Scouts looking for something a little bit different from a traditional week at a Scouts BSA Long-Term Camp, Pipsico offers three Summer Adventure Program opportunities. Our programs are designed to include action, adventure, challenge, an increased level of excitement, and vigorous activity for both youth and adults. The excitement and adventure of a week at Pipsico Scout Reservation will not be a week forgotten. Participants can choose to attend as an individual or as part of a contingent.
Summer Adventure Programs are operated in parallel with base camp and have been developed to serve the interests of more experienced Scouts. Youth must meet the minimum joining criteria for Venturing or Sea Scouting, but are not required to be Venturers or Sea Scouts. Adults are invited to participate in SCUBA Camp and Sail Hampton Roads, but are restricted from PEX.
Each of these programs will offer participants one of the most comprehensive programs you will find anywhere. Our location on the James River is only 2 miles from the First Permanent English Settle located at Jamestown Virginia. We are also close to Williamsburg, Norfolk, and Virginia Beach Virginia!
This is a full week of sailing and nightly port visits on the James and Elizabeth Rivers plus a stop over along the southern Chesapeake Bay. Monday morning after breakfast, crews will muster, stow gear, and make ready for travel to board the sail boats. Setting Sail, the group will head towards ports in Cape Charles, Yorktown, Hampton, Smithfield, and Norfolk.
Each port visit will provide a variety of fun, interesting, and educational experiences. Stops along the way include but are not limited to: A tour and dinner in historic Cape Charles, a stop over at historic Yorktown for a swim and BBQ, a stop in Hampton River for a seafood dinner and swimming, a tour of Nauticus and the battleship Wisconsin at the City of Norfolk and lastly a lunch tour at the historic Fort Wool at the mouth of Hampton Roads.
The PEX program is an adrenaline sampler if we may be so bold. PEX was designed by teenagers; for teenagers. Campers rotate through a series of programs such as canoeing, tubing, rifle, shotgun, airsoft/paintball, tomahawk, climbing, fishing, cooking, and pool partying! There will be four off-site experiences to include fishing head-boat trip in the Chesapeake Bay, a casual stroll through colonial Williamsburg, high COPE, while concluding their week at an outdoor adventure park, such as Busch Gardens or Ocean Breeze Waterpark.
Earn “Open Water Diver” SCUBA Certification and your SCUBA Merit badge! Pipsico has partnered with a local professional diving center to develop a full week of underwater adventure. The course consists of three parts: classroom, confined water, and open water. SCUBA students begin their week at Pipsico to learn, practice, and demonstrate material for the entry level “Open Water Diver” certification. This will consist of classroom study and testing with intervals of confined water diving in the onsite pool. On Wednesday, SCUBA Camp participants load up personal gear, camping supplies, and dive equipment to complete their practical training Lake Phoenix (formerly Lake Rawlings). On Friday, participants return to Pipsico in time for diner
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