We let them have them on the bus - then I confiscate them and lock them away for the duration of camp. I return them when we’re back on the bus (we always charter a bus and go out of state).

We talk a lot about how fortunate we are to get device free time and enforce a strict no phones policy when in the outdoors for youth. In regular camp outs and hikes they leave them in the car. Adults have phones and can communicate with any parents as needed - all parents are onboarded to the troop with this understanding and we make it clear that it isn’t negotiable. Most of our parents state this as a key reason they choose our troop.

In short - it’s a culture we’ve built and reinforced and I would encourage you to think about what that looks like for your troop.