We’re going to leave old Daggett

Well our last session has ended here at Camp Daggett. While it was a little sad on our Final Friday, spirit were still plenty high as they had been throughout the week. This week, campers did many fun activities. Some of our campers’ favorites include Tennis Ball Frenzy in canoeing, and playing lots of dodge-ball, Gaga Ball, and archery in rec. The beauty of Camp Daggett’s schedule is that all campers get to go to every area everyday, but also have built in “free times” where they can choose which of our areas they want to go to on both land and water. Of course, our night activities are always a blast, and we are sure that your camper(s) are telling you many more stories then we can ever convey here.

As camp is now over, it is important to give a huge shout out to all of those who make camp possible. All of our counselors work so hard day in and day out to provide a fun and safe time for our campers that it is amazing to see how they can keep up the positive attitudes and high spirits right up until it is time for them to leave. Supervising 10 campers can be a lot of work, but it is worth it just to see the smiles and hear the laughter each week. Our area directors are another amazing link in our chain, planning class periods and coming up with new and innovative night activities. It is wonderful to see how creative our area director’s can be, as well as seeing how close they form bonds with the campers.

Camp certainly would not run as smooth as it would without our wonderful group of support staff. Our maintenance director Leroy is constantly working to improve camp, as well as supervising our 15 year old service aides. While the work may not be the prettiest, Leroy and his team are certainly unsung heroes of Camp Daggett. As with the maintenance team, our Health Director deserves a huge kudos for all of the work that she does. Lindsey is always trying her best to make parents, campers, and the staff here feel their best. Whether it is helping to ease those first night jitters, or communicating with families regarding their campers, she gives 110% of herself to camp. Our food service staff is another group that deserves countless thanks. Camp Daggett has always prided itself on the quality of its food, as well as the knowledge and compassion of all who work in the kitchen. Our head cooks, Lori and Dennis, sacrifice their summers, vacations, and free time to come prepare all of our wonderful meals. Helping them out in the kitchen, our food service staff would certainly not be here if it were not for the smiles, thank yous, and hugs from all of the staff and even some campers.

A final “Thank You” goes out to all of our parents, campers, and families; without you, there would be no Camp Daggett. One way to help is to be sure to complete our Parent/Camper evaluation survey by clicking here. As we tell campers every Friday night, if it wasn’t for the support, kind words, and generosity of countless people, Camp Daggett would not the place it is today. This includes the many members of local service clubs, our Board of Directors and year round staff. But most importantly it is the children that make Camp Daggett what it is. All involved with Camp have one thing in common: They want to see youth grow, have fun, and learn to be well-rounded people.

 

Enjoying arts and crafts time

Campers pose for a picture after out Mud Walk

The oldest cabins helped to clean out boats

Advertisement

Angus needs a home

Most of the animals from our nature center are generously lent to us for the summer months from a local school. However, we do pick up a few here and there. This is the  case with our newest addition, Angus. While we can certainly find a home for Angus, we would like to take an opportunity to offer our campers and their families a chance to adopt Angus. He comes complete with a cage and some accessories. He does not have to come back to camp next year. We do ask that if you are willing to take in Angus, that he be picked up by Saturday at Noon. If you are interested or would like more information, please fill in the form below or contact our summer office at 231.347.9742 ext 104.

Your Name(required)

Email

Phone Number(required)

Submit

Δ

Our apologies

Once again it seems that our Internet is down, likely due to the storm last night. For now, we are able to post an occasional mobile post.

While this is our last week of campers, we always like to say that it is our campers’ first week. All of our areas, programming, and night activities are still letting campers have a blast. Sunday night was a blast, as we had our Daggett Auction. Campers got to dress up and bring everything they could carry to our rec field. There, our area directors would call out objects that campers may have had.

Tuesday saw our triathlon, which had campers run, yak board, and swim. Whether it was an all out sprint or just a relaxing way to start the morning, all of our athletes had a great time.

Wednesday was also an early morning, with campers getting up at 6:30 am to be boated across the lake. They then swam back, accompanied closely by yak boarders, swimming lifeguards, and four powerboats.

Again, apologies for a lack of updates, we are currently trying to resolve our connectivity problems although we may be unable to be online for at least a day. This also means it will be difficult to post picture updates. Thank you for your understanding.

And we’re back!

This post is going to be all about the end of week 7, stay tuned for an update from week 8 later today or tomorrow.

Again, we apologize for our network problems towards the end of our seventh session! While there was no internet, there was plenty of fun! While we will talk about some here, we’re sure that your camper(s) can tell you much, much more! Since Monday, so many new and exciting things happened. Every morning was quite busy, with our Triathlon on Tuesday and our Lake swim on Wednesday. We also still had our famous “Polar Bear” and “Early Morning Rec” every morning, and many campers went every day that they could and received an award on Friday.

