Camp Echo Lake – Senior Village Life: Week 6 Recap
After spending 28 days of the most amazing, incredible, unforgettable days exploring some of the most beautiful places that the West Coast has to offer, the 4n4 campers finally returned from “The Trip” back to camp this past Thursday. Highlights of the trip included: spending the day on speed boats on Lake Powell, sunrise at the Grand Canyon, Zion National Park, walking through the Narrows, rafting for three days down the Arkansas River, climbing in Rocky Mountain National Park, a sunset hike at Arches National Park in Utah, hiking Bryce Canyon and exploring San Francisco and Las Vegas. Now that the 4n4 campers are back, Senior Village is full once again!
For the final Senior Village trip day of the summer, we offered campers the chance to decide between two different locations. A small group of campers chose to go to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown with Brenda Levine and Stefano Antoniazzi, while the majority of Senior Village spent the day at Enchanted Forest Water Safari (New York’s largest water park) located in Old Forge. Both sets of campers had a fantastic last trip day! It was a great way to finish off the trip days for the summer.
“Secret Hideaway” is an Upper Village-hosted event for the staff to benefit Project Morry. In addition to raising funds for a great cause, the event also provides a fantastic opportunity for our Upper Village campers to take on various leadership roles.
Campers are selected for a variety of positions (including many management roles), and under the supervision of counselors, the Upper Village campers plan, set up and host the entire event. This year’s theme was “Glamping.” The Upper Villagers made the lodge look amazing for the event.
The staff had the opportunity to play casino games, venture in to the “VIP area,” bid on various auction items (made by our awesome art staff) and purchase a variety of delicious treats. Every year, “Secret Hideaway” exceeds our expectations. Coupled with a day time car wash, this year’s Upper Villagers raised close to $4000 (a new record) for Project Morry!
The Alawatchakeema Campfire (or just “Big Al,” for short) is one of Echo Lake’s enduring traditions. Every 24 moons (aka two summers) the Alawatchakeema tribe visits Echo Lake. This past Sunday, the tribe visited to make sure that the Echo Lake campers and staff are having a harmonious and happy summer. Select campers (known as “Braves) – who exemplify Echo Lake’s values and beliefs – were chosen to represent each age division. In order to satisfy the Alawatchakeema tribe, various campers and staff are selected to make small sacrifices including: sleeping under the stars, refraining from solid food for 12 hours and keeping silent from sundown to sundown. There is also the “triple whammy,” where all three sacrifices must be done. Big Al was satisfied with Echo Lake’s sacrifices this summer. Special traditions like Alawatchakeema are part of what makes Echo Lake such an incredible place.
This year’s Sachem games included: girls and boys basketball and soccer, girl’s hockey and boy’s softball. Sachem is an opportunity for our Upper Village, 4n4 and LIT campers to compete in one of these events.
Sachem girl’s basketball took place on Monday night, with Mohawk beating Iroquois, 31-24. In girl’s hockey yesterday morning, Iroquois beat Mohawk 6-0. In boy’s softball yesterday, Iroquois defeated Mohawk by a score of 16-4. In a thrilling match, Mohawk defeated Iroquois 4-3 in girl’s soccer and also emerged victorious in boy’s soccer, winning 3-1. Finally, the Iroquois boys beat Mohawk by a score of 52-44 in basketball.
Tribal Sing takes place tonight. With Mohawk holding a small lead over Iroquois, it will surely be an evening to remember as Tribal comes to a an exciting finish. Camp party is on Friday, and banquet and the burning of the year take place on Saturday.
