Planning Playbook

Everything you need to run a campout.

The nuts and bolts, learned over years and written down so the next dad doesn't start from scratch. Build a team, lock the dates, and run a weekend your grade will remember.

Step one

Build a steering team.

Pull together at least four committed dads who'll share the load. A good cross-section builds momentum across the grade, brings fresh ideas, and means the program never rests on one person.

Core role

Lead Coordinator

Drives alignment on dates, books campsites, coordinates activities, leads grade-wide communication, and settles expenses. The single point of contact for the weekend.

Core role

Food Lead

Fully manages meals — Friday dinner through Saturday dinner — so no other dad has to plan food. The biggest single driver of strong, easy participation.

Rotating

Devotional Lead

Each campout, a different dad leads a short (<10 min) campfire devotional and offers a few conversation starters for the 1:1 dad–daughter time.

Rotating

Music Lead

Leads campfire singing — a mix of camp songs, worship, and favorites. Recruits other musical dads (guitar, fiddle, even shakers). See the songbook.

Rotating

Activity Leads

Tap the gifts across your dads — a climber, a medic, a fly fisherman — to lead each campout's signature skill or activity.

Everyone

The whole grade

Always invite every family, every time. The last-minute dad, and the one who joins three years from now, both start by seeing how good these weekends are.

The cadence

The planning timeline.

Two campouts a year, each following the same simple rhythm. Start early — the best campsites and activities book months ahead.

  1. 5 months out

    Align & book campsites

    Steering team firepit night to pick the date (have your wives check the family calendar). As soon as the date is set, book sites — Texas State Parks open ~5 months ahead, and the best tent-only sites go fast.

  2. ~2 months out

    Save the Date

    Email the whole grade (dads + moms) with the date, park, and the theme. Ask who plans to attend.

  3. 4–6 weeks out

    Remind & Confirm

    Reply-all to the original email with a headcount, and lock any activity reservations that need firm numbers.

  4. 2 weeks out

    Final details

    Send the full agenda, meals, packing list, and logistics. Start a group text the week of.

  5. Week after

    Settle up

    One dad fronts the shared costs and collects an even split from each family by text.

The weekend

A typical campout schedule.

Flexible, and it varies with the main activity — but most weekends follow this shape.

Friday

Various — Arrive & set up camp.
7:00pm — Group dinner at a local spot.
9:00pm — Campfire: songs, devotional, s'mores.

Saturday

7:30am — Group breakfast.
9:00am — Brief dad huddle.
9:30am — 1:1 dad–daughter time.
12:00pm — Group lunch.
1:30pm — Main group activity.
6:00pm — Dinner, then campfire #2.

Sunday

Various — Pack up and head home on your own. Dads who stay can grab breakfast together on the way out.

Protect the 1:1 time. When you break off for dad–daughter time, don't pair up with another pair — it always becomes a group hangout, and the focused time is the whole point.

Feeding the group

Meals build the culture.

Sharing four meals as a group does as much for community as any activity — and fully-managed meals are what make it easy for busy dads to say yes. Keep it simple: a cereal or breakfast-taco bar with good coffee, deli or grilled-cheese lunches, and crowd-pleaser dinners like a fajita bar, chili, or a shrimp boil. Assign dad–daughter pairs to help with prep and clean-up at each meal, and set up a simple dish station with a 5-gallon bucket, soap, and scrubbers.

A Dutch-oven dessert contest (with judges) and classic s'mores never miss.

See detailed meal-planning tips →

Copy, paste, send

Communication templates.

Proven templates for every step. Fill in the {placeholders} — they intentionally hold no personal info.

📧 "Save the Date" email 
To: Entire grade (dads + moms)
Subject: {Xth} Grade Knight Owls (Class of 20XX) — {Fall/Spring} Campout

Dads,

Save the date for our {fall/spring} campout! We have {campground} reserved
at {state park} for {dates}. This one will be memorable — we'll be {brief
description of the theme / main activity}.

Please let me know directly if you plan to attend so we can firm up numbers.
More details to follow in {rough timing}.

{Name}
📧 "Remind / Confirm" email 
Reply-all to the original "Save the Date."
Subject: Re: {Xth} Grade Knight Owls — {Fall/Spring} Campout

Dads,

Quick reminder that our campout is coming up ({dates}). Here's who I have
planning to attend so far:

{list of last names}

If you're not on the list and plan to come (or your plans changed), just
shoot me a note. Thanks, all!

{Name}
📧 "Final Details" email 
Reply-all to the "Remind / Confirm." Send ~2 weeks out.
Subject: Re: {Xth} Grade Knight Owls — {Fall/Spring} Campout

Dads — less than two weeks out! A few things:

ATTENDEES: {list}. Let me know if anything changed.

AGENDA:
 • Friday PM — arrive at {park} (~{#} hrs); dinner & campfire at camp.
 • Saturday — breakfast, 1:1 time (9:30–11), {activity}, dinner & campfire.
 • Sunday — depart on your own.

MEALS: All meals are handled — thanks {food lead}! Bring a non-disposable
plate, utensils, and cup, plus 2 gallons of drinking water per person.

WHAT TO PACK: {activity-specific notes + link to the pack list}.

Reach out with any questions!
{Name}
💬 Settle-up text 
Such a great campout! Total per family came to ${total}:
  ${a}  food / coffee
  ${b}  Friday dinner
  ${c}  group activity
  ${d}  campsites & entry
  ${e}  firewood

You can Venmo me at {handle} or Zelle at {email}. Thanks!
🏕️ State-park group check-in 
Call the park the week of to introduce yourself as the point person for a
large group. Ask about: burn-ban status, firewood pickup/delivery, the best
way to check in as a group, office hours, and a gate code for late arrivals.

Group Name: Knight Owls
Primary Contact: {name}
Arrival: Fri {date}   Departure: Sun {date}
Campsites: {reservation details}

Save your vehicle/check-in list as a PDF and email it to the park office
ahead of time, or print it for check-in.
A note on privacy. These templates live publicly, so they carry placeholders only. Keep real phone numbers, names, addresses, and payment handles in your grade's private email and texts — never on the site.

Pick your adventure

Campout Guides

Find the right campout for your grade, with logistics and contacts already worked out.

Browse guides →

Grab what you need

Resources

State-park recommendations, pack lists, the songbook, and the shared calendar.

Open resources →