Frequently Asked Questions?!?!?

Home Guitar Gear Guitar Mania Quiz Class Descriptions Location & Accommodations Food Camp Fees Instructors Register Contact Sample Schedule Camper Comments Links News	Requirements Are beginners welcome? What should I bring to camp? Are there age limits for coming to camp? The Music!!! What kinds of classes do you offer? How hard are the classes? Being Here What's a typical day like at Guitar Camp? Accommodations What kinds of accommodations are available? Is there a phone at camp, so that I can call my family? Traveling to Camp What's the best way to pack a guitar for airplane travel? I'd like to go, but I live in another state. Can you help me make travel arrangements from SFO International Airport? What to Bring Should I bring my good guitar, or my funky one? Food I'm a vegetarian. Will there be main courses that I can eat? Fees How much does it cost? Do you offer scholarships? Work|Study discounts? Performing I'm kind of shy about my playing. Will I have to play in front of people? I love to play in front of people. How many opportunities will I have to perform? Have a question not listed here? Emai us  or phone 707/869-9642 (answering machine has robot voice).
Return to Top	Are beginners welcome? Yes! We have an entire curriculum for beginners. For women just starting out, we teach classes in technique, strums and picking, expanding repertoire with easy, well-known songs and jamming opportunities. (see Class Descriptions ). You will find the staff and other campers supportive and enthusiastic about your playing and progress. Women find the community of other women players very inspiring and transformative.
	What should I bring to camp? When we receive your Registration Form, we will send a Confirmation Letter that suggests what to bring to camp and includes a driving map. In addition, to your guitar, music stand, personal items and bedding, we recommend that you bring a small recorder, the chart for a favorite song to share, six of your friends and a good appetite!
Return to Top	Are there age limits for coming to camp? Women 16 and older are welcome. Mothers who would like to bring their younger teen guitar-playing daughters, please email or phone 707/869-9642 (answering machine has robot voice). We have enjoyed the diversity of ages at previous camps.
	What kinds of classes do you offer? We offer classes for beginning through advanced players in a variety of styles including Fingerstyle, Blues, Flatpicking, Brazilian and Celtic. We also offer classes in technique, theory, arranging, song writing and performance. We make every effort to "integrate" our curriculum so that, for example, the scale you learn in your Lead/Improv class will work with the progression your friend learned in the Blues class. (see About Guitar Camp, Class Descriptions or Sample Schedule ) Some classes meet on both days; others just once. All class periods last for one hour and fifteen minutes.
Return to Top	How hard are the classes? Each class is oriented either to beginners, advanced beginners, intermediate or advanced players (although some classes span levels). Campers are welcome to attend any class that interests them, but should be aware that the class will be taught at the level specified on the schedule of classes. On the first night of camp, we offer an orientation program in which teachers preview the music and techniques that will be taught in each class so that you can make an informed decision about which classes to attend.
Home Guitar Gear Guitar Mania Quiz Class Descriptions Location and Accommodations Food Camp Fees Instructors Register Contact Sample Schedule Camper Comments Links	What's a typical day like at Guitar Camp? Early risers will find coffee and teas in the kitchen. We serve breakfast from 8:00 a.m. to 8:45 a.m. We divide the morning into two class periods, with two or three class choices each period. Each class lasts an hour and fifteen minutes. When you see the beautiful lunch spread, you'll be glad you had the opportunity to work up an appetite! Right after lunch comes the last class period of the day. The later afternoons are devoted to seminars on Song Writing, Guitar Maintenance and Purchasing, Performance Support, Amplification, Gigging Logistics and free time to practice, jam or compose. Of course, napping and hikes to the nearby beach are always popular. Saturday and Sunday evenings everyone has the opporunity to perform. We get to hear and appreciate original songs, newly formed ensembles, brave beginners and experienced players sharing what they love. Evening programs are made memorable by unbelievable late night snacks. We end officially by 10:00 p.m. but night owls continue the festivities in the late night jam space. You will find a lot of this information and more by visiting our Sample Schedule , but we believe that some of the most valuable time for campers is spent in conversation and musical exchange with women guitar players from all over the country.
News	What kinds of accommodations are available? Campers have the option of staying in bedrooms in the Farmhouse, cabins, tents or offsite motels and inns in the surrounding area. Your camp fees will depend on your choice of  accommodations (see Accommodations and Camp Fees ).
Return to Top	Is there a phone at camp, so that I can call my family? There is a payphone on the porch of the Farmhouse from which you can call out and receive calls. In the Confirmation Letter, we provide the number for this phone.
