a California Non-Profit 501(c)(3) Corporation – EIN 99-3474773
a California Non-Profit 501(c)(3) Corporation – EIN 99-3474773
This camp is for people who like traditional American music: largely bluegrass and oldtime, with a rotating third track at each camp of a related style such as swing, jug band, Celtic, or country. All ages are welcome, and core classes are offered in instrumental skills, jamming and band dynamics, and vocals. There are classes for beginners as well as intermediate levels.
We also offer a special class for younger children who are not yet ready for the full camp program, but would enjoy spending the morning playing music, singing, dancing, and taking breaks for arts and crafts, nature walks etc.
Camp starts the first day with registration, a smorgasbord of jams, musical happy hour, dinner, staff introductions, jamming, and dancing. The next three days will include assigned classes each morning with instrumental and vocal instructors, average 10-12 students to a class — these are the classes for which you sign up in advance. Afternoons feature a wide array of elective classes, including instrumental workshops, vocal harmony classes, clogging, band rhythm, music theory, music history, songwriting, and more — which you can choose at the time. Evening activities include staff and student concerts, barn dances, and lots of jamming.
Cost to attend as a full-time camper depends on lodging and tuition options, see the Registration page – prices are listed at the bottom of that page. Add tuition price and lodging price to get the total.
SIGN UP EARLY FOR BEST PRICES AND CLASS AVAILABILITY!
Some classes often fill literally hours after we open registration, be advised.
Various choices of nearby lodging are available for those who prefer more upscale accommodations. For details, see, our FAQ page.
On-site camping is available, for tents (check the weather forecast) or RVs (dry-camping, electricity available). Housing options are economy housing (bunk-style dorms and rooms), or semi-private rooms (motel-style rooms), all with shared bathrooms. A limited number of private single rooms are available.
Three delicious meals a day are served in the conference dining hall along with a daily Straus Ice Cream Social and Happy Hour!
Walker Creek Ranch is located in the rolling hills of West Marin County, about an hour north of the metropolitan Bay Area. It’s scenic, beautiful, quiet, and has an abundance of wildlife, and miles of hiking trails. Other activities to enjoy on site are ping pong and other ball games, yoga, and daily family friendly happy hours.
Scholarships are available for those who need them. We are especially grateful to all our scholarship donors for making this possible — thank you all so much! Special thanks to the Northern California Bluegrass Society, the Foundation for Bluegrass Music, California Oldtime Fiddlers Association, and the Sonoma County Folk Society, for their wonderful support of our camp and our scholarship fund.
For more information, see FAQs
For more information, call director Michael Bryant at 707 579-1429 or e-mail michael@walkercreekmusiccamp.org
In the unlikely event that camp is canceled for whatever reason, you are entitled to a full refund of your paid Tuition/Lodging fees.
Refund Policy
Note – Commercial event/trip insurance is available at a low cost to campers for cancellations and we encourage you to purchase coverage for your tuition/lodging costs in the event you can’t make it to camp. Visit SquareMouth Travel Insurance for details and price quotes.
Deposits & Payments
Deposits: If you are unable to pay your full registration fee, you can pay a deposit of 25% of your tuition/lodging fee to reserve your place at camp. The balance can be paid over time using the Make a Payment option in the Registration menu. If the balance is not paid in full two weeks before the start of camp, your registration will be cancelled and your deposit will be forfeited.
Payments: When you register for camp online, you’ll be instructed to pay via credit card, PayPal, or you may pay by check. If you pay by check, we must receive your check within 10 days of registering or your registration will be cancelled.
Walker Creek Music Camp recommends that you be fully vaccinated and boosted for Covid-19, but we do not require proof of COVID-19 vaccination in order to attend camp. Masks are optional. Walker Creek Ranch provides high quality air purifiers in all class rooms. Campers who prefer to wear a mask are encouraged to do so.
The current Covid-19 Community Level for all California counties is “Low”. If a “High” level is prevalent at the time of camp or you are coming from an area with a “High” community level we recommend wearing a mask in public indoor areas.
Do not come to camp if you test positive for COVID-19 within five days before the start of camp and are experience ongoing COVID-19 related symptoms. IF you are asymptomatic or fever-free for 24 hours without medication you may attend camp. In this case, masks are recommended.
We began our WCMC Teacher Concert Series after our Spring ’24 music camp. “An Irish Spring Concert” presented our Irish music teaching staff and was a great success. For Fall camp we’re presenting our teaching staff in concert at the beautiful Mystic Theatre in Petaluma, CA.
We plan to present these benefit concerts twice a year to coincide with our Spring and Fall camps. Please join us in celebrating these one-off live music shows to support Walker Creek Music Camp and experience the incredible talent we are fortunate to offer as teachers for our campers.