Roman night was a huge hit on Tuesday night. Campers got a chance to ride in a gondola, practice their discuss throwing, and ate plenty of grapes and breadsticks. Of course, the evening had to end with a gladiator battle! Wednesday night got a bit hectic with some storms, but our amazingly flexible staff was able to keep all of our campers safe and happy during the night. Our campouts got a little wet, and both ended up returning to the safety of camp during the storm. But that didn’t stop them from having dinner over a fire, playing some games, and of course lots of S’Mores.  Thursday saw a giant game of capture the flag, with all of our campers playing all over camp.

This week, our oldest cabins got to do a very special activity. The morning after their campouts, campers canoed from the Pines (our oldest campout spot) to the village of Walloon. There, they enjoyed doughnuts before putting their canoes in the Bear River. Campers then canoed down the river for a few hours before being picked up and having a picnic back in the village. Campers had so much fun, and were also happy to be presented with the challenge. This activity will probably be something that we offer more often next year, so stay tuned next summer for further developments.

Parents, please take a moment to complete our Parent/Camper Evaluation Survey by clicking here. The feedback and written comments help us out tremendously and should only take around ten minutes to complete. If you complete the survey, you are automatically entered into a drawing to win a free week of camp for your camper- just don’t forget to complete the last page with your contact information. Thank you!

Campers approach the Village of Walloon on their way to the Bear River

The beginning of the “Bear River Run”

Campers Swim Across Walloon

To Our Readers

We at Camp Daggett want to take this opportunity to both thank you for your continued support, as well as apologize for the lack of timely updates this week. Camp Daggett is a secluded place, and seclusion is certainly a double edged sword. One of the drawbacks of seclusion is an unreliable internet connection. Please stay tuned for more updates as our situation improves.

Thank You

Camp Daggett

Wilderness Explorer

In addition to the eight standard weeks of summer camp, Camp Daggett also offers Wilderness Adventure trips. These trips, for campers aged 13-15, offer campers a chance to explore the world around them while also learning some new and important skills. Generally, Camp Daggett offers three of these trips each summer. Each of these trips are different and offer their own unique challenges and experiences.  All of the trips start out at our Adventure Center, where campers develop their self-esteem and teamwork skills. Following a night or two spent in our Yurt getting to know each other, campers head out to either a hike or a canoe trip. Campers are joined by members of our Adventure Education staff, who are well qualified to lead groups in a back country setting.

This week, our “Explorer” trip is out. This group left on Tuesday morning to head to Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. Here, our eight Explorers will spend four days and three nights hiking along the majestic coastline of Lake Superior. Known for its breathtaking scenery and challenging hikes, campers will certainly come back with a greater appreciation for the world around them. While on their journey, campers will also learn many valuable skills- including the basics of back country exploring, “Leave No Trace” back packing, and even some of the rich natural history that the area has to offer.

For more information about our Wilderness Adventure trips, click here.

Our Explorer trip overlooks Lake Superior at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore

A Chilly Start

While the temperatures may be a bit chilly, Camp Daggett is just heating up! After a few introductions and meetings on Sunday, campers got things started by visiting all of our areas and learning about some of the many activities that they will be doing throughout the week. Campers also enjoyed our game of “Catch-the-Counselor.” During this activity, cabins worked together to find our counselors hidden in the woods. At the end, all of our staff each got one minute to try to make our campers laugh- if not they had to find a treat in some pudding. (everyone did in the end though).

Today is when the action really got started. Younger cabins started out on the waterfront, while older campers enjoy out land areas in the AM. After lunch and rest hour, cabins switched so that our younger campers got time on land and older ones on water. A great time of the day is always Free Water, which happens right after 6th hour. This time, along with free land, allows campers to choose a water and a land area that they would like to spend more time at. Our area directors work hard to make sure that they have many new, fun, and original activities for these times. After some dinner and an hour of free time, our night activity began. Tonight we had “Superhero” night. In order to defeat Loki and his friends, cabins had to work together in stations ranging from “crossing lava” to “armor making.” In the end, Loki and his friends were defeated- in part due to the teamwork and camaraderie of our campers.

Tomorrow morning will see out Triathlon, which consists of a run, a short yak ride, and a swim. This optional event takes place at 7:15 in the morning and many campers enjoy the thrill of an early start to the day. Tomorrow night will also see our classic Roman Night, consisting of chariot races, bread sticks, and even gondola rides. Wednesday will see a brand new night activity revolving around the concept of a sleep over- complete with story making and even nightmare escaping. Our epic flour and water battle known as “The Battle of Gettysburg” will take place on Thursday night, and the week will be capped off with out initiation on Friday,

Campers get an introduction to some songs

Campers build armor to protect their eggs

A few campers practice their superhero moves

What a finish!

