What Slide Ranch does

Slide Ranch is a 501(c)(3) environmental education nonprofit that operates a 134-acre working coastal farm and education center within the Golden Gate National Recreation Area in Marin County, California, founded in 1970 on land protected by The Nature Conservancy and stewarded under an arrangement with the National Park Service. The organization's core product is hands-on, place-based outdoor education: school field trips (visiting over 80 partner schools across grades K-12), week-long summer day camps for children at $695 per week, Counselor-in-Training teen programs, multi-day coastal ecology and adventure programs for teens, family programs, and community events. Curriculum centers on direct participation in animal husbandry, organic gardening, cooking, and coastal ecosystems, delivered by a small core staff of approximately 8 full-time professionals supplemented by seasonal educators and volunteer-supported programs.

Revenue is generated through a diversified nonprofit model rather than a single revenue stream: tuition-bearing camp and teen programs, a six-tier individual and family membership structure spanning $175 to $10,000 annually, corporate retreats for Fortune 500 clients (including Salesforce, Netflix, Levi's, EY, and Uber Eats), weddings and private events, Hipcamp lodging, Spring Fling as the signature annual fundraiser, and philanthropic support from corporate partners (notably Clif Bar under Project 2080 and Vintner's Daughter) alongside individual donations and grants. The organization also makes inroads into co-educational programming, exemplified by a Vintner's Daughter-funded partnership delivering Slide Ranch's curriculum to Girls Inc. of Alameda County participants.

Slide Ranch operates from a unique venue that combines organic farm, apiary, garden, trails, and coastline on federal recreation-area land — a footprint that is functionally exclusive within the Bay Area. The model serves roughly 4,000 program participants annually and welcomes approximately 7,000 visitors to the property, with membership, donor, and corporate partner ecosystems that anchor long-term financial sustainability.

Name

Slide Ranch

Legal name

Slide Ranch

Website

https://slideranch.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1970

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Slide Ranch is a Marin County-based 501(c)(3) environmental education nonprofit operating a 134-acre coastal farm within the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, delivering hands-on outdoor programs in animal husbandry, gardening, cooking, and coastal ecology to K-12 schools, summer campers, teens, families, and corporate retreat clients.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Outdoor Environmental Education

NAICS

Nature Parks and Other Similar Institutions (712190), Sports and Recreation Instruction (61162)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900), Services-Membership Sports & Recreation Clubs (7997)

akta.pro primary industry

Outdoor & Wilderness Education Schools (Field-Based Learning) (THAAAOAA)

Keywords

• Environmental education
• Outdoor youth programs
• Farm-based learning
• Summer camp services
• Nature education center

Headquarters

HQ city

Muir

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Fundraising: Individual donations constitute a primary revenue stream. The organization operates as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit (Tax ID #23-7069469) and runs an annual fall fundraiser (Farm to Belly Supper) and general donation campaigns. Corporate sponsors also contribute.
2. Membership Program: Annual memberships at tiered price points ($175–$10,000) provide exclusive access to events, discounts on merchandise and camps, early registration, and exclusive venue use. Members are part of the Slide Ranch community.
3. Program Fees (Summer Camp, CIT, School Programs): Revenue from summer camp registrations (youth ages 5-12, ~$695/week), Counselor-in-Training program ($495 training), and school/community programs offered at a sliding-scale fee with no one turned away for lack of funds.
4. Venue Rentals and Corporate Events: Corporate offsite retreats, volunteer days, strategic planning sessions, and company celebrations at venues including the Farm-to-Table Center, Dome Meadow, and Yurt. Pricing available upon request.
5. Merchandise Sales: Online store selling sweatshirts, t-shirts, water bottles, travel mugs, blankets, stickers, and magnets via slideranchmerchandise.org.
6. Overnight Camping (Hipcamp): Camping reservations are managed through Hipcamp, generating revenue from overnight tent camping at the meadow campground.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Slide Ranch operates an environmental education center on a 134-acre coastal ranch within the Golden Gate National Recreation Area in Marin County, California, offering hands-on, farm- and nature-based programming. It sells summer camps, school and community group programs, day visits, workshops, memberships, and rents the property for corporate events and weddings.

Product overview

Slide Ranch operates as a single, unified program offering — an environmental education nonprofit on a 134-acre coastal ranch. The core offering consists of hands-on nature immersion programs for children and families, including School & Community Programs, Summer Camp, Family Farm Days, and Overnight Camping. Additional revenue-generating programs include Corporate Events & Offsites, Wedding Venue Rentals, and Workshop/Class offerings. The organization also runs a Membership Program with six tiers and a seasonal Farm-to-Table Dinner Series. All programs share a common thread of connecting participants to nature through sustainable farming, environmental science, and outdoor experiences.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Summer Camp Seasonal multi-day youth camp held on the 134-acre coastal ranch, providing farm- and nature-based environmental education for children and families.
• School and Community Programs Field-trip-style educational programs delivered to school classes and community groups, focused on ecology, agriculture, and coastal ecosystems at the ranch.
• Workshops Short, focused instructional classes on topics tied to the ranch's farm, garden, and coastal environment, available to general visitors.
• Corporate Events Ranch-based venue and programming packages for corporate group events, retreats, and team-building activities.
• Weddings and Private Events Venue rental of the coastal ranch property for weddings and other private celebrations.
• Memberships Annual membership program that supports Slide Ranch's nonprofit mission and provides members with benefits tied to the ranch.
• Day Visits Single-day public visit option for individuals and families to experience the ranch, its animals, gardens, and coastal setting.
• Overnight Camping (via Hipcamp) Overnight camping stays on the ranch property, distributed and booked through the third-party platform Hipcamp.

