Hidden Valley has been serving the
camper community since 1948

Maine History Begins with Indigenous People

About 12,000 years ago, the first humans migrated here. These Native American tribes, including the Penobscot and Wawenok who lived in our coastal area, formed the Wabanaki confederacy. The Wabanaki – meaning “people of the dawnland” – created semi-permanent settlements and lived off of abundant wildlife. One significant hunting ground was about 2-3 miles down the road that comes through HVC. This road was a significant Native trading route.

Colonists arrived about 400 years ago and violently displaced the Native people. They created towns and farms in the areas they cleared, including those in mid-coast Maine. Hidden Valley’s secluded 350+ acres supported homesteads similar to those still common to northern New England. "Old-timers" passing through tell us stories about their childhood walks to and from school, picking up fresh milk on the front steps of our farmhouse on the way home.

A Summer Camp Emerges

In 1948, Hidden Valley started out as a work and farm camp for twelve teenaged campers. This small group and their directors (and the founders of Hidden Valley) Hal and Dean Tiffany, converted a manure filled dairy barn into living and eating space. This Red Barn later became our first dining hall and is now a community center with a library, fireplace, video studio and game area.

These pioneering campers also constructed new buildings to provide living space. These structures — with names like The Loons, Tasker Hall, and the Buckhorn — now host programs such as dance and batik. Testimonials on this page describe camp life in those early days.

At its height, this incarnation of Hidden Valley hosted 75 campers. In 1964, the Tiffanys decided to retire — the responsibilities of caring for such a "large" camp having caught up with them — and put the camp up for sale. They began to spend summers in a cottage which has since become the camp office.

Children playing soccer on a field next to two large barns in a rural setting, with trees and hills in the background.

Two people standing outside a house, smiling. One has a dog on their shoulder.

Aerial view of a farm with red barns, green fields, a swing set, and wooded background.

The Stager Years

In 1969, Jay and Shirley Stager purchased the camp. In those days, the camp hosted 90 campers that lived in what is now the Red Barn. Among the campers Peter Kassen and his brothers. The Stager's ideal of an interracial, non-denominational, non-competitive camp was visionary and groundbreaking. Over time during the 70's and 80's, campers moved out of the barn and into cabins which now house over 200 children.

The Stagers also established camping's first and only llama herd. Their time is also known for its pioneering and inspired internationalism - beginning our tradition of hosting staff and campers from every continent - and the introduction of many new art forms to the HVC program.

A man sitting in a blue chair, drinking from a red mug, wearing a light yellow shirt and red pants, in a room with wooden and concrete walls.

A man with curly hair and a beard wearing a white shirt and a woman with brown hair accessorized with a large pink flower, wearing a colorful floral dress, outdoors.

Group of children and two adults outdoors, smiling and posing for a photo.

Children and adults at a farm, with one girl riding a horse with a sack of hay on its side, others talking, and a red house in the background.

A woman in traditional clothing sitting on the left holding a chalice and a man in traditional clothing sitting on the right on a wooden bench outdoors.

A person in a purple dress tending a lush garden with various plants and flowers, with a dark building in the background.

Group of children and teens sitting and standing on a shed's sloped roof, surrounded by trees.

The Kassen Years

Meanwhile, Peter and Meg met at nearby Med-O-Lark Camp which they directed from 1979 to 1986. Married in 1985, the Kassens took over at Hidden Valley when Jay retired in 1988.

In addition to shepherding the physical growth of the camp, Peter and Meg moved the camp community forward, expanding HVC’s commitment to the arts, introducing a host of staff training opportunities, developing teen programs, broadening Hidden Valley's idea of diversity, and deepening the camp’s focus on cabin and community life. We also look back, with camp programs and summer conversations educating staff and campers about the indigenous roots on HVC's 350+ acres.

All of HVC's founders are memorialized in Founders Park, the site of the Tiffanys original cabin, next to camp's office.

In 2017, Jay was honored posthumously for his pioneering efforts to enrich camp communities through the participation of international staff and campers. At the same conference, the American Camp Association New England recognized Peter's achievements in educating the camping movement about inclusion of transgender participants.

A woman with long blonde hair in a ponytail and a blue striped shirt is sitting next to a man with dark curly hair and a beard, wearing a white sweatshirt with bear illustrations. They are engaged in conversation, sitting close together with their hands clasped. The background features a red wall with a light switch and electrical meter.

Four people sitting at a red outdoor picnic table talking, with a man standing and engaging with two girls and a woman. The woman is smiling, and the girl in front of her has her hair in a ponytail, while the girl on the right has her hair in a bun. The background has wooden signage and a green door.

A woman with glasses and a braid sitting on grass with a young girl, both smiling at each other, and a dog lying beside them. They are outdoors, surrounded by green bushes.

Family of four playing in the snow in front of a red house with white trim. The father is holding a baby, the mother is shoveling snow, and a young child is standing with a snow shovel.

A man wearing a blue cap and sunglasses hanging around his neck is holding a spoon and a jar of pickle, with pickle being poured onto the spoon. A woman in sunglasses and a sun hat is laughing, holding a spoon with her right hand. They are outside, under some shade.

The Durrett Years

April and Wes Durrett have been members of the Hidden Valley Camp community since 2000 and 1988 respectively. They met at Hidden Valley, had two daughters that enrolled both in camp for 10+ years as campers, AWACs, and are now camp staff. April and Wes have been counselors, pro-staff, year-round staff, and camp consultants for Hidden Valley and are invested in long term sustainability and continuation of the founding philosophies that make HVC such a special place. They took the helm in the fall of 2024 with 2025 being their first summer as directors.