Here’s a link to our week 2 video.  Enjoy!

https://vimeo.com/100655431

Hey Island Lake families!  Another beautiful and busy day here in Starrucca, PA.  We took our baseball & softball enthusiasts to Cooperstown to the Baseball Hall of Fame this morning.  They enjoyed their day with a tour of the Hall of Fame where they saw great exhibits, movies, and of course enjoyed browsing their souvenir shop.

In other ILC sports news, we took some of our avid tennis players on a trip to Binghamton to watch ATP challenger matches.  It’s a tournament for professional tennis players who are trying to increase their rankings in order to play in big time tournaments such as the US Open.  Great experience for children who love to play and watch the sport of tennis.

But wait, there’s more!  We also hosted a big dance competition today!  Six other camps came to Island Lake this morning compete against one another in a variety of dances- hop-hop, modern, jazz, ballet, tap, pointe, funk, etc.  Our dance campers looked amazing and danced their hearts outs to earn 1st place and 2^nd place in the competition.  Go ILC Dancers!

Lastly in sports, we hosted 8^th & 9^th grade girls lacrosse here at camp this afternoon.

Last night’s Magic Show was, well, magically great! (Ok, maybe that came off tacky, but I couldn’t resist!)  Tonight’s big performance is our Dance Show.  Today was a big day for our dance campers with both their dance competition and then their performance for the camp.  They tapped, kicked, and boogied into high gear for all to enjoy!

For that reason, today we feature DANCE!

For those of you with campers coming home after 1^st session, enjoy your last few days of peace and quiet (Lol!).  Changeover day is this Thursday, July 17^th, so lots going on here at camp over the next few days.  We’ll be sure to fill you in on the fun.  Until then, ILC U THERE!

Today was our first ever Rookie Day and we could not have asked for a better day!  The weather has been absolutely beautiful with the sun shining and the temps in the upper 70’s/low 80’s.  Our rookies had fun meeting other rookies, campers, and trying out many of the activities we offer here at ILC.  They tried circus, gymnastics, beach soccer, magic, arts & crafts, ropes course, cooking, sports monsters, video scavenger hunt, and we ended the day with a magic show and a big pool party.  We loved meeting so many future Island Lakers and we look forward to our next Rookie Day in another week from now.

In regular Island Lake news, today was a big tubing trip down the Delaware River.  A bus load of children enjoyed the morning into early afternoon tubing down the river.  We also had lots of sports going on in and out of camp.  Boys 8^th & 9^th grade soccer, girls 9^th & 10^th grade tennis, boys 6^th &7^th grade soccer, girls 8^th grade and 11^th grade volleyball, and boys 7^th grade tennis.

Tonight we’re kicking off our performance week with a Magic Show.  From now until the end of the session our campers will be performing for their friends and counselors in theater, dance, music, circus, & magic.  We video tape every performance so don’t worry mom and dad, you can order copies of each show on dvd after the summer.

Today’s special features is a double doozie,…ROOKIE DAY (photos above) and our favorite lakeside activity, ROCK SHOP!

Have a great evening and until tomorrow, ILC U THERE!

TGIF!  Oh wait, every day is the same (yet different) here at camp.  Nobody knows what day of the week it is,…well, unless it’s ETB or LTB, then every camper knows!  Ha!

Today was a busy day here at ILC.  This morning we had a group of over 30 go out on a coal mining trip.  Our science kids went to a coal mine in Scranton to get a tour of the facilities.  They took a tram into the mine and they were 300 feet underground.  It was in operation for over 100 years but now it’s just used for tours.

Lots of sporting events went on today, as well.  We had a 5^th grade and under boys baseball game, 8^th grade boys basketball game, 5^th grade & under girls soccer game, 7^th grade boys hockey game, and 5^th grade girls basketball game.  We had some big wins along with some hard playing but unfortunate losses.  A great deal of athletics goes on each day here at Island Lake.

We are very excited for our very first ROOKIE DAY tomorrow here at camp.  We’ll have over 20 young siblings and potential camper who will try out ILC to see if they’d like to attend camp either later this summer or next year.  We’re psyched to show them all that Island Lake has to offer.  More info to come tomorrow once Rookie Day has taken place.

Just to recap last night’s group evening activities, here’s a rundown on what everyone did:

Girls:  Groups 1&2 had a Counselor Makeover and a Fashion Show (those little ones had a blast dressing up their counselors and painting their faces);  Group 3 had a Campfire;  Group 4 had a “White Out Party” with Boys Group 4 (details about this party in yesterday’s blog);  Group 5 had a Pool Party with Boys Group 5.

Boys:  Groups 1&2 played Capture the Flag;  Group 3 had a Campfire;  Group 4 had the “White Out Party” with Girls Group 4;  Group 5 had a Pool Party with Girls Group 5.

Today’s special feature, The COAL MINING TRIP!

