Hiking Was Great

Shortly after lunch yesterday, the entire Camp departed on a journey to summit Buck Mountain. Many of our cabins made it to the top, but everyone had a great time. Upon their return we enjoyed a great cookout dinner (Mexican Night) which was followed by a fantastic fire and drive-in movie night up on tall pines playing field!

Closing Day Reminders for Session Six

I know the last thing we are thinking about is Session Six ending, but I still wanted to pass along some reminders about Closing Day at Camp.

• Pick-up is from 4:30-5:30
• The amazing Family BBQ starts at 5:00
• Don't forget about the incredible slideshow @ 6:00

When you return home from Camp make sure you fill out our online survey! Your thoughts and feedback will help us make changes for future summers AND help us for the remainder of the summer!http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/survey-intro.zgi?p=WEB229DYQJT2ZR

Final Canoe Races of Summer

Since we have a boys unit and a girls unit, we held just one overall race for unit supremacy today. It was a fun race, each unit had a pretty funny theme. The girls came down as hillbillies, and the boys were coal miners. Their associated cheers were funny as well. As for the race? It was close as they were turning around the buoy, but on the home stretch, one of the boys cabins was able to really jump ahead and take home the trophy!

Unit Photos!

Just took unit photos for the yearbook (see them below), lots of smiling faces! Right now the Camp just dispersed into afternoon activities. We've got lots going on from sailing, to swimming, to archery, to hiking, and just about everything else in between. Tonight we've got a fabulous evening program planned for the ENTIRE Camp. We're going to be spread out over the entire Camp doing a large "scavenger hunt" type activity, but there will be a few fun suprises for the campers and counselors!

Day One of Sixth Session!

We're off to a fast and fun start at Camp today. The sun is shining and campers are all over the place taking part in great activities. You can see pictures below of the fun being had!

Climbing Tower!
Our tough ultimate frisbee crew

Learning a little something about nature

Who ever turned down a wheel barrow race?

Sixth Session...and final opening day :(

A shabby morning turned into a great afternoon for opening day and swim checks. We're only moments away from a spaghetti and meatballs dinner to be followed by a wonderful campfire. Enjoy the pictures below from swim checks.

Session Six Opening Day Reminders

We hope you are as excited to kick-off Session Six today as we are. I wanted to pass along a few reminders that will help simplify your opening day experience at Camp.

· All campers may start arriving at 1pm
· Once you have arrived, you will walk to the dining hall for check-in (balances that may be due on your account, camper skill class schedules, health forms and questions for the medical staff, if needed)
· After check-in you will be able to drive your child to their cabin to help them move in and meet their counselors. We do ask that parents leave Camp shortly after meeting the counselor, as campers have a busy schedule and long goodbyes can be difficult
· There will be an optional Welcome Parents session in Rotary Lodge with Summer Camp Director, Aaron Cantor @ 2:30pm
· Save time on opening day by adding money to your child’s store account online before you arrive.

Don’t forget to register with “Parent Communicator”, the one-way email communication software Camp uses that allows your parents to send one-way email to you at camp and view photos that are uploaded several times throughout the session.The website is www.parentcommunicator.com/CampChingachgook. And the access code is Chingachgook

Closing Campfire

A great night for a campfire! As we watched the sunset, we said our farewells to Session Five during closing campfire. Each unit prepared a little something for the rest of Camp. At the very end of campfire, we each lit our candle, said the Chingachgook Alma Mater, blew them out, then we all rose silently and said TAPS for the final time at night.

Session Five Closing Day Reminders

I know the last thing we are thinking about is Session Five ending, but I still wanted to pass along some reminders about Closing Day at Camp.

• Junior Campers pick-up is from 4:30-5:30
• Senior Campers pick-up is from 5:00-6:00
• The amazing Family BBQ starts at 5:00
• Don't forget about the incredible slideshow @ 6:30
  

When you return home from Camp make sure you fill out our online survey! Your thoughts and feedback will help us make changes for future summers AND help us for the remainder of the summer!http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/survey-intro.zgi?p=WEB229DYQJT2ZR

Getting ready for closing campfire

They're practicing all over Camp! Tonight, at closing campfire, every unit will prepare a special song for the entire Camp. In addition, each unit will select one camper and one staff member to speak in front of the entire Camp. We've heard some great speeches over the summer, most are about what fun camp is and others are about how much they love Camp and cannot wait to return next year. What would you say if you had the chance to speak in front of the entire Camp?

Fifth Session Canoe Races

Great races today at Camp, both were very close. Both boys units' were victorious in the end, but there were still some great themes. The senior boys were "Snow White", the senior girls were "Baseball" and dressed only as Yankee and Red Sox fans, the junior girls were "Safari", and the junior boys came as different "bugs". The canoers even managed to take a dip in the lake after their race...