Quantifiable outcome

• ~850 campers served in a single summer season (2025)
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

15 partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and flagship.

• Clif BarcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Clif Bar conducts annual Project 2080 volunteer days at Slide Ranch, mobilizing hundreds of employees for hands-on service. Clif Family Foundation has also provided funding to support educational programs for low-income youth from the East Bay. The partnership embodies shared values around sustainability, community, and environmental stewardship.
• Levi'sminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Levi's is listed as a corporate client hosting team-building and retreat events at Slide Ranch, combining outdoor experiences with company culture goals.
• Ernst & Young (EY)minorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Ernst & Young listed as a corporate event client for team-building activities at Slide Ranch.
• NetflixminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Netflix listed as a corporate event client hosting team-building and retreat activities at Slide Ranch.
• Uber EatsminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Uber Eats executive leadership team participated in a full-day retreat at Slide Ranch including coastal hikes, garden volunteering, farm-to-table meal preparation, and team reflections.
• SalesforceminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Salesforce listed as a corporate event client hosting team-building and retreat activities at Slide Ranch.
• SamsaraminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Samsara listed as a corporate event client hosting team-building and retreat activities at Slide Ranch.
• WorkdayminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Workday listed as a corporate event client hosting team-building and retreat activities at Slide Ranch.
• Felton InstituteminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Felton Institute listed as a corporate event client hosting team-building and retreat activities at Slide Ranch.
• Pasha GroupminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Pasha Group listed as a corporate event client hosting team-building and retreat activities at Slide Ranch.
• Buck InstituteminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Buck Institute listed as a corporate event client hosting team-building and retreat activities at Slide Ranch.
• Vintner's DaughtercoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Vintner's Daughter, a mission-driven beauty brand, has conducted multiple corporate retreats at Slide Ranch and provides financial support for the Girl's Inc of Alameda County environmental education partnership. The collaboration combines team building, farm-to-table experiences, and social impact reporting.
• Volunteers for Outdoor California (V-O-CAL)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025V-O-CAL leaders co-led volunteer teams during the Clif Bar Project 2080 volunteer day at Slide Ranch, providing outdoor stewardship expertise and project supervision for trail clearing and habitat restoration work.
• National Park Service / Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1970Slide Ranch is a Park Partner of the Golden Gate National Parks, located within the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, a unit of the National Park Service. This partnership, established in 1970, places the ranch within a protected national park landscape while enabling its nonprofit educational mission to operate on public land.
• The Nature ConservancyflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1969In 1969, founder Doug Ferguson purchased 134 acres of the coastline and transferred it to The Nature Conservancy, ensuring permanent protection of the land. This transfer enabled the establishment of the Slide Ranch nonprofit in 1970 and its status as one of the first Park Partners in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Camp Tawonga: Bay Area residential summer camp near Yosemite with a strong Jewish-cultural and outdoor-education mission. Directly comparable on the residential/outdoor youth education axis and is the former employer of Slide Ranch's current Executive Director.
• Hidden Villa: A Bay Area nonprofit on a 1,600-acre property in Los Altos Hills operating an organic farm, environmental education programs, summer camps, and community gardens. Closest functional analog to Slide Ranch with the same working-farm-plus-education model and similar sliding-scale access philosophy.
• Audubon Canyon Ranch: A Northern California nature preserve network with environmental education programming, sanctuary operations, and visitor experiences. Comparable in combining land stewardship, education, and public engagement on protected natural lands.

Regional players

• Marin Agricultural Land Trust (MALT): A Marin County agricultural land trust focused on protecting farmland and supporting working ranches. Shares Slide Ranch's Marin County geography, working-farm orientation, and land-stewardship donor base.
• Tilden Environmental Education Center: An East Bay Regional Parks facility providing hands-on nature education programs for Bay Area schoolchildren. Comparable audience (school-aged children) and curriculum (environmental literacy), though public-sector rather than nonprofit.
• Point Reyes National Seashore Association: A cooperating association supporting Point Reyes National Seashore with education, stewardship, and visitor programs. Operates in the same Marin coastal geography and National Park context as Slide Ranch with overlapping donor and volunteer pools.

Broad incumbents

• Save the Redwoods League: A statewide California nonprofit protecting redwood forests through land acquisition, education, and visitor experiences. Operates at a much larger scale but shares the protected-land-plus-education model and Bay Area/Northern California donor base.
• California Academy of Sciences: San Francisco-based science institution with aquarium, planetarium, and natural history museum offering environmental education programs. Comparable audience of Bay Area youth and families and a similar nonprofit science-education model, though at much larger scale and indoor.
• Institute at the Golden Gate: An initiative within the Golden Gate National Parks focused on convening, learning, and policy around parks and protected areas. Operates within the same GGNRA ecosystem as Slide Ranch and works with overlapping corporate and philanthropic partners.

Emerging players

• YMCA of the East Bay (Camp Arroyo): Operates youth residential and day camps across the Bay Area including environmental and outdoor programming. Comparable on the summer-camp, youth-education axis though broader in mission.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/SlideRanch.Marin.CA
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/in/slide-ranch-admin-80804016a
• Instagraminstagram.com/slide_ranch
• Xx.com/SlideRanch

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Slide Ranch