In the north-east corner of Pennsylvania, in the Endless Mountains: 17 miles north of Honesdale and approximately two hours from New York City by car.
IHC is a traditional, full season resident camp that provides quality instruction and encourages participation. It is co-ed, but most activities are not: campers are scheduled by age group and gender so that the level of instruction is appropriate to each group. Each camper follows a balanced programme of sports, arts, aquatics and outdoor adventures, and chooses one activity a week to specialise in for one period a day — the Club and Clinic period.
In most ways IHC is a structured camp, with set schedules so that children know what they will be doing each day, inside a well-rounded, dynamic programme. All campers have choice in their programme.
There are approximately 650 campers, organised as Girls' Lake Camp, Boys' Lake Camp and Hill Camp. Each part of camp is broken into smaller divisions assigned by grade completed in school, which keeps the atmosphere personal and close-knit.
Campers have numerous opportunities through the summer to take part in inter-camp games and tournaments against other camps in the region, in activities such as tennis, roller hockey, basketball, soccer, softball, volleyball, baseball and gymnastics.
A great amount of time and attention goes into hiring qualified instructors and nurturing counsellors, with extensive staff interviews testing for the core competencies the camp requires.
The camp describes its cabins as beautiful, nicely appointed and well maintained. All cabins have toilets, showers and electricity.
No. The dress is very casual and camp appropriate, and the camp sends a suggested clothing and equipment list to help with packing. There is a modest amount of required uniform for sports games, trips and special events.
No religious services are held. The camp does join together for a traditional Friday night dinner followed by a community evening at the campfire site, and welcomes children and staff from all backgrounds.
Wake-up is 7:30 for Lake campers and 8:00 for Hill campers. Bedtime varies by age: the youngest campers are in bed by 9:00 pm, and lights out moves progressively later as campers get older.
There are two sittings for breakfast and dinner, with Lake campers at the first sitting. Lunch is shared by the whole camp together, which helps the feeling of family among all the campers.
The camp calls its food excellent, with a wide variety of choices such as salad, fruit and pasta bars in addition to the entree. IHC describes itself as one of the safest, healthiest, nut-free camps in the country and is trained to handle dietary requirements and allergens.
Campers come from many states; the largest group comes from the Northeast and Florida, since most families hear about the camp through friendships with current camp families.
