Summer Camp

Recently my family and I drove to Mount Rainier for a long weekend of camping, and a long weekend of camping grime and dirty fingernails – it goes with the territory. The weather smiled upon us and the mountain proved itself as spectacular as ever. We encountered a lot of snow low on the mountain near Paradise which made for slippery, short-lived hikes with a seven-year-old and his ill-prepared parents, but it was nevertheless beautiful. Other trails at lower elevations were a delight to explore.
We stayed at a campground where wood smoke filtered through tall evergreen trees in the evening and the smell of camp food occasionally wafted through our area. All of this stirred my memories of hitting various campgrounds, mostly around Oregon, as a child with my family. And while there is nothing quite like snuggling up with your parents or siblings in a tent when you are a kid, there is also something magical about going to summer camp without the parental units around.
As we tromped through trails on Mount Rainier that passed waterfalls, rivers, and creeks, the soft “trump, trump” of our boots on firm trail that was littered by fir needles took me back to summer camp in my mind. Whether it is feeling independent as you experience your first time away from home, or, as you reach the middle school years, perhaps relief at being away from home, the summer camp experience is unforgettable. For some who cannot tolerate the occasional mosquito bite or who were placed in a cabin with unkind peers, the memories may be locked in the archives of “miserable childhood experiences,” but for a good number of adults, those times are committed as some really great moments.
Sitting around a campfire do you recall learning songs, and maybe someone played the acoustic guitar as accompaniment? Or perhaps there was a sharing time when kids allowed themselves to be vulnerable and everyone respected that? Stars shone, void of light pollution, and the pop and snap of wood on the fire wasn’t fearsome at all. Campfires can be mesmerizing and reassuring, like the constancy and warmth they generate.
On this recent trip, as my family warmed ourselves in one of the most beautiful national parks our country has, I thought of how much my young son will enjoy an overnight camp when the time is right, and how I hope that he will learn his own songs and grow his own voice, dirt under his nails and all.