Happy Wednesday, everyone!  I think we ran the gamut of weather here at camp today.  We’ve had cold rain, warm sun, a bit of wind and a cool evening.  The weather has sure kept us on our toes this summer.

We start our blog journey in the north again as our Teen Trippers continue to have a blast in Toronto, Canada.  Today took the campers to Niagara on the Lake and jet boating on the rapids.  After our campers had dried off, everyone was treated to a tour of the Clifton Hill Area before checking into their hotel for the evening.  Dinner tonight will be at the Skylon Tower, and for dessert the campers will be treated to a magnificent view of Niagara Falls at night.

Today also marked the second, and final, day of Tribals.  The competition was fierce all day as every team had a viable shot at winning.  The morning was dedicated to a scavenger hunt; however, this wasn’t any scavenger hunt, the goal of this hunt was the rescue of each team’s Chief!

The afternoon activity session tightened the race even more, and we went into Tribal council with a tie for first place!  Tribal Council consisted of the presentations of each team’s Tribal Rattle, Tribal Headdress, Totem Pole, Legend and music video.  The creative juices were flowing, and the teams brought out the very best in each other; however, there can only be one winner in Tribals and for 2014 your winner was:

The Red Choctaw Bears!!

Tomorrow is our final Lazy Day of the summer and the return of our Teen Trippers.  It’s been a quiet few days without them around, but camp isn’t camp without them, and we are very excited to welcome them home.  Until then, ILC U THERE!

Before we jump headlong into the first day of Tribals, let’s check in on our Teen Trippers in Toronto: On the schedule today is a tour of the National Hockey Hall of Fame, followed by lunch at the Eaton Centre. After lunch, our campers will be taking a tour of the CN Tower and then finishing the day at Ripley’s Aquarium. It will be wall-to-wall excitement for our campers and those few lucky counselors who were selected to chaperone.

Now…on to TRIBALS

Welcome to Day One of Tribals! Our campers and counselors found our which team they were on and who their Tribal Leaