Work Hard, Camp Hard

Hello All,

What a week!  We've had backpacking trips, high ropes adventures, outdoor cooking smorgasbords, and waterfront shenanigans galore.  Day Camp had a double program this week - some foiled the Toilet Paper Villain during Superheroes Week, and others made awesome crafts in Arts Around Us.  It's been so much fun seeing our staff bond with each other and the campers, and watching the campers get out of their comfort zones to make new friends and memories.  I had one camper tell me after getting off the Power Pole, "Wow!  I'm afraid of heights, so I wasn't sure if I could make it!"  She hadn't said a thing beforehand, and just jumped right into the challenge of conquering her fear.

Last Saturday was also our July Ridge Dinner, a New England style four-course meal including a shrimp boil and delicious whoopie pies.  The incredible PRIDE of Newaygo County volunteered for the event, Donald Benson and Jay Round performed, and we were able to raise funds for the PRIDE members to attend the Drug Prevention Conference in Arkansas.  Overall it was a beautiful night.

Next week is the last week of resident camp.  It goes by so fast...

Happy Camping!

Community Picnic Tonight!

Hello All,

I cannot believe we are already four weeks into summer camp!  We only have two full weeks left.  At least we still have Christmas in July to look forward to.  The staff has gotten their Secret Santa assignments and ornaments are being made in the craft shop.  I can't wait for the big reveal on Friday to see who had who!  The kids will leave their "stockings" outside tomorrow night for a special treat, and the day will be filled with decorating, singing, special activities and a great Christmas dinner.

Monday night we resurrected a tradition for the evening:  Newaygo Squares!  Campers tested their knowledge against celebrity panelists such as the Coppertone girl, Justin Bieber, and the Cookie Monster.  Check it out:

Abe is the famous "Rigg'a'Bamboo" - she's red and gold and purple too!

Don't forget to visit the Community Picnic at Fremont Veteran's Memorial Park, hosted by TrueNorth Community Services, tonight.  Get a meal for a $1 donation from 5pm to 7:30pm.  I'll be there selling raffle tickets to support Camp and eating some yummy food.  It's going to be a blast!

Happy Camping!

Summer Camp News!

Hello All,

Camp is in full swing here, and every day is a new adventure!  A lot goes on behind the scenes that our campers probably don't even notice.  So many people help to run camp like a well-oiled machine - counselors, directors, and staff.  While the counselors are here to give the girls an amazing experience at camp, there are just as many people in the background keeping it all going.  Many thanks to Mary, Lori, Caitlin, Caroline, Nikki, Kaci, Liz, Laurie, Mary Ann, Penny, Kari, Naoe, Gary, Julia, Jalisa, Jane, Lisa, Marcia, Jelanie, Mary M., Carol, Shelby, Miranda, Joe, Andrea, Tyler, and Daina!  Phew that's quite a list!

Big news from the 4th of July!  Our very own Day Camp Director Jeremy had quite a surprise for our Waterfront Director Kaci during our lantern ceremony.  As the lanterns were lit and sent up above Pickerel Lake, Jeremy proposed!  It was beautiful.  After the special moment people around the lake began to set off fireworks as if in celebration of the engagement.  Congratulations to Kaci and Jeremy!


Happy Camping!

Super Summer

Hello All,

Staff training has begun, and it looks like we are going to have a fantastic group of counselors this year!  They have been busy with photo scavenger hunts, camp outs, canoe trips, song singing, and more.  We are so excited to get our first batch of campers.

This weekend we are very busy with our last Mom and Me Camp, as well as Kid's Day in Newaygo - come see me at the rock wall!

Happy Camping!

Zip Line News

Hello All,

A little update to our Zip Line - we have decided to postpone our Opening Day and we will keep you updated on when the canopy tour will be open to the public.  Don't worry!  This high-flying experience is going to be amazing when the weather isn't so gloomy and the sun is shining!

Happy Camping!

Variety is the Spice of Camp

Hello All!

What a busy week so far!  Andrea has officially started work on our Wetland expansion, with help from local community members and three students from Cabrini High School.  We are also hosting the zip line build team while they put the finishing touches on the course, the fantastic group of Camp Ability, and twenty five of our staff (including internationals), some of which are getting lifeguard certified.  It's a lot to keep track of!  I am so happy to see Camp busy again.

Students of Boardwalk Building 101

Yesterday we saw a giant Snapping Turtle lay her eggs...in the Day Camp parking lot.  Hopefully I can find her nest and save her babies from a smooshing!  My own pet Map Turtle Tank has a new buddy nick-named Dee, and he's very tiny:

Dee's shell is the size of a quarter!

Happy Camping!

A Not Neat Knot Need Not be Knotted

Hello All,

Summer is officially here now that a portion of our summer counseling staff have arrived!  Last week and this week has been dedicated to building our amazing new zip line canopy tour.  Almost everyone in the office was on hand to clear away branches under the lines - and to sweet talk the wood chipper at times - while the installation team did their thing.  We also put in a few new low-ropes elements, too.  The giant's thumb was somewhat easy to test out for Amazon women like Jalisa and I, but it will be a real challenge for the campers.  A big thank you goes out to the Summit  team for their hard work.

The past two days have been spent training a selection of volunteers and staff on the low and high ropes courses (hence the nifty blog title we learned during knot tying).  The rock wall was a little pollen-covered this morning, which caused some funny moments for the climbers as they clung to the hand-holds mid-sneeze.  I, too, was a victim of allergies and actually came off the wall with the force of my "achoo" (it's an automatic belay system, don't worry).  TrueNorth's camera man Chris brought out a Go-Pro camera to document the first ever Camp Newaygo employee to ride the zip line, Kori - it was awesome!

Unfortunately I was having so much fun on the course that I did not take any pictures of the zip, so instead here's a picture of a very tall, very fresh fern on the boardwalk on my way home last night.  I also got a blurry picture of a Moccassin Flower Orchid, but I was almost eaten alive by mosquitoes to get the shot so I ran the rest of the way home.  I have a feeling we'll be using up a lot of bug spray this month.

Cinnamon Ferns (disclaimer: not actual cinnamon)

Happy Camping!