Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Most meals are served ‘family-style’ on-site in PEEC’s dining hall. If students participate in a 4-day or 5-day program with the Ecological Staircase Hike, they will have PEEC-provided lunch on the trail with their hiking group, as well as a traditional hot dog beach cookout. 

PEEC aims to provide accommodations as much as possible. Dietary restrictions must be communicated to PEEC as soon as possible. A vegetarian option is always available at meals, amount served based on the amount of vegetarian participants communicated to PEEC. Other dietary restrictions (vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, etc.) may need to provide their own substitutes that PEEC can prepare.

 Please see sample menus below, which include information on common allergens. Please reach out to info@peectidepools.org with any additional questions. 

• 3-Day Sample Menu

• 4-Day Sample Menu

• 5-Day Sample Menu

PEEC works hard to serve nutritional meals to energize students and chaperones throughout our program. Please see sample menus below, which include information on common allergens. Please reach out to info@peectidepools.org with any additional questions. 

• 3-Day Sample Menu

• 4-Day Sample Menu

• 5-Day Sample Menu

If students have special dietary restrictions or allergies, they are encouraged to bring their own substitutes that can blend in with our menu. However, that food should be in a separate labeled bag that is given to PEEC staff upon arrival to store in the kitchen. 

Any additional snacks, gum, candy, etc. should not be brought to PEEC, and will have to be turned in upon arrival. Any extra non-perishable food will be stored and returned to students at the end of the week. This helps prevent animals from trying to enter student cabins, which is only a safety concern when food is involved.

If students take medications of any kind, please communicate directly with your school on how these are to be managed. PEEC staff is not able to store, handle, or administer any medications to students, including epi-pens. The only exception is if a student requires any life-saving medication (for example: epi-pens, inhalers, insulin, etc.), communicate with school staff and PEEC staff to determine if your student should carry this or if an adult chaperone in their cabin & hiking group needs to carry this. 

PEEC has 7 cabins, including 5 tent-style cabins on raised platforms, and 2 wooden cabins. Each cabin has 6 bunk beds with camping mattresses, allowing them to accommodate 12 participants each. Cabin groups are determined by schools, and must include at least 1 adult chaperone.

Photos of our cabins can be found in our School Info Presentation.

Each bed has a camping mattress on it, but students should bring their own sleeping bag, pillow, and additional blanket. Throughout the year, nights can get chilly, and staying warm will help students get enough sleep to stay energized for daily activities. 

Even if multiple schools are sharing communal spaces at PEEC, cabin groups and hiking groups will only consist of students and chaperones from the same school. These hiking groups and cabin groups are determined by school staff.

State Park bathrooms are located within a short walking distance of cabins (~1 minute walk). See our site map in our School Info Presentation.

Please see our sample schedules below. Contact info@peectidepools.org with any additional questions.

• 3-Day Sample Schedule

• 4-Day Sample Schedule

• 5-Day Sample Schedule

Participants will be walking on a variety of surfaces, including paved and unpaved, as well as even and uneven terrain. Most walks include stops along the way for instruction, games, etc. Please contact your school or info@peectidepools.org with any concerns or questions for student or chaperone accessibility. 

• • Tide Pools: ~0.65 miles one-way from camp loop on mostly paved surfaces, plus maneuvering on the uneven rocky intertidal zone.

  • Sand Dunes: ~0.3 miles one-way on sand, including traveling up and down a few inclines.

  • Ecological Staircase Hike: ~4 miles from start to finish, mostly downhill, on unpaved, somewhat uneven terrain. 

  • Intro Hike, Night Hike, and Farewell Hikes can vary, but are usually around 1-1.5 miles on fairly even terrain, on paved and unpaved surfaces.

See our recommended packing list here. If your school has attended PEEC programs in the past, you may notice that participants no longer need to bring quarters for showers. Instead, state park tokens are provided to participants by PEEC staff during shower time. 

Yes, all participants should bring a towel (or 2) and their own toiletries. 

You can use your preferred weather source to look up weather for Cleone, CA or Fort Bragg, CA in preparation for your trip. Our coastal weather can change often, so we encourage all participants to pack layers of clothing. This helps prepare for wind, rain, fog, and hopefully sunshine! 

Check with your school to see what their policy is for technology while traveling to and from PEEC. Once at PEEC, students must turn off and turn in all forms of technology, other than cameras. These stay with the school representative during their stay at PEEC. This helps students connect better with each other and remain present in the moment, absorbing the full experience of PEEC.

Please contact your school or info@peectidepools.org with any additional questions or concerns.

Check with your school to see if students will need money while traveling to and from PEEC. While at PEEC, the only thing students can purchase with money is a PEEC T-shirt ($20), which may already be handled by your school.