Evening activity tonight,…everyone’s all-time favorite,…drum roll please,…Revival Night!!!  Shhhh, don’t tell your kids, it’s a surprise (although it will have started or already finished by the time you read this blog).  We’ll let your children tell you all about this special evening activity when summer is over.

Enjoy your TGIF night and until tomorrow, ILC U THERE!

Happy Lazy Day everyone!  Our campers slept in today and we had a big brunch at 10:30am.

Our youngest kids, Groups 1&2 (6^th grade and under), went to see “How to Train a Dragon 2”.  The kids loved it,…very entertaining with popcorn everywhere!

Groups 3&4 (7^th & 8^th grade) went to the bowling alley in Binghamton where they bowled, bumper bowled, and ran around and play arcade games.

Group 5 & CIT’s (9^th grade and up) went to see a Binghamton Mets game.  The B-Mets played the Portland Sea Dogs and won.  Our oldest kids had a spectacular time sitting in the splash zone (where they got soaked! Ha!)

Last night’s evening activity was groups once again.  Here’s a breakdown of what they all did:

Boys groups 1&2 played kickball:  Boys  group 3 played indoor soccer:  Boys group 4 play Gaga ball:  Boys Group 5 had a “White Out Party” with Girls Group 5.  We gave out plain white t-shirts and the kids ran around on the theater stage, where we had black lights on, and wrote on one another’s t-shirts with special markers that look really cool under the black lights.  They had an absolute blast doing this last night!

Girls Group 1 played “The Great Imposter” (dress-up/skits with random stuff they put into a laundry bag from the bunk) & the “Telephone Game”:  Girls group 2 had a photo scavenger hunt:  Girls groups 3&4 played “Crazy Games” (each bunk dressed in a different team color and played fun games in the gym. Lots of bunk spirit and lots of fun!):  Girls Group 5 had their “White Out Party” with Boys Group 5

Tonight’s evening activity is Groups once again. We’ll fill you in on who did what in tomorrow’s blog.  Overall, our campers had a fun-filled lazy day.  Enjoy your night and until tomorrow, ILC U THERE!

Happy Wednesday everyone!  Now that our campers are all well rested from last night’s ETB, tonight they look forward to LTB (Late to Bed).  Tomorrow is our 2^nd Lazy Day of the summer.  Groups 1&2 are going to see “How to Train Your Dragon 2”, Groups 3&4 are going to the bowling alley, and Group 5 is going to a Binghamton Mets game.  Lazy Day should be a great time for all.

Today’s special feature will be a guest blog held by, GIRLS BUNK 3!  They all came into my office (Wendy’s office, that is. Guess you now know who the daily blogger is, lol!).  The following are in G3:  Counselors- Alison, Ashlee, Nicole, & Rachel:  CIT’s- Emma & Grace:  Campers- Alyssa, Avery, Maclyn, Rachel, Whitney, Morgan, Chloe, Zoey, Sidney, Jordan, Rebecca, & Jane:  Group Leader- Kelsey

And now, a word from our campers:

“Island Lake is the best camp ever!” – Rebecca

“Circus is awesome!” – Rachel

“Island Lake is our home away from home!” – Zoey

“I-L-C is the place to be!” – Alyssa

“I wish Island Lake was all year round!” – Chloe

“We make new friends every day!” – Avery

“The archery teacher for major 1 is the best!” – Whitney (hint: the archery teacher is her counselor, Nicole)

“The kids, the CIT’s, the counselors, and the group leaders are probably the best thing that ever happened to this camp!” – Sydney

“Tennis is super fun!” – Jane

“I love when our counselors eat hot peppers to help us get over our fears!”- Jordan

“We love hearing Rachel’s stories!” – Maclyn

“We have the craziest bunk!” – Morgan

A message from the CIT’s:  “We enjoy being a CIT because we get the experience of being a counselor while still being able to participate in camp activities as a camper.  We could not have asked for a better bunk of girls.  We love them with all of our hearts!”

A message from their counselors:  “Our bunk is our family!”

A message from the group leader:  “I’m so lucky to have this bunk in my group.  Their smiles and happiness brings me such joy each day.  Each child has an individual spark to bring to the bunk, which makes the bunk truly remarkable.  Being a group leader would not be the same without them!“

We hope you enjoyed reading today’s special feature blog.  Until tomorrow, ILC U THERE!

Hey Island Lake families!  We can’t believe we’re already a week and a half into summer.  Time sure flies when you’re having fun!  We hope you’re enjoying all of our social media updates so you can feel as if you are part of the excitement here at camp this summer.  As a reminder, you can find us on the following websites:

1. Daily blogs here on our website
2. Daily tweets on Twitter (twitter.com/IslandLakeCamp)
3. Daily short videos on our Facebook page (facebook.com/IslandLakeCamp)
4. And of course, our daily photos and weekly videos through your CampMinder account.

