Camp 2018 - Hikes

This year, Rebecca took the bigs on the traditional Owl's Head Mountain hike. The littles were too big for me to carry and we were confident that they would not have done well, so I decided to stay back with them and go fishing.

The three adventurers were full of energy and raring to go!

And go they did! They made it up in a couple of hours, had lunch, and hung out at the top for a while.

Mama even got some time to relax. 

Of course, there was the obligatory climb to the top of the fire tower...

And the view of Lake Eaton from there...

It was a warm day and the kids were happy to jump in the lake while waiting for their ride to come get them.

We also found something new this year. There's something called the Tupper Lake Triad, which is a challenge to climb 3 peaks around Tupper Lake. We did all three in one day!

First we did Coney Mountain, which was a fairly short 1.1 mile hike to the top. 

Then we moved closer to Tupper Lake and did Goodman Mountain. It was a little longer at 1.7 miles, but still not too bad, especially because the first half was on an old section of Route 9, the main road between Long Lake and Tupper Lake. When they rebuilt the road a few decades ago, they abandoned this one. 

The last one was Mount Arab, on the north side of Tupper Lake. It was very short, but more of a vertical climb. I stayed down on this one because we were taking the opportunity to do laundry in Tupper and wanted to make sure it was done in time. 

This one had a ranger cabin and fire tower at the top, similar to Owl's Head, so they got some great views of Tupper Lake and the surrounding area.

The kids all did a great job keeping positive attitudes and walking the whole way on their own! Next time we go up, we will definitely have to do these peaks again!

Camp 2018 - Fishing and Wildlife

Fishing is something that will always be a part of going to Camp. Despite being down in North Carolina for nearly 30 years, I've never gotten the hang of fishing like I did up there. Something about being able to actually see the bottom maybe...

Of course, the kids always look forward to fishing for sunnies. 

They aren't any good for eating because they're small and bony, but they definitely keep the kids busy. 

You can practically catch them on an empty hook!

I don't bother bringing my own pole with me most of the time when I bring the kids because I know I'm going spend every minute either baiting a hook or unhooking a fish. 

That doesn't mean I did get any fishing done. I did take a couple of trips up to Bog River Falls and managed to land this 16" largemouth bass. I've never caught a largemouth up here before! Apparently, they aren't supposed to be in these waters because they crowd out other fish.

In all, I caught 6 good-sized bass in both Bog River/Tupper and Lake Eaton.

For Olivia's AHG Fishing Badge, she had to clean and prepare fish two ways. 

 She pan fried one set and baked the other with garlic. They were both amazing!

Fish weren't the only animals we got to see up there this year. We spotted a number of birds that we though were loons, but turned out to be Merganser ducks. They have really long necks and dive like the loons do, but they sit lower in the water and don't stay down as long when they dive.

This bullfrog decided that Rebecca's paddleboard was a good place for a rest.

We found a Monarch Butterfly that had just emerged and pumped up his wings, so he was easy to catch. Of course, as soon as his wings dried in the sun, he flew off. 

Of course, there were plenty of toads to catch, too.

And on one of the hikes, we spotted a woodpecker darting from tree to tree.

But our most amazing sight this year was a loon with her baby. We got to see her several times out on the lake in the mornings and evenings. 

Camp 2018 - Sunrises, Moonrises, and Other Light Shows

If there's one thing that camp is good for (and believe me, it's not the only thing!) it's gorgeous sunrises.

It's so hard not get up every morning at 5am just for the spectacular show that gets put on. 

Each one is a little different. Some are so foggy that you can't see the sun at all.

And some are so picture-perfect they don't seem real.

Sometimes, though, the moon gets jealous and has to steal some of the sun's thunder.

Even the clouds get into the act some days, looking like something out of a painting.

And then, if we're lucky, we're there when the town of Long Lake has a fireworks show and dazzles us from miles away.

You can't tell from the pictures, but the fireworks we can see from the dock are almost 3 miles away in a straight line and so we don't hear the booms of them until almost 12 seconds have passed!

It's only a quirk of the geography that even allows us to see the fireworks at all.

If the Camp were a quarter mile to the left or right or if they launched the fireworks from a spot that same distance to either side, we wouldn't see them because of the mountains.