Camp Patmos put us up for two nights while we checked out what Kelleys Island and Put ‘n Bay (on South Bass Island) had to offer families for good clean fun. Camp Patmos is a non-denominational Christian camp that serves the church, groups and families. You can learn more about all they offer and when they offer it via the links I’m providing. Executive Director Dave Sellers gave us a tour of the grounds. You can learn more about him and the other full-time staff here.

Learn more about Family Camp July 2-7th which includes meals, activities and lodging plus you will be eligible for discounted Kelleys Island Ferry rates and Family Camp July 30-August 4th. Go to the website to see all the different types of camps they serve and offer.

Camp Patmos is located at the back end of Kelleys Island and its a beautiful location on the edge of  Lake Erie as you’ll see from my pictures and video below. We did not stay in the cabins but in one of the rooms of the house on the grounds. I show it in the video. The campus has a pool, basketball courts, and volleyball. I think they offer other types of camping accommodations too, like for RV’s, etc.. But  you’ll have to check into that for yourself.

As for the rest of Kelleys Island, well, I can tell you what we saw as we drove around. We saw fascinating historical buildings, in my opinion anyways. I took pictures of some of them but I don’t know the history behind them all. There’s a lot of thick tall grass/weeds amongst the trees where the deer roam. Yes, we had two deer in one night in two different places appear before our car on the road. You can expect to see golf carts roaming around the island too. I was told they have foxes, eagles, and I did see cattle.

We ate breakfast Saturday morning at the Bag The Moon Restaurant. Joel and I had the Belgium waffles (I had strawberries and cream with mine), they serve bottomless coffee, and our boys split an adult size pancake breakfast. The pancakes looked more like very large crepes to me and they did look yummy- but I had my hands full eating that Belgium waffle! I do recommend Bag The Moon, there are other places to eat but I only saw one or two open at the time we drove through. Its an island so you won’t have a ton of choices.

Recommendations and tips!

I think I may have seen a General Store on Kelleys Island but I’m not sure. There is a small general store section at the ferry dock. I saw nothing close to a Walmart or Target there so if you plan to visit and you want to save money on food I suggest you BUY and STOCK a cooler before you leave the mainland! We probably averaged spending about $20-25 per meal for our family of 4 to eat most meals.

On Sunday, the day we were heading home, we just bought some (delicious!) fried donuts, coffee and milk at a shop called…I believe… The Coffee Shop :). Their reputation must precede them because I had to wait in a line that morning. The prices were fair- $1.95 for 12 oz coffee and about $5 for a half-doz. fried donuts. They were gooood!

Check out my video below and you’ll see some of the outdoor attractions of the island: Kelleys Island State Park’s small but fun beach and Glacial Grooves. It was clear to me that Kelleys Island is a place for families to camp. We saw plenty of that and I think the island looks like a fun place to do so. If you visit the island be sure to go see Glacial Grooves (see in my video) and play on the beach (in the video too). Keep towels in your car for your dirty wet, sandy feet!

Go to my Youtube channel here to see my video of Camp Patmos. See Glacial Grooves about the 1:20 mark.

Visit the Kelleys Island website to see other things offered like boating,fishing and more. My last post, Part 4, will be about Put’n Bay’s family-friendly side. I hope you’ll stick around!

*Lake Erie Shores & Islands arranged and provided for our ferrying needs and lodging at Camp Patmos. All opinions are mine and my families.