Hey, Camp Fans!

We were delighted to see such a great response to our ‘Share Your Camp Story’ Contest here at Everything Summer Camp and now we’re eager to publish each one right here on the Blog! After our seven lucky winners, everyone else who submitted received a $20 gift certificate to our online store!

Today’s post is from Christina F., who was thrown a pretty giant curve ball with her daughter’s summer camp experience. Get ready for the plot twist:

“Have I got a camp story for you...

We spent an hour and a half in check-in because there was a lengthy COVID procedure to go through to make sure everyone was healthy--totally worth it, though. When we dropped our daughter off at her cabin at 4:30, she was so excited she left us without a backward glance, or a goodbye!

My husband I were relaxing at home five hours later when his cell phone rang with a number we didn't recognize and which we promptly ignored. The person calling left a voicemail, and when we checked it, we got some crushing news. The camp's site staff had taken COVID tests earlier that evening "out of an abundance of caution," and members of the staff had tested positive. The counselors and camp directors were fine, but there wouldn't be anyone to run the physical camp site. Everyone needed to come and pick up their campers as soon as possible.

And so we found ourselves back at the camp eight and half hours after drop off picking up our camper and two of her friends, along with other adults we knew picking up a total of five more friends who had all planned a week at camp together.

Fortunately, we were able to put together a day for the kids to tie dye their camp shirts, and another day for them to spend doing camp arts and crafts and singing camp songs, so they got to spend some camp time together.

Camp is a bonding experience no matter what happens, right?

Here's to next year!”

Oh boy! What a dud of a “camp trip”—the dropoff and pickup were the only “adventure”! Nice work giving your kids a day or two of campy kind of activities. Turns out summer camp is what you make it, I guess! And, yes, hopefully next year yields better results. Thanks for sharing your story, Christina—even if it was a dud. It’s a good story, anyway. As always, thanks for reading!

- John

Hey, Camp Fans!

We were delighted to see such a great response to our ‘Share Your Camp Story’ Contest here at Everything Summer Camp and now we’re eager to publish each one right here on the Blog! After our ten lucky winners, everyone else who submitted received a $20 gift certificate to our online store!

Today’s post is from Orla M. who wrote into us from overseas about her time at North Star Dibba Camp in Dibba, Fujairah of the UAE (United Arab Emirates). Check out her submission on what makes camp so great!

Wonderful, Orla! Thanks for sharing your experience with us. I’m glad you got to do some really fun—AND BRAVE—activities this summer like trick horseback riding! North Star Dibba Camp must be a pretty great place! Give them a closer look. You can check it out for yourself by clicking right here. And, as always, thanks for reading!

- John

Hey, Camp Fans!

Your camp stories were great! I had a great time reading through them all and now I’m excited to share them with all our readers online and post each submission right here on the Blog! I’ve finished announcing our ten lucky winners who took larger prizes and we’ve now moved on to the rest of your submissions.

The following entry is from Megan P. who wrote in to tell us about her own time at Westminster Woods as well as her daughter’s camp stay at Gold Arrow Camp. Here is her submission:

“My camp adventures as a child always were a few hours north of home in the redwoods in Sonoma County. We would have funny nicknames and sing songs around the campfire. I remember one year wading through a creek with a huge cold watermelon at the end of our adventure and it was the sweetest reward. We could climb up to a cave and open our mouths in the dark to see if the rumor of breaking a white life saver in the dark really creates a spark. The songs I learned while away every summer are ones I still hum at times. Now it’s my daughter’s turn. Her camp is for two weeks and with no phones or internet it’s like going back in time to my youth. Laughter replaces time on the phone. Campfires replace an evening movie. I’m so grateful for summer camp. It is allowing my daughter to realize how capable she is. To make new friends outside of her small school class. She packed her entire soft sided trunk and we’re grateful for the attached zip on bag. I actually saw a photo of it and her smiling in her tent. They take photos and send them to us periodically as a way for our current parental always know where ones child is culture to feel connected while they are off having fun. It’s wonderful how camp life can stay similar as time and technology marches on.”

