Camp Is A Blast!

Camp is a Blast!

This morning was a cloudy and cool start to the camp day which made for a delightful breaking of our fasts over eggs, oatmeal coffee cake, fruit, and more. 

Assembly was quick to get underway this morning and proceeded to jam on many of the favorite tunes our people clamor for. “Cheeseburger in Paradise” and any Taylor Swift song are always crowd-pleasers. A motion song to finish off the fun and get the blood pumping saw everyone into their activities with a skip in their step.

This Friday morning was a busy day in activities. There was not a single trip off property, but plenty of guys were engaged in events outside of their normal schedule. Outpost cabin was on the ropes course this morning and from the sounds echoing around camp, having a blast up high with a touch of nerves to boot. 

Rocketry culminated their week of choosing, building, priming, and painting their rockets with a (very) successful launch day in the activity field. A bunch of campers marched out holding their rockets with pride, ready to put their creations to the stress test. Two by two, the fellas got to be at the controls to launch their rocket, then quickly began the run-down as the rockets came raining back to earth. All craft launched, three never made it back home, and are instead decorating the tippy tops of some of our big trees now! Our photographer was on the scene to take pre-launch photos for just such an eventuality.

Hiking was working on setting the best tarp possible by eyeing up the available terrain, getting your taut-line hitch knots just so, and calling the counselors when you felt bomb-proof. Once called, counselors arrived with a leaf-blower and hose to test the tarp during hurricane-esque conditions with the campers teams huddled gleefully inside.

Soccer saw a chance to really mix things up by playing “water soccer”. Hurt my brain in concept as well, but turned into a rather slow-motion game of pushing a soccer ball into floating goals with any body part but the hands/arms. A creative hit that the campers really got into.

Lunch today was an easy affair of chicken caesar wraps, french fries, pineapple, and salad. Luckily it was such a menu as a doozy of a storm blew up just before the meal and had everyone who typically dines outside move to the gym instead where a full version of lunch met them there in an impromptu setup. Funnily enough, lunch moved faster than normal and it was off to a rest hour as the storm finished up.

Mountain bikers were back at it on the cabin field today, working through various set obstacles including the teeter-totter where riders must hit a ramp at nearly uncomfortable speed and ride the see-saw action down on the other side. 

This evening, camp feasted on a delicious dinner of pork roast with a mushroom sherry cream sauce, sweet potatoes, green beans, rolls, salad, and banana pudding. Then it was back into the action with a fun set of evening activities.

Our oldest campers got to do a slip-n-slide and ice cream down at our pavilion area. The other four-week campers were engaged with the rope swing and waterslide, along with an intense game in the gaga pit.

Our Mini I campers, for their last night with us, headed to campfire hill as a more formal note of closure. They were met by a roaring fire and s’mores aplenty before singing songs while the sugar settled in. Then they spent a (slightly) more contemplative time reflecting on the past accomplishments of their two weeks at camp. It goes by so fast when you are in the moment that helping these guys remember all the things they have seen and done while at camp is important. It really does lend them perspective on the pride they should take in the experience they just had… and brings up a lot of goofy stories and laughs along the way.

Things are wrapping up out there with the evening snack bell ringing and much-needed showers and toothbrushes waiting. Please enjoy the pictures tonight and may you sleep like these guys are about to!

Woody Noland

Today’s Pictures