Is that a Whale?!?!- July 17th Blog
Posted by: Birch Rock Camp
![A camper wrapped up in blankets, walking with a counselor, after competing a long distance swim.](https://birchrock.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/DSC_0199-1-1024x683.jpg)
Ding ding ding ding ding ding….. “Whale!!!” The camp heard near the end of the first period. As people flooded down to the Disco Deck the chants grew louder and louder. “swim Connor swim, swim Connor swim” they shouted. Not but 200 yards away was Connor P at the neighbors property nearing the end to one of Birch Rock’s greatest achievements: The Whale. 5 miles around the lake’s circumference with nothing but determination and Crisco. An undoubtedly hard challenge faced by years of BRC campers. As Connor got close, the camp cheered him on for his big finish has he burst into front crawl. When he reached the dock he had jumped off of just 3 hours ago, the camp lit up with a loud Birch Rock cheer followed by a human tunnel up the stairs.
After all the excitement, camp grew hot and humid. People got sloppy. Real sloppy. Sloppy for Sloppy Joe’s!
A classic BRC staple lunch is John’s famous Joe’s of slow cooked beef, a rich delicious sauce with peppers and onions cooked down inside. Along with this came a stacked salad bar of tuna salad, sliced vegetables, egg salad, cottage cheese and peaches.
After lunch the Otters returned from their glorious overnight expedition to… Arcadia? No, not Acadia, Arcadia. Arcadia is the girls camp just 25 minutes down the road and they were generous to let our youngest campers spend the night at a beautiful campground. With wonderful shelter buildings, picnic tables and a sandbar on their lake for shallow swimming the boys spent a wonderful time in the Maine woods eating pancakes the size of a whole plate.
With their return came two storms, the first being their energy and stories to tell, with a nearly 15 minute onslaught of vicious rain. Within a minute rain began to fall like snow from a landslide over camp. As we all huddled inside the lodge just in time we watched as the rain came down so heavy that you could barely see the health lodge from the windows. Fortunately, just like all storms, the rain went away and the sun peaked out from behind the clouds. Unfortunately due to this our grass was wet and when the grass is wet we can’t play capture the flag on the field or any game of the likes. Well what did we do? After some recent funding from the Connor P whale club we received funding to re-open the BRC Cinema! With its grand reopening the camp was split in two to watch a movie before our lights out.
It was rainy, it was crazy but it was another day of beautiful BRC!
Best Cabin: Tourmaline
Best Bed: Julien N
Super Camper: Connor P