As the sun sets over the lake, joyful shouts are echoing from all around camp as the campers wrap up their evening program. Since this is my first official summer blog post, let me take a quick second to say hello! This is Darby Dame, and I’m excited to step in as a guest writer. I already know many of you from emailing, talking on the phone, or meeting on Opening Day, and let me tell you, it is such a pleasure getting to know your boys each summer. Now, let’s dive into a quick overview of our day!
Today’s weather was pretty delightful! Temperatures hit a high around 75 degrees and we had a small amount of rain come through around 3:00 p.m. that cooled things off further.
Walking around camp, you can feel something special happening as campers are settling into their second week. Any initial first-week jitters are gone and the campers are starting to feel comfortable here. You can hear the jokes and silly moments happening between counselors and campers. You can see the fist pumps as they accomplish more this week than the last. One of the coolest parts is seeing the friendships formed move past the initial “what’s your favorite sports team?” to inside jokes and shared moments. Seeing them open up, look out for one another, and just grow as individuals in a matter of days is exactly why we love what we do.
As I sat down to write tonight, I couldn’t stop thinking about our wonderful kitchen staff and the meals they provide all summer long. Tonight, we had a delicious dinner of chili, which came right on the heels of a widely popular Taco Tuesday lunch with all the fixin’s. Camp food usually gets a bad rap, but the kitchen crew here does an incredible job. Feeding this many energetic kids three times a day is hard work, but they always do it with a smile and make sure the food is delicious.
Today was a massive tripping day around here! Our hikers headed out for an overnight adventure to Panthertown, while the mountain bikers spent the morning tearing up the trails at Dupont. The paddling hit the Chattooga River, a climbing trip went out to nearby rocks, and Cabin Hillside opted to take on the High Ropes Course this morning. What a day!
Another night of fun was had!
Age Group 1 – Chill Night! These guys headed out to Sliding Rock and a visit to Dolly’s Icecream. (Yum!)
Age Group 2, 3, and 4 – Gym and Activity Field – These guys had the option to pick where they wanted to go and what games they wanted to play among these areas.
Age Group 5 – Soccer Field
Age Group 6 – Cabin Night – Many a board game abounded!
Thank you for letting me jump in and guest write tonight. It is truly a privilege getting to work with your children and connect with all of you throughout the year. Every summer here feels like one big celebration, and I honestly can’t put into words how much it means to be a part of this camp family for almost 10 years now.
Darby Dame
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