It was yet another beautiful day of weather here in Starrucca, PA.  We had a few minutes of rain when snack break started today, but it all cleared up by the time 3rd major rolled around.  We had another storm come through during rest hour, so let’s just say our trees and plants are nourished very well now.

Tonight’s evening activity is,….drum roll please,…everyone’s favorite summer camp Simon Says guy,…Steve Maxx!  (Yay!  Woohoo!)

Today our pioneerers (is that such a word?) went on a climbing trip to Prompton State Park.  They had a fun-filled day of, well, um,…climbing!

We also had a Lego specialist here today assisting the children with great projects.  Amazing what these children can do!  So today we are featuring LEGO activities!

Tonight is ETB, Early To Bed.  The kids definitely need some extra rest after running around all day, day after day, having fun and playing hard.  That’s about it for now.  Have a great evening and until tomorrow, ILC U THERE!

Are we getting too repetitive by telling you that it was another beautiful day in Starrucca, PA?  Yet again we had a great day of weather, as well as another fun-filled day of camp activities and sporting events in and out of camp.

First on the list is our kayaking and canoeing overnight trip that went out this morning.  Those kids are having a blast paddling down the Delaware River right now.

We had lots of sporting events today in and out of camp.  Let’s just say we had a great day yesterday and today our kids all played hard, played well, and had some good ol’ fashioned fun.  Here’s a rundown of Island Lake sports today:

1. Golf trip out of camp.  Campers went out to a local golf course where they played 9 holes.  They said they had an absolute blast and the golf counselors said they all loved it.
2. 8^th-9^th grade boys tennis played out of camp
3. 10^th-11^th grade boys tennis played out of camp
4. 9^th grade and under girls volleyball played out of camp
5. 6^th-7^th grade girls softball played here at camp
6. 6^th-7^th grade boys basketball played here at camp

Today’s special feature,…LAKE!

Last night’s social was a fun memorable night for our Island Lakers.  DJ Dennis had the kids on their feet on the dance floor partying it up until, well, until canteen opened,…then we still had lots of kids dancing but I’m gonna be honest, many ran to the canteen. (wink wink)

Tonight’s evening activity is groups.  Enjoy the rest of your day and as always, ILC U THERE!

Happy Sunday everyone!  Another beautiful day in Starrucca, PA.  Lots of sporting events went on in and out of camp today.  Here’s a breakdown of events:

1. 5^th grade and under boys and girls played very well in a tennis tournament this morning.  Unfortunately, we didn’t win but the kids all said they had a great time playing.
2. 7^th grade girls went out of camp to play lacrosse nearby.  They returned with a fantastic victory, 14-13.  You go girls!
3. 8^th-9^th grade girls played basketball at home against another camp and finished with an amazing win, 41-18.  We’re so proud of our girls today!
4. This afternoon our 5^th grade and under boys left camp to play soccer.  It’s no World Cup tournament but they played like they were in one.  Our young boys came short by 1 point but put in a good effort.
5. But wait, there’s more!  Our 6^th-7^th grade boys played a home soccer game against another camp and won, 11-4.  Those boys played fantastically well together and sure earned their win.

Today’s feature,…boys 6^th-7^th grade soccer!

Tonight’s evening activity is our one and only SOCIAL!  Many girls will be all decked out in pretty outfits with their hair done nicely.  The boys, well, we’ll be happy if they shower and put on a clean shirt for the social!  (LOL!)  We have an outside DJ coming in so we can all boogie on down in the gym tonight.

Enjoy the remaining few hours of your holiday weekend and until tomorrow, ILC U THERE!!!

Another sunny day here in Starrucca, PA.  Today is International Day here at ILC so campers and staff dressed to represent a multitude of international countries.  Although the morning was cool, it’s warmed up a great deal this afternoon.  Today feels like the perfect summer day;  sunny, warm but not too hot, and no humidity.

But enough about the weather,…we kicked off our Wayne County sports tournaments today.  Girls 10^th and 11^th grade played a hard game of lacrosse against another camp but unfortunately they did not win.  On a brighter note, our 9^th grade girls tennis team kicked some major uh, racquet, against another camp and won their tournament 3-2.  Go ILC girls’ tennis!

Yesterday’s 4^th of July celebration was SPECTATULAR here at Island Lake!  As we mentioned in yesterday’s blog, our music lunch, cookout, and firework display were all out of this world amazing.  We had the whole camp dancing away at lunch and everyone was in awe of our firework show.  We even had a firework preshow this year- a magic show followed by a rock concert.  We were unable to set off the sky lanterns due to the wind but the campers all sat on the hill by the canteen and seemed to love every moment of their evening festivities.

Today’s special feature,…SKATEPARK.  Check out some “rad”and “gnarly” pics below.

As mentioned in the previous blog posting, our first weekly video is now up for all to enjoy.  Here’s the link:  https://vimeo.com/100001151

Well, that’s about it for now.  We hope you’re having a nice relaxing holiday weekend.  Until tomorrow, ILC U THERE!