Camp Woodland Blog

Activities have started and the shores of Sand Lake exploded into a colorful flurry of activity at the waterfront. Some girls jumped right in the water with noodles and played on the blue mat. Other girls opted to participate in some enthusiastic beach volleyball matches. Whether in the lake or on the shore, the waterfront experienced a great summer kick-off, with laughter that echoed across the lake. Now that the campers are settled in for another great summer, they can look forward to heading down to the beach for swimming lessons, water skiing, tubing and sailing. It’s sure to be another fantastic six weeks on the shores of Sand Lake!

As the skies above Camp Woodland cleared of Woodland Dew, all of Camp set out to have a wonderful first Sunday! In the morning, the girls got a taste (or a reminder!) of what activities are like as we went through our Activity Rotations. Spending a small amount of time in each activity area, campers were able to experience and learn about each different activity – and counselors were able to show off their stuff!

In the afternoon, the CITs put on a very special Sunday event: Find Snow White! Each cabin moved from princess to princess collecting clues and participating in fun princess-themed activities like relay races, Princess charades, and making Pocahontas marker tattoos! In the end, Sunnyside, Sunrise and Tamarack worked together to find and rescue Snow White.

After all that adventuring, everyone was ready for a cool-down… just in time for afternoon Rec Swim! The Big Banana was ready and the lake was refreshing, and the waterfront was the perfect end to a fun-filled day! To wrap it all up, we spent the evening . What a great start to the summer!

We’re mighty glad you’re here!! We are so excited the campers are finally here after a wonderful week of getting the camp ready! The horses are grazing in the field, the docks are in, and the cabins are sparkling. A little woodland dew in the morning didn’t hold us back. Here is just a short list of all the fun activities your campers did today!

• Played Beach Volley Ball
• Created Sand Castles at the Beach
• Swam in the lake  (yes, it was plenty warm to swim!)
• Played many Field Games – buddy tag, parachute, hog call (weird name, lots of fun!) and much more!
• Created a Cabin Cheer!
• Sang Camp Songs after dinner (we love to sing at camp!)

After so much activity the girls were famished and were treated with Dan’s famous Mac and Cheese for lunch and homemade pizza for dinner!  Mmmm….Mmmm….good!

The international campers just arrived, so our camp family is ready for another fantastic day tomorrow ! We are signing off for now but will write more tomorrow. 

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Our veteran counselor, Suzanne, gave us her secret packing list of her favorite things.  Read, enjoy, and be inspired to pack a few wacky items to get into the camp spirit:

My Camp Woodland Packing List Favorites:

1. Flashlight- reading a bit after lights out is impossible without one

2. Water Bottle- being hydrated has its benefits (ps. we are selling Woodland Water Bottles this summer)

3. Towels, many- I spend most of my time at the waterfront sailing, so towels are an absolute necessity! I fall in the water at least a few times a week… And I need a couple reserved for shower times.

4. Shoes

a. I need my water/boat shoes. Safe sailing.

b. Flip Flops for showering

c. Flip Flops for everywhere else

d. Athletic type shoe so I can easily participate in evening activities and whatever else I am running from, typically the chickens at Farm Zoo.

e. Barn Boots since I never quite know exactly what I will doing all summer (plus, I can cling to the hope that I may work in the barn a bit)

f. Rain Boots- Moist socks do not sound appealing to me. I rather protect my feet by surrounding them in a 1/16’’ rubber shield.

5. Hair Ties!

6. Deodorant- when living with 10-13 other people, personal hygiene is a necessity.

7. Sunscreen because it is summertime and the rays get intense

8. Clothes from every color of the rainbow- borrowing clothes is great, but I personally like to have my own arsenal. Plus, I am a bigger girl, so I can lend to everyone (might as well have some stock to choose from).

a. Camper Councils

b. Dance/Drama/Gymnastic Shows

c. Olympics

d. Sunday Games

9. Nail Polish- summertime is the time my nails are polished

10. Rain Gear- When that Woodland Dew comes barring down it is a wonderful feeling to know that you will not be soaked to the bone. I like having both a rain coat and rain booties (as mentioned above).

11. Warm Stuff- I usually underestimate how cold it is going to get at camp. Reality is probably high 60’s but after days of 80 it seems chilly. A nice comfy sweater and comforter are my go to items.

12. My Ultimate Favorite Thing to bring to camp is my wacky wardrobe. I can bring all of the major fashion faux-pas that hang in my closet at home to camp. Camp offers so many opportunities for dress up, and at camp I am not chastised for my, what some would call “eccentric”, style. Camp it a great place to be you.

13. Deck of Cards=Endless Entertainment ( plus, it is quiet enough to get away with during rest hour, on occasion)

14. “Woodland-ware” because winning Best Dressed and going to Fair Days are hard to do without it.

There are more things that I do bring, but a few have been outlined above. The thing is… how do you make a concise list of your favorite things to bring to camp when you have a long list of things you really, really like to bring to camp? Difficult to do is what I think.

Can’t wait to see you this weekend!!!

Love,

Suzanne!

Throughout the summer we will be posting incredible submissions by our Alumni.  It gives me goosebumps every time I get receive a submission like this one I am about to share.  Emily started at camp when she was just an infant and has only missed two summers of her entire life.  Emily and her older brother will not be at camp this summer, but we are so glad that their father, Chet, will be back maintaining Camp Woodland.  Emily is more than just a camper and counselor, she is family and will be missed this summer. Enjoy the read as much as I did:

It was the inevitable “get to know you” game that always made me realize how much Camp Woodland has become a big part of my life. Every camper and counselor remembers playing it on the first day; the one where we would line up in a circle based on how many years we have been at camp. I was always confident playing this game, because I knew exactly where to stand: right at the end, unless the Jordans were there of course. We made our way around the circle announcing years of attendance and when it was my turn I would proudly state 15 years, watching the astonished look come across the faces of all the new girls.
I actually spent 19 out of my 21 summers at Woodland, and when my school friends would call me “crazy” for spending an entire six weeks at an all girls camp, I considered myself pretty lucky. I can honestly say that I have tried every activity, have sang every camp song, played every circle game, heard all the infamous stories of the Hilltop stairs, and have ate my fair share of s’mores. But that’s the great thing about camp, you can spend nearly two decades there but it’s never something you get bored with. There are always levels to beat, goals to achieve, and new friendships to create. That is the magic of camp, even though it remains constant, it allows you to change and grow throughout the years.

With my older brother at Towering Pines, me at Woodland, and my dad part of the staff, we were able to each have our own camp experience, but also were all to able share something together. Not only were part of the Riehle family, but we were part of the camp family as well. It was nice seeing my dad around camp, and I think that he enjoyed being able to watch me from the sidelines making my way from day camper to counselor.

Now going into my senior year of college, and looking back at everything in my life, camp memories are the most prominent to me. I have met the most amazing people, learned how to sail, learned how to ride a horse, and I can write an entire co-ed show song in one Rest Hour. Although I haven’t been able to make it back to the Northwood’s in the past two years, I know that whenever summer rolls around, the view of Sand lake will come to my mind and I’ll always remember my second home.