About Us
Request InfoGreen River Preserve’s Mission
The mission of Green River Preserve is to inspire environmental stewards through a joyful connection to nature.
Green River Preserve’s Goals
Intellectual Growth
To mentor campers in their quest as future leaders and stewards of the land. To expose children to a wide variety of the natural sciences and foster an awareness of the wonder and complexity of the natural world. To offer experiences for children to learn from a community where ideas, creativity, and discovery are celebrated.
Physical Growth
To provide a safe, non-competitive, and healthy outdoor living experience for children. To introduce children to a wide variety of life time learning skills and activities such as hiking, camping, creative arts and fly-fishing.
Social Growth
To offer campers a safe, supportive community based on respect where individuals are allowed to Be their Best Me. To provide an atmosphere free of materialism and cliques where the quality of one’s character is what really matters.
Spiritual Growth
To inspire discovery of the interconnectedness of the natural world and the growth of personal virtues and morality. To encourage campers to have a greater respect and understanding of themselves, their environment, and each other.
Meet Katie, a mentor & former camper
Hear from our staffOur camper to staff ratio is 3 to 1.
Staff are interviewed by the directors and carefully selected with regard to maturity, sensitivity, intellectual achievement, and integrity as role models. Our staff is trained to ensure all campers get the rich and rewarding experience they should expect from Green River Preserve.
Green River Preserve’s program and activities offer quality, intentional, experiential learning opportunities that spark diversity of thought and creativity.
A wide variety of activities such as hiking, rock climbing, mountain biking, kayaking, canoeing, outdoor skills, environmental science, fly fishing, music, guitar, art, theater, pottery, woodworking, archery, and BB skeet foster life time learning skills. Unique to our activities is our partnership with the Flat Rock Playhouse, the state theater of North Carolina, for our residential theater camp; an artist-in-residency program; access to DuPont State Recreational Forest for mountain biking; and a partnership with Trout Unlimited for a unique summer camp fly fishing program.
The signature of Green River Preserve’s program is the mentor hike.
Led by mentor naturalists, campers explore forest, streams, and hidden valleys of the Preserve. Filled with adventure, discovery, and a heightened appreciation of the natural world, campers learn to use all of their senses as they play under waterfalls, crawl into caves, explore archeological sites, track wildlife, and taste edible plants.
Expedition Trips
Green River Preserve’s high school expedition trips are adventures and community building programs designed to develop outdoor skills, teamwork, and leadership opportunities. GRP offers four different expedition trips: Blue Ridge, a two week backpacking and whitewater canoe trip in the Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina Mountains; Outer Banks , a two week backpacking and sea kayaking rip on the Outer Banks of North Carolina; Trail Blazers, a three week leadership service trip including a backpacking and canoe trip; and Western Expeditions, a three week backpacking and white water rafting trip in the San Juan Mountains of Southwest Colorado.
Green River Preserve is a GREEN AMERICA APPROVED business.
Our farm to table program is one of our many efforts in sustainable leadership. Our partnership with Leave no Trace provides campers with guidelines for low impact camping. A conservation easement with Carolina Mountain Land Trust safeguards the future of the Preserve’s land for generations of campers.
Green River Preserve is a summer camp where the quality of one’s character really matters and where campers are allowed to be their best selves. Green River Preserve makes a difference in the lives of campers.