Posted by: Birch Rock Camp

Today began as just another ordinary camp day for Tyler S. of Hornets Nest. Sometime between 5:48 and 7:14 AM he woke up on his own, dressed himself, put on his shoes, and waited. And waited. And waited. It seemed like Bob would never saunter out of the Office and give the bell the customary morning jangle. Counselor Peter was fast asleep. CIT Matt was snoring like a lumberjack.

But where was Bob?

And then, just at the moment of his deepest despair — DING!-DING!-DING!-DING!-DING!-DING!

He was out of his bed by the second ding, out the door by the third, and soon past the still-ringing Bob and the kitchen and over the driveway, flying over the pavement like a duck skimming the water and chugging up the tennis court berm to the tetherball pole and —

Tyler stopped dead in his tracks. He couldn’t believe what his eyes saw. Or, rather, what they didn’t see.

The tetherball. Gone. Just a rope hanging limply from a sad Festivus pole. Others soon arrived, equally perplexed:  Eyob G. stared in disbelief; Aidan A. blinked, hoping it was just a mirage; and Noah P. shook his head and sighed. The day passed with no clues, no solid leads, no hope. And then, at dinner, when Counselor Ed made his daily announcement regarding his relentless pursuit of the elusive Yeti, it all started to make sense. Yetis love tetherball — of course! The hunt is now on for the prime suspect.

In the meantime, beloved former head counselor Pickles revived the long-dormant badgeworthy activity of Quest by inviting five young Beavers into his realm of knowledge by taking them on nature walk, where he talked about history of hillside, then played an interactive board game called Avalon, led them on a quest to the Chipmunk Hole rock, the Cabin 8 fire pit, and the meteor crater, and … I have no idea. But it happened. And a good time was had by all.

The morning proved busy all around camp. The Wolves (Munn/Quartz/Tourmaline/Buck’s/Chipmunk Hole) hit the road for their hiking and canoeing trips. Down at Campcraft, every period contributed to the building of a Dakota stove, which involved digging oxygen-inducing tunnels around the pit to feed a fire. And, naturally, some badges went out:  Matt U. earned his Jr. Volleyball; Benjamin G. got his Jr. Bushcraft badge as well as his Archer; Ian R. swam across the lake and back for his Loon; and John F., Aidan A. and Finn O. each paddled for their Jr. Kayaking badges.

And then, right as Luke F. was in the middle of shooting for his long-awaited Yeoman in Archery, the heavy clouds gave up and dropped their payload of rain, and all on the field trudged down to the Lodge for an afternoon of board games, Wee Blocks, a thirteen-player poker game and generalized chilling with Cheilang L. Unfortunately, it also preempted the camp tour that Sebastian T. was giving to our new office manager, Logan, who’s been so busy that he hasn’t had a proper run-through of the grounds.

A luxuriously long Second Rest gave way to dinner, where we celebrated Lucas K.’s birthday with brownies and ice cream, and, although the rain had slacked off, the field was too wet for Evening Activity. What were we to do?

There’s only one thing to do in such a situation — play Bingo! Uncle Claude and Cousin Lazarus invited the community to the local Grange hall for a night of serious board-clearing action and fabulous prizes that ranged from Hershey bars to floss to a trip to the Free Stuff tent at the Waterford Transfer Station for all of Hilton B. By the time the night was over a solid two dozen campers had hit the jackpot thanks to their lucky cards and assorted trinkets.

For better or worse, the long range forecast calls for sun, sun, and more sun, so it looks like the bingo parlor won’t be reopening anytime soon.

Today’s Superlatives

Best Bed: Cole Mo.

Best Cabin: Pete’s Palace

Super Camper: Finn O.

Special Recognition

Birthday: Lucas C.

Tomorrow’s Action

Bears to Arcadia Archery Invitational; the CITs explore the Oxford Walmart; Pickles leaves; Jinx chases a ball; badges galore; the tetherball mystery continues; Hayden F. cashes in his “Free Golf Cart Rides for a Day” prize; a plethora of tacos