a day on the susquehanna, a week of community
One of our flagship youth opportunities, our Youth Blast programs focus on building community with each other here at Gretna Glen before taking on an adventure off site. Youth Blast campers spend their week eating meals together in the Dining Hall, learning new skills at program activities, playing night games, and feeling the good vibes of Christian camp community as one body.
Paddle & Climb campers will spend their week making new friends on the challenge course, adventuring through high ropes elements, and doing special activities no other campers get to do—like hanging out in the new Youth Blast Lounge! Then, we will head to Chickies Rock near Columbia, PA for a full day of kayaking and rock climbing. Campers will spend 2 hours kayaking down the Susquehanna River, then climb up an 80-foot natural cliff at Chickies Rock County Park using top-rope climbing techniques. Experienced guides, as well as Gretna Glen leadership staff and counselors, will be alongside campers throughout this entire off-site experience to enforce safety policies and make sure it is a safe and fun day for everyone. And to cap off our week, we will have meaningful worship experiences and a service project here at Gretna Glen.
Our Goals for every camper
Our goal for all overnight campers is to create an environment where they can THRIVE:
Try new experiences
Camp is great exposure to new people, news skills, and new challenges.
Hear Good News
We are here to share in the joy of knowing and following Jesus Christ!
Reset and Renew
We work hard to create a place where campers can be themselves, unplug from devices, and rest.
Inspire One Another
Community experiences and culture creation are intentional, key aspects of every week.
Value Themselves
Campers learn they can do more than they thought possible by learning and growing all week long.
Explore Possibilites
Campers are encouraged to ask questions about their faith, their future, and their world.
Built for the Teen Who Wants the Flagship Trip
Youth Blast is a flagship Gretna Glen program because teens who attend tell us what they needed was a week that treated them as capable and sent them somewhere real. The Whitewater edition is the highest-intensity off-site trip in the summer. Not because it is dangerous (the operation is run professionally) but because the experience itself demands something from the camper in the raft.
The service project at the end of the week pulls everything back into perspective. The rafting day is a gift. The service day is where the week earns its shape.
WHERE YOU'LL STAY
Campers stay in cabins on Gretna Glen's main campus. Cabins feature bunk beds, a changing area, and a modern shower house built in 2018. Youth Blast is a mainsite program. Meals are in the Dining Hall, and the cabin crew becomes the raft crew on the Lehigh.
WHAT PARENTS SHOULD KNOW
Drop-off is Sunday, 3-4 PM. Pick-up is Friday, 5-6 PM. The rafting day is led by Pocono Whitewater Rafting's certified guides, with Gretna Glen staff present for full-day supervision. Helmets and PFDs are required and provided.
Gretna Glen is ACA-accredited, meeting over 300 health, safety, and quality standards. Staff are Ministry Safe and UMC Risk Management trained. Campers should be comfortable in water and able to follow guide instruction. No prior rafting experience is required.
Off-Site Transportation
Gretna Glen staff transport campers to and from the Pocono Whitewater Rafting base in Jim Thorpe. All transportation is included in the program cost.
WHO THIS PROGRAM IS FOR
- Teens 13 to 17 who want a real off-site adventure as the week's signature
- Returning Youth Blast campers ready for the highest-intensity trip on the calendar
- Teens who love water and group outdoor challenge
- Youth group members looking for a week that builds real community and real story