About CBC

Camp Beech Cliff Mission

Camp Beech Cliff provides outdoor education experiences that foster fun, teamwork, self-esteem, leadership, positive decision-making, and relationship development through physical and social growth. Our primary focus is to be a resource for children.

The Story of Camp Beech Cliff

Located on a marvelous wooded 50-acre campus – on Echo Lake and bordering Acadia National Park – Camp Beech Cliff was established in the 1950s as a private summer camp for boys. It closed in 1978 and reopened in 1991 as a day camp for boys and girls.

A successful fundraising campaign in the mid-90s made possible the purchase of the 50 acres Camp Beech Cliff was leasing, thus ensuring the property would remain a permanent resource for our youth. Camp Beech Cliff was incorporated as a private 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in 1997, became an independently operated day camp in 1999, and earned ACA accreditation in 2002.

More and more families are realizing how their children benefit from attending Camp Beech Cliff. Since 1991, the summer camp has grown from 20 campers per week to 150 per week today.

In fall of 2010, a renovation project was launched to rebuild camp's aged program cabins and make other facilities and site improvments to our campus. This summer (2011) we are offering an exciting day camp program based in Tremont, plus three weeks of MDI Explorer Camp. When we return to our new camp facilities in 2012, we will resume our Challenge Course (consisting of indoor and outdoor high and low elements), indoor climbing wall and other spring and fall programming for school and community groups.

Camp Beech Cliff and kids will always be the heart of this organization, but we look forward to serving the larger Mount Desert Island community as we continue to grow into a year-round resource for outdoor learning and fun.