participated in art, crabbing, archery, soccer, beach and mud explorations, and swimming (to name a few)! The camp management (Pete, Libby, Penny, Katie, Julie, Lieke) have always been wonderfully responsive and do a wonderful job of providing a camp community where the campers become independent learners while in a structured and safe environment. Echo Hill is an important part of my children’s and my family’s life! We love you!!!
I attended Echo Hill for 8 summers as camper and worked for another 8 summers. During my time as a camper I loved the activities, particularly all of the water sports, and became and avid sailor and water skier. I learned technical skills, that used later on staff and I continue to use to this day, all while having fun. Beyond the activities was the social aspect, my best friends are from Echo Hill and I can still contact anyone from there out-of-the-blue and have an instant connection despite the all years that have passed. I cannot really begin to describe the positive influence Echo Hill has had and continues to have on my live. It is a place where a kid can be a kid, a place were one learns through doing, and a place were lifelong friendships are formed.
This place was great for me! I owe this camp so much for what it taught me about character and leadership. I went to this camp from age 11 to 16 , I think its the reason I became a teacher. Every summer i would sail the different boats they had, and I learned how to ski and wake board. I made so many new friends, that I think it really helped me develop socially. Definitely the better alternative to being stuck in the suburbs all summer.
I went to Echo Hill from 2002-2008, a total of 36 weeks at this wonderful place. My first summer, as a ten year old, I didn’t know anyone. Years later, I had developed friendships deeper than I believed possible and was able to call this place home. The summers I have spent at Echo Hill have truly been the most transformative moments in my life. Surrounded by incredibly caring, smart, and nurturing individuals, I grew in ways that would not have been possible anywhere else. When I was ten, I came here for the activities. I loved sailing and only furthered that love through hours and hours spent on the Bay. Years later, I was still coming back to experience the joy of spending a summer on the Bay. However, after a few summers, this wasn’t my primary reason for returning. I came back to see my family. To see the people that I love so, so much. I developed these relationships through my experience at Echo Hill. This place awaits with open arms, those that seek peace, love and friendship.
I have been going to Echo Hill for 4 years and it is my favorite place on earth. I would seriously recommend sending your child here. Truth, some of the boys can be rude, but if you just give them a chance you will learn to love them like I do. The showers are not private, but if that makes you uncomfortable talk to your counselor to set up a private shower time. Overall, this is a wonderful camp and I hope you learn to love it as much as I do.
I just came here for the first time after doing several overnight camps. But here are some things to know. Everyone showers in front of people and share the 4 shower heads. Also it's hugely rumored that there are lots of ghosts. I had an okay time, and I'm not sure if Iwant to return. But its a great place to learn water sports or sailing if you're staying for at least 4 weeks. Oh and the food is GREAT!!!
i just attended echo hill for the first time, and i absolutely loved it! you have the freedom to do what you want, but are also under wonderful supervision. i highly recommend this camp to anyone who is looking for independence in a wonderful learning environment. there are so many things to look forward to that AREN'T mentioned on the website. echo hill is a closely knit community that is welcoming and open to all different types of people. i didn't want to come home after going, and i have already fallen in love with the place.