Return to top.	What's the best way to pack a guitar for airplane travel? If you have the opportunity to carry your guitar on the plane and store it in the overhead compartment, please accept this option. However, most airlines will not let you carry on bags as big as a standard size guitar case. Please don't let this discourage you from flying with the guitar you love. If you follow the guidelines below, your guitar will very likely arrive in perfect condition. Many of these packing guidelines stem from the fact that the most vulnerable point on the guitar -- as it makes its way through the airline baggage system -- is the place where the head joins the neck. That is the narrowest point on the guitar, and it also bears much stress from string tension. Basic Packing Guidelines 1. Loosen the tension of all strings so that they are almost completely slack. This will make the guitar less vulnerable to breakage in the event that it falls and lands on its headstock. 2. Pack your guitar in a hardshell case. Neither a gig bag nor a soft case is adequate to protect your guitar from the stresses it will encounter en route. A hardshell case with an arched lid affords more protection than a flat lid case. A hardshell case with an arched lid and an arched bottom is better still. Fiberglass cases are good too. Consider packing your clothes in your gig bag, so that you can use your gig bag once your guitar has arrived safely. 3. Before you close your hardshell case, immobilize your guitar's headstock by surrounding it with some soft clothing (e.g., T-shirts, sweaters) or newspapers. Pack the clothing or newspapers above and below the guitar's headstock, so that the headstock cannot move in any direction once the case is closed. If your guitar wobbles around in the case, pack some more soft clothing around the neck and body to immobilize it completely (but don't pack so tightly that you create unnecessary pressure on the guitar's top). 4. Close your guitar case. Secure all of the latches. Lock any locks for which you have a key. Tape over the lock and some of the latches with duct tape -- perhaps all the way around the case. Packing Guidelines for the Extremely Worried These extra precautions provide more physical protection for your guitar, and they also help hide the fact that your baggage is a guitar. Basically, the extra precautions amount to packing your already well-packed guitar case in a box. Here's how: 1. Pack your guitar as described in the Basic Packing Guidelines above. 2. Go to your local guitar store and ask for a packing box. These are the boxes in which the store received the guitars it sells, and guitar stores usually recycle more of them than will fit in the recycling bin. Indeed, I have scored some great packing boxes by going round the back of the store to the refuse area, and rummaging around until I find a box that fits my case. 3. Slide your carefully packed guitar and case into the box. Crumple up a bunch of newspapers, and wedge them all around your guitar case. Tape the box closed. Use a razor knife to cut a "hand hole" in the box. Cut the hole on one of the large faces of the box, about two inches from the long edge, and half way down the length of the box. The hole should be large enough to accommodate your four fingers. Using this hole, you can easily carry the box with one hand. As you carry your guitar through the airport, and as the baggage handlers shepherd it across the country, no one will know it's a guitar!
Return to Top	I'd like to go, but I live in another state. Can you help me make travel arrangements from SFO International Airport? We help link campers coming into San Francisco International Airport with others arriving on the same day. This way, you can rent a car and drive to camp together. We can also give you the names and phone numbers of campers who have offered to drive others to camp from the San Francisco Bay area. These generous souls have sometimes been willing to stop at the airport and pick up flyers. The camp is located about 4.5 hours northwest of SFO airport, so it's a good idea to book an early flight. Camp begins at 4:30 p.m. and dinner is served by 6:00 p.m. If you arrive later, we can save food for you. But please make every effort to arrive in time for the orientation program that begins at 7:00 p.m. At that time, we'll demonstrate material from all of the classes to be offered on Saturday and Sunday, so that you can decide which classes best suit your interests and level of experience.
	Should I bring my good guitar, or my funky one? You'll enjoy the musical aspects of camp more if you bring your favorite guitar, and some campers have brought very fine guitars to camp. We have never had a problem with theft, loss or damage at camp. Campers are respectful of each other's instruments; no one handles another's guitar without her permission. But if worrying will keep you from enjoying yourself, we hope that you'll bring your funky one.
Return to Top	I'm a vegetarian. Will there be main courses that I can eat? We offer a delicious vegetarian alternative at every meal. Please note your preference in the space provided on the Registration Form.
	How much does it cost? Depending upon the type of accommodation you choose (e.g., room in farmhouse, tenting outside farmhouse, lodging off-site), camp costs between $340 and $395. This price includes all meals, classes and camp activities. Please note that if you choose to find off-site lodging, you will need to make your own arrangements. We recommend the nearby Pine Beach Inn (four minutes away by car) in Fort Bragg. The phone number is 707/964-5603. For more information, please see Camp Fees.
Return to Top	Do you offer scholarships? Work|Study discounts? Sometimes, we have a small fund with which we can help women in difficult financial circumstances.
	I'm kind of shy about my playing. Will I have to play in front of people? I love to play in front of people. How many opportunities will I have to perform? No one is required to perform on a stage or play alone in classes. However, you will not find a safer, more supportive group for whom to perform if you are shy or inexperienced. We offer a Performance Support Seminar that might help you feel more comfortable on stage. But if you choose not to perform, you will not be alone. Those who enjoy performing will find a receptive, enthusiastic audience on both Saturday and Sunday evenings.  Our community is open to many different styles of music. We love the variety of musical offerings and are inspired by all who participate.