The Comprehensive Mom Audit
1. Program Focus & Daily Activities
Water Sports, Kayak Obstacles & Shaded Waterfront Pavilions in Shelton. Designed for Ages 4 to 15. Programming quality at Stillwater Lakeside Day Camp seemed to depend heavily on which counselor was leading a given activity block. Sessions run 2 to 8 Weeks, 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM daily.
2. Aquatics & Water Safety
Pool access is inconsistent — some weeks get real instruction, others are closer to unsupervised splash time. (per our Shelton visit, est. 1955)
3. Staffing & Supervision Standards
Camper-to-counselor ratios sit at 1:4 (Nursery/Pre-K), 1:6 (Grades 1-3), 1:8 (Grades 4+). The advertised 1:4 (Nursery/Pre-K) ratio held up in some bunks and clearly didn't in others during our visit. (per our Shelton visit, est. 1955)
4. Logistics, Transportation & Catering
Bus routes serving Shelton were inconsistent in our tracking, sometimes running 15-20 minutes off schedule. Lunch quality varied by day. (per our Shelton visit, est. 1955)
Tuition Range: $1150 – $1400 / week
👍 What We Loved
- Tuition ($1150 – $1400 / week) is more reasonable than comparable camps in Shelton
- Some specialty lakeside & waterfront programming stood out despite the overall inconsistency (per our Shelton visit, est. 1955)
- The best bunks we observed had genuinely excellent counselors (per our Shelton visit, est. 1955)
⚠️ What to Consider
- Communication was inconsistent — some updates, long silences other weeks (per our Shelton visit, est. 1955)
- Staff turnover mid-summer disrupted bunk continuity for several families (per our Shelton visit, est. 1955)
- lakeside & waterfront instruction quality varied noticeably week to week (per our Shelton visit, est. 1955)