Children playing in snow We all need nature - and nature needs you! Make your tax-deductible gift today. Click to donate.
Family on boardwalk We all need nature - and nature needs you! Make your tax-deductible gift today. Click to donate.
boardwalk trail through a grassy meadow
Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary, Wellfleet

Wellfleet Bay Nature Camp Programs & Pricing

Discover Wellfleet Bay Nature Camp

Wellfleet Bay Nature Camp on Cape Cod offers programs for campers ages 4–13, and a Counselor-in-Training program for teens! Please use your camper’s rising grade when choosing which group to register for, not on their age. 

2025 Camp Pricing

Prices shown represent a range based on a sliding scale. A sliding scale pricing structure makes camp affordable for families by removing financial barriers and expanding access to camp for families in an easy, dependable, and confidential process. Tiers 1-3 are available to Cape year-round residents only. Cape residents must show proof of residency via enrollment in a local school district. All other camp families registering at Tiers 4 or 5 must have an active membership at the family level or higher for the duration of the camp session.  View the sliding scale tier levels

Half-Day Nature Camp 

Monday–Friday • 9:00 am–12:15 pm 
Themed weekly sessions: June 23-August 22 (no camp on July 4) 

Three Wellfleet Bay camp kids sitting on a log

Ramblers • Entering Grades PreK-1 (Ages 4.5-7) 

Our Half-Day program is perfect for our littlest campers, looking to expand their comfort in nature! Through free nature play, art, and short habitat hikes, the Ramblers camp will enhance a young child’s curiosity and familiarity with the outdoors. Campers must be at least 4.5 years old by the date of the registered session. See available sessions

Sliding Scale Price Range: $82-$412

Full Day Nature Camps 

Monday–Friday • 9:00 am–2:30 pm  
Weekly themed sessions: June 23-August 18 (no camp on July 4) 
Note: Some age groups do not run every week 

Make memorable outdoor memories and make friends exploring the nature of Cape Cod at our 1,100-acre wildlife sanctuary. From the tidal flats and salt marshes to the field, forest, and river, learn about a different habitat with unique weekly themes. Our goals are to instill awareness and appreciation of nature, to demonstrate responsibility for the environment, and to promote access to nature for all.   

Session Themes 

Young campers looking at a turtle

Discoverers • Entering Grades PreK–K (Ages 4.5–5) 

The Discoverers program will introduce campers to nature exploration, encouraging curiosity and increasing sensory awareness. Through outdoor games, art, and hands-on investigations like log rolling and dip-netting, get familiar with the living things of Cape Cod! Campers must be at least 4.5 years old by the date of the registered session. See available sessions

Sliding Scale Price Range: $125-$624

A group of campers on a wooden platform dipping ponding nets into the water
Wellfleet Bay Nature Camp, South Wellfleet

Adventurers • Entering Grade 1 (Ages 6–7) 

Campers build their comfortability in nature, focusing on different animals and where they live. Examine turtles by the pond or muck through the marsh for fiddler crabs and examine their body parts! Each day includes exploration, crafts, and creative games to help us learn why certain animals live where they do. See available sessions

Sliding Scale Price Range: $125-$624

Campers with binoculars running down a trail

Explorers • Entering Grades 2–3 (Ages 7–8) 

With an emphasis on the survival adaptations of animals and the interconnected food webs they rely on, take part in hands-on activities like dip-netting in tide pools to observe predator-prey relationships up close! See available sessions

Sliding Scale Price Range: $125-$624

Girl on beach looking at insect on her finger

Naturalists • Entering Grades 4–5 (Ages 9–10) 

Campers participate in fun science-based activities while learning methods used in wildlife conservation biology, like observing the banding of a newly hatched purple martin chick or ponding for aquatic invertebrates! July 21-August 11 sessions include one off site trip per week to wild places across Cape Cod, including the National Seashore and Nickerson State Park! This program is not offered the week of August 18. See available sessions

Sliding Scale Price Range: June 23-July 18, $125-$624; July 21-August 11, $136-$681 

Wellfleet Bay Campers holding at Lobsters

Ecologists • Entering Grades 6–8 (Ages 11–13) 

Ecologists go beyond basic natural history knowledge by working closely with Mass Audubon specialists and science staff to participate in inquiry-based activities, research, and ecological management studies. Learn field techniques while participating in team-building activities and games. Each session includes an off-site field trip, like snorkeling, kayaking or a boat cruise! This program is only offered the weeks of July 21-August 11. See available sessions

Sliding Scale Price Range: $136-$681; August 4-8 (Shark Enthusiast week) $148-$739 

Programs for Teens

Monday–Friday • 9:00 am–2:45 pm 
Weekly sessions: June 23-August 22 (no camp on July 4) 

Wellfleet Bay Camper and Counselor looking at aquarium

Counselors-in-Training (CIT) • Ages 14-17 

If you are a teen who enjoys being outside, working with children, and wants to learn leadership skills, then apply to our CIT program! Participate in training sessions and assist counselors with nature-based activities and games. Practice leadership skills while honing your natural history knowledge. CITs must participate in at least 2 sessions in order to create meaningful bonds with their camper groups and counselors. How to Apply

Sliding Scale Price Range: $60-$300

How to Register

Online registration opens January 29, 2025, at 6:00 am; Cape Cod Resident early registration opens via phone on January 13. To make sure you’re prepared, please read our registration instructions ahead of time. To ensure that as many children as possible are able to participate in camp, families may register each camper for no more than four weeks of camp.

Read the Instructions