Random fun at Camp on a hot day!

No matter how hot it gets...we'll have fun! Here's the proof too :)

Lunch at Camp

Grilled cheese was the main meal at lunch today. The kids seemed to love it. We've got a full afternoon planned complete with plenty of opportunities for water exposure considering how nice and hot it is outside!

Opening Campfire and a Sunset

In what was perhaps the best night all summer, opening campfire was fantastic! Each unit proudly shared a song or two, we learned about the super secret polar club, and saw evil Hog Town Hank capture King Hachgook's princess! Now the race will be on to see which unit or cabin will be able to successfully locate the princess and return her to safety. Hopefully before the end of the session too.

Opening Day....SUCCESS

A hot and humid day turned into one of the best days of the summer to jump into the lake for swim checks. And that's exactly what happened. We've never seen campers so excited to take their swim checks on the first day of Camp. Perhaps all we needed was some really warm weather to get everyone in the "mood".

Not to mention that everyone is also having a great time so far. Everywhere I go, I run into campers who are smiling and laughing. It's a great sight and hopefully there will be only more of that to come over the next week at Camp!

Session Five Opening Day Reminders

We hope you are as excited to kick-off Session Five on Sunday as we are. I wanted to pass along a few reminders that will help simplify your opening day experience at Camp.

· Junior campers (ages 7-12) and adventure trippers may start arriving at 1pm
· Senior campers (ages 13-16) may start arriving at 2:30pm
· Once you have arrived, you will walk to the dining hall for check-in (balances that may be due on your account, camper skill class schedules, health forms and questions for the medical staff, if needed)
· After check-in you will be able to drive your child to their cabin to help them move in and meet their counselors. We do ask that parents leave Camp shortly after meeting the counselor, as campers have a busy schedule and long goodbyes can be difficult
· There will be an optional Welcome Parents session in Rotary Lodge with Summer Camp Director, Aaron Cantor @ 2:30pm
· Save time on opening day by adding money to your child’s store account online before you arrive.

Don’t forget to register with “Parent Communicator”, the one-way email communication software Camp uses that allows your parents to send one-way email to you at camp and view photos that are uploaded several times throughout the session.The website is www.parentcommunicator.com/CampChingachgook. And the access code is ChingachgookDrive safe and see you Sunday!Aaron :)

Polar Bears

Ahh...the rewards of an early morning wake-up. The pictures below are of some of the new members of the Chingachgook Polar Bear Club. They woke up every morning and were at the Waterfront by 6:55am, where they then jumped into the lake. What do they get for their efforts? How about a shiny certificate plus a t-shirt!

Session Four Closing Day Reminders

I know the last thing we are thinking about is Session Four ending, but I still wanted to pass along some reminders about Closing Day at Camp.

• Junior Campers pick-up is from 4:30-5:30
• Senior Campers pick-up is from 5:00-6:00
• Adventure Trip pick-up is from 5:30-6:00
• The amazing Family BBQ starts at 5:00
• Don't forget about the incredible slideshows (Adventure @ 6:00, Camp @ 6:30)
  

When you return home from Camp make sure you fill out our online survey! Your thoughts and feedback will help us make changes for future summers AND help us for the remainder of the summer!http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/survey-intro.zgi?p=WEB229DYQJT2ZR

A Popular Lunch - Make your own sandwich

Make your own sandwich is definitely my favorite lunchtime meal...is it yours? Here's photos of each of the four wings of our dining hall (including the veranda) that are used every meal!

Canoe Races

Another epic canoe race day at Chingachgook saw the closest race in recent memory as the Junior Boys came from behind and just narrowly edged out the Junior Girls by about three feet. It was so close, that the entire Camp, who was watching from the point, was going absolutely bananas. The senior race wasn't as close as the boys won handedly.

The themes this time were pretty clever. The junior boys were "copycats", the junior girls were "superheroes", the senior boys were "dining hall", and the senior girls were "disneyland".

Counselor Hunt and Gold Rush

Tonight's evening activity is taking our campers all over Camp as they search not only for some hidden counselors....but for rocks mysteriously painted different colors and posing as minerals. There will be an overall winner for tonight's program, one for the juniors and one for the seniors.

Skill Class Fun

Deep in the heart of the programs at Chingachgook are skill classes. Here are some great shots of our campers learning some great skills.

Guitar Class
High Ropes

Photography

Fishing

Adventure Send off, number 7

Here are some great fun EARLY morning pictures from our final adventure send off of the summer. Six different trips left Camp today for high adventure all over the area!