Well, week six is all over. 😦 Although there was some rain, we still had a fantastic end of the week. Thursday night saw out “Medieval Night,” complete with jousting, poetry writing, and even an epic battle between staff members at the end. Dinner was extra special, as out cook Dennis made some roast beef, and even carved it fresh for our campers during dinner, with the help of Nathan. Our campouts on Thursday night may have gotten a little bit yet, but that didn’t stop our oldest and youngest cabins from having a blast.

The fun kept going on Friday, which is always a special day here at Camp Daggett. One of our most popular Friday activities is our Frog Pond. During Nature, campers get a chance to go catch frogs in our nature pond. We let them go of course, although there are plenty to go around.  While the rain curtailed our plans for a cook out, we still had a “cook in.” John, our director, grilled up some hot dogs and hamburgers for everyone, but then we ate inside. The rain also had us start our initiation inside, doing awards and skits in the rec hall. The rain let up just in time for us to have our special ceremony in its traditional spot!

Parents, please be sure to take a few moments to complete our “Parent/Camper Evaluation.” The comments and feedback received are very helpful and much appreciated!

The “King and Queen” keep an eye out over our feast

Campers practice juggling during Medieval Night

Catching frogs is always a fun time at Camp Daggett

And the winner is…

It has been such a busy few days here at Daggett. Tuesday was full of fun, including our famous tie-dye Tuesday, and even a bran new night activity- “Jump into Reading.”  This night activity had campers recreate parts of their favorite books. This included Harry Potter, Moby Dick, The Lord of the Rings, and many others. It was amazing to see how imaginative and creative our campers are. Tuesday morning also saw our Triathlon. Our version of this classic challenge sees campers Run, Yak-Board, and Swim. Wednesday also had some early morning fun, with about 25 campers participating in our lake swim. During the lake swim, campers and staff are boated across the lake. From there, campers swim back accompanied by yak boards, lifeguards, and power boat escorts.

The excitement was certainly high on Wednesday. One of our most popular days is our Olympics. Campers competed in various events all throughout the afternoon.  The fun began at 2:00 when campers were split into teams ((Ireland, Australia, Sweden, and Zimbabwe), and got some time to make banners and chants. The opening ceremony proceed to the rec field, were representatives of each country carried the Olympic torch. Countries met and divided campers into their different games, with most campers getting to compete in 3 “Olympic Sports” as well as our Super Relay. Our Olympic sports included Hockey, Water Polo, Nuke ‘Em, Dodge-ball, and many more. The day also included group games such as the water balloon toss and tug o’ war. The games ended with our super relay, with many legs and a spot for everyone. During our closing ceremonies, it was revealed that Ireland took home the Gold for the evening, although it was certainly a close race and the true winners were all of our fantastic, enthusiastic Olympians.

 

Campers cheer as the Olympic torch passes by

Our selection of tie dye

Olympians celebrate after the regatta

Off to another great start!

Well another great week has started here at Camp Daggett! As always we got the week rolling on Sunday with meetings, tours, and a great night activity. Last night we did “Progressive Storytelling.” Each cabin, along with their brother or sister cabin, rotated to many different spots around camp to piece together a story. The catch was that at each station, they only added a line or two. This meant that in the end, the cabins all had some very interesting stories! Campers acted out their stories for everyone else on the basketball court at the end of the night.

Monday was a great day- plenty of sun and fun. After all of the activity periods each day, campers get to choose any of the water and any of the land areas that they want to go to. We call these times free water and free land. Campers love these times, and it is always such a tough decision choosing which areas to go to. Today was certainly no exception, especially on land. Today, campers could barely choose between Capture the Flag, Duct Tape Bracelets, and our famous MudWalk!  This was all followed by our “Wizard of Oz” night. Campers had to work together to find Munchkins, Witches, and even Dorthy and the gang hidden all throughout camp. For their hard work, campers got lollipops as a reward.

The rest of the week is looking like it will be just as exciting. Tomorrow will see a brand new night activity featuring activities based on many of our campers’ favorite books. Wednesday will be quite unique- it is our Olympics! Campers will spend the whole afternoon and evening competing as “countries” in many different sports and activities. Thursday will see Camp Daggett be transported back to medieval times for Medieval night! Stay tuned for more updates throughout the week.

 

Our staff before “Wizard of Oz” night

Campers take a break during “Wizard of Oz” night

Campers perform their stories