You Need to Leave
For my first eight summers in the camp world, I worked across three different sites in Ontario, all tied to the same organization. Back then, days off usually meant going nowhere. We spent our time right on property, piling into staff lounges, taking quick trips into town for food, watching movies, and dreaming up adventures. Camp wasn’t just where we worked…it was where we lived, socialized, and belonged.
In my early twenties, curiosity…and a bit of frustration with management, won out. I wanted to see how the rest of the camping world operated, so I took a position at a new camp completely unaffiliated with my old organization.
Right away, I hit a culture shock. Among several new rules and ways of doing things, one stood out as an absolute surprise: You were not allowed to stay at camp during your day off.
To my young 21 year old brain, this felt like a betrayal. I have to leave? But I want to be here!
Confused and mildly indignant, I asked the Camp Director why everyone had to leave every week. Her answer was simple: staff needed space from the property…and from each other.
I thought it was ridiculous. Space from the people I loved? Space from this beautiful site? Why force us away?
It turns out she was entirely right.
Leaving property forced a healthy detachment from my job. It gave me time to recharge individually and socialize in a completely different context. But more importantly, it shifted my perspective. For the first time, I began to see camp for what it actually was: a workplace.
Looking back at my earlier summers, I realized an uncomfortable truth. I used to get not so subtly annoyed when campers arrived after a weekend off. Because we had just spent 48 hours making the site our personal playground, the kids felt like intruders in "our" space. In reality, I had blurred the line between work and leisure. Stepping off-site restored that boundary, bringing my role as a leader back into focus.
Granted, forcing staff off-site raises practical hurdles, particularly for international staff or those without a car. But thoughtful camps plan for this. The camp I worked at made sure every staff member had somewhere to go and a way to get there. They even funded a free weekly bus down to Toronto, over two hours away.
It can be a touchy topic in our industry. We love camp because it feels like home, and suggesting people leave it can sound cold. But even the most magical camp is still a workplace. Taking (and enforcing) time away allows staff to return each session refreshed, clear-headed, and ready for the meaningful work waiting for them.
