In this division of Ayr Academy, we run a schedule featuring some variety. Tuesday and Thursday afternoons will have opportunities for riding-adjacent activities that returning Ayr campers will know, like Trail Building and Bike Maintenance, along with a variety of other off-bike activities and games. Some familiar, and some all new!

This division of Ayr Academy is the experience returning campers will know. 4 full days of riding, one shortened day on Wednesday. Camper’s choice of Trail Building or Bike Maintenance on Monday night and an evening riding session on Wednesday! It’s perfect for the older riders determined to make the most of their time at the mountain.

Summer Ride Overnight Camp includes everything the day camp does, but adds on extra riding time and more time to spend with new friends! Campers will stay at the Tilton School dorms, and eat breakfast and dinner at the dining hall. Drop off is Sunday afternoon and Pickup is Wednesday evening. Offered in sessions 1-3, this program is a perfect choice for someone looking to try an overnight camp experience without diving in to a full week.

• Evening riding and movie night with friends
• Buffet style breakfast and dinner
• 3 day mountain bike vacation!

You may enroll your camper in multiple sessions! For Ayr Academy campers, we strongly encourage you to limit your camper to no more than two consecutive sessions in order to manage fatigue. Weekend supervision is available to Multi-week Ayr Academy Overnight campers between sessions 4 and 5! All other weekends, you must pick up your camper on Saturday and return on Sunday.

A variety of discounts will be available such as:

• Early Bird: $150 off during 2025
• Pay-in-full: Choose this option before March 1st for 5% off your Base Camp Price
• Siblings: 5% off of Base Camp Price for each sibling after the first
• Multi-Session: 10% off of your Base Camp Price for each enrolled sessions after the first
• Season Pass Holder: $75 off for Ayr Academy, $45 off for Summer Ride

The Highland Camps scholarship program was created to help assist a handful of motivated, passionate young riders for whom summer camp may represent a financial hardship. Highland Camps is pleased to be able to offer a variety of scholarships for 2026. More details will be available as we approach enrollment. The Highland Camps Scholarship Application will be available in the “Forms” tab of your parent dashboard. Applications are due by the end of February. Winners will be notified in March. You do not need to make a deposit in order to apply for a scholarship, and being actively enrolled with not affect your consideration. Scholarships may be applied toward any available session. (Eligible sessions may become limited as enrollments increase.) Scholarships are non-transferable and have no cash value.

If you are interested in renting a specific bike for your camp session, you may do so by contacting our bike shop directly. Such rentals will be arranged on a per-day basis just as they would for any rider, and will be more costly than using our Camp Rental options above. Rentals arranged this way will not include protective gear such as a helmet and pads by default, so make sure to arrange for this if you don’t already have your own!

We are a phone free camp. This can be a challenge for campers and their families who have grown together with a great level of connection. However, we find that the benefits are great. Meeting new people and making personal connections is an important part of the summer camp experience, obviously. But it goes further than that. Across the entirety of the summer camp world, camp leaders and staff find that phones inhibit campers in a variety of ways. Non-stop family contact seems to worsen homesickness, and cause campers to rely on existing relationships rather than taking that intimidating first step towards new ones. When campers within a group don’t get along, they may retreat to devices rather than resolving differences or speaking up to staff about the matter. Our goal is not to isolate campers from friends and family, but to remove the pitfalls and hurdles standing between campers and camp. Ideally, campers leave their phones with the adults dropping them off and picking them up. Should a camper need to bring their phone to camp (traveling by air, different drop-off / pick-up adults), it will be checked in at the Health Center upon arrival at camp. Phones will be kept secured and locked in the Health Center for the duration of the camp session. Camper cell phones will only be returned during their camp session in the event of an emergency. Camp administrators, nurses, and dorm staff have phones available for outbound calls as needed. The Camps number (603-731-1499) reaches a variety of staff throughout camp, and you will be provided with the nurse number if they need to contact you for any reason. Any camper found to be using a cell phone will be considered in violation of their Standards Conduct Agreement and are subject to loss of riding privileges and/or being sent home.

• Is this policy the same for day campers? Yes. Day campers’ phones will be checked in at the Health Center in the morning and returned in the afternoon at pickup. Phones will be kept secured in the Health Center.
• What if I need to get in touch with my child? Parents can always call the main Camps phone at (603) 731-1499 if they have a message to relay to their child. This number reaches a variety of staff throughout camp and will always ring to at least one person on loud whenever camp is in session. For less urgent matters, we can also be reached at camps@highlandmountain.com In the event of an emergency after hours, you may get a call from one of our Dorm Phones. These phones are intended for outbound communications only, and are usually powered off when not in use. The Nurses also have a Nurse phone, the number for which will be provided ahead of check-in.
• What if my child needs to get in touch with me? If your camper is experiencing homesickness to a degree that warrants a call home, staff will help them arrange a call on one of our camp devices. In the event of an emergency, Camps staff will always contact your camper’s parent(s) first. If parents are unavailable, we will then reach out to the emergency contacts you provided upon enrollment. If your campers is concerned about homesickness ahead of camp, that’s okay! You can assure them it is normal, and that the first night is almost always the hardest. Please reach out to camp leadership if you would like to set up a phone call home during camp. A poorly timed phone call can be a major homesickness challenge, and we want to do our best to help campers succeed!