Fantastic, Megan! Thanks for sharing this piece. It really shows how summer camp is still summer camp despite the forward march of time and tech. Your time at camp sounds like it was quite the adventure! Wading with a watermelon must have been quite the challenge. And now I HAVE to know—did the lifesavers make a spark? Take a closer look at Westminster Woods to visit the same camp as Megan or check out Gold Arrow Camp where her daughter went this summer. As always, thanks for reading!

- John

Hey, Camp Fans!

Your camp stories were great for the ‘Share Your Camp Story’ Contest here at Everything Summer Camp! It was such fun reading through them all. Now I’m eager to share them with our online community and post each submission right here on the Blog!

I’ve finished announcing our ten lucky winners who took larger prizes and now I’m sharing the rest of your submissions. The following post is from Emily G. who wrote in to tell us about her time at Camp Arbutus Hayo-Went-Ha. Here’s her submission:

“I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to backpack around Isle Royale National Park for two weeks with my cabin mates. Those two weeks were the best two weeks of my entire life; I was home. Backpacking is such an important thing to me because it’s what I love most. To be surrounded by nature and with supporting companions is all I’d ever ask for in life. The biodiversity was astounding from the moose to the wildflowers. I would repeat those 115 miles in a heartbeat if given the opportunity. Hiking the Greenstone Ridge was one of my favorite experiences due to the elevation, I felt as if I was seeing the island in a way that only birds are granted. Yes, there were times when my feet ached but I didn’t care; I didn’t care because I was content with where I was and who I was with. The people that I’ve been lucky enough to become friends with are friends who will be with me for life. My camp is an environment that fosters growth and discovery; camp is a place where I love to be and I long for those days with my whole heart.”

What a truly breathtaking experience, Emily. I love the “bird’s eye view” you got of the island. How cool! I love hiking too so maybe I’ll have to check out the Greenstone Ridge sometime! You make it sound pretty magical. Thanks for this great submission, Emily! If anyone else would like to check out Camp Arbutus Hayo-Went-Ha closer, you can do so by clicking right here. As always, thanks for reading!

- John

What’s up, Camp Fans?!

We received some quality camp stories for our ‘Share Your Camp Story’ Contest at Everything summer Camp. You knocked it out of the park this year, campers; these stories are fantastic! I’m eager to share them with our online community and post each submission right here on the Blog!

Now that I’ve finished announcing our ten lucky winners who took larger prizes, I’m sharing the rest of the submissions we received. All entrants win a $20 gift certificate to our online store simply for participating. The following post is about Cora H. from her mother about their summer experience at Camp Olympia. Check out her submission right here:

“This was Cora's (age 9) first year at summer camp. We live in West Texas where every camp is centered around sports and she is a homeschool kid that isn't very interested in team sports. She wanted more out of her summer. I started searching online and found Camp Olympia which looked like a camp right out of a movie. When I went to present her with the idea I barely got any information out before she said yes, a million times yes! This camp is eight hours away from us, she wouldn't know anybody, and she's never stayed anywhere overnight without family. We were incredibly lucky to get her in and only had 4 weeks to prep. We ordered her the most beautiful trunk from Everything Summer Camp and had a great time gathering everything and organizing it. I knew she could do it, but again, she's a homeschooled child and doesn't have the everyday interactions with other kids so we were all a little nervous about this new experience. Her excitement continued to grow and when the day finally came for me to drop her off she was so ready. When I was driving away I looked back to wave but she was already surrounded by amazing counselors and other campers and was smiling and laughing. She had an amazing time and signed up for next summer already. I have never been so proud of her for diving into such a new experience with such confidence. We're already looking forward to next summer and she can't wait to make more amazing friends and memories!”

Thanks for this great submission! It’s great to hear that Cora’s camp stay was a blast! Sounds like she took to the social aspect of camp very quickly. The easy, natural environment of camp certainly lends itself to making friendships and having lots of fun. Camp Olympia sounds really cool. If anyone else would like to check it out closer, you can do so by clicking right here. As always, thanks for reading!

- John