We can accommodate many dietary needs. Meals always have a vegetarian option, and among our campers and staff we generally are working around nut-free, vegan, celiac and more! On your enrollment forms, there will be space to describe in as much detail as possible any dietary needs. Please contact us with any questions, and check out the allergen tagging chart below that the Tilton School uses for our Overnight Campers!

Camp wristbands are valid lift passes only on days that camp rides. If your Summer Ride camper wants to ride Thursday or Friday, or your AYR Academy camper wants to ride on Saturday – they must purchase a lift pass at the Welcome Center to do so.

You don’t have to be an expert rider

We welcome all riding levels. Highland Mountain offers trails for a wide range of abilities. We’ve hosted everything from first-timers to expert shredders all in the same week! Our coaching staff is trained to evaluate campers and group them into ability levels. Please refer to our skills assessment page when enrolling.

Practice makes permanent

Most Highland campers are intermediate to advanced riders who want to improve their skills, learn to catch some air, or hit a famous drop at Highland. Each day coaches teach valuable fundamentals to their group and work on them throughout the day.

All campers should bring the following: Bike & Riding Equipment Standards

• Wheel and frame size appropriate for the size of the rider
• Full-supsension MTB with 130mm of travel or more
• Hydraulic (preferred) or cable actuated disc brakes
• Platform flat pedals (preferred) or clipless pedal with associated footwear
• Full face helmet (mandatory)
• Elbow (mandatory)
• Knee pads (mandatory)
• Goggles/Eyewea
• Gloves
• Jersey, shorts / riding pants
• Appropriate riding shoes (closed-toe, flat sole)
• Multi-tool
• Water bottle
• Sunscreen
• Rain gear
• Spending money (bike shop, store, etc. Visa gift cards work well.)
• All riding gear must be stored in a clear plastic tote bin labeled with their name

Overnight campers should also pack:

• Street clothes
• Bedding (twin-long / twin XL)
• Towel(s)
• Toiletries
• Fan (a box fan will fit comfortably in the dorm windows)
• Padlock to secure personal items in the dorms or Highland’s lockers (optional)
• Flashlight (The power has gone out at the dorms before!)

Any camper with medication must bring their medication with them to the Camp Health Center at check-in. All medications must be in their original container with a clear and legible prescription from a doctor. Do NOT bring any of the following:

• Energy drinks
• Weapons of any kind
• Drugs, alcohol, or related paraphernalia
• Tablets, laptops, gaming systems, or other electronics

*Bikes and safety equipment are all available to be rented. Find more information here and feel free to contact us with any questions.

Summer Ride camper pickup is at 4:15 at Highland on Wednesday evening. Families will pick up their camper and riding gear, after which Overnight Camp Families will head to the Tilton School to pack up and move out of dorms. Ayr Academy camper pickup is at 9:00am at Tilton School on Saturday following their session. Once room checkout is complete parents and campers make their way to Highland for final checkout and bike pickup. There is no camper signout without a parent or guardian present. Campers are not allowed to sign themselves out early and ride Saturday. They are able to ride Saturday once checked out by a parent/guardian.

Campers traveling independently by air can fly into either of these two airports:

• Manchester Airport (MHT) in Manchester NH, 35 min away – $75/one way
• Boston Logan Airport (BOS) in Boston MA, 1.5 hours away – $125/one way

Shuttle fees apply per camper. For arrivals, our standard practice is to meet campers at their baggage claim when their flight arrives. For departures, we aim to arrive at the airport between 1.5 – 2 hours ahead of boarding time. Please reach out to camps@highlandmountain.com if you are interested in booking shuttle service.

Overnight Camp Families will receive an email a few weeks ahead of their camp session assigning them an arrival time between 2 and 4pm. This is the time they should arrive at Highland Mountain Bike Park for bikes and riding gear check-in. After gear drop off, campers and parents should head to Tilton School with the rest of their luggage for final check-in by 5pm. Once at Tilton School, campers will check into their rooms and say their goodbyes. Camp will start at 5pm with camper orientation and a welcome dinner at 6pm. Day Camp Families should arrive at Highland Mountain Bike Park between 8-8:30am on the Monday of their session for check in. Subsequent days will have an 8:30am-8:45am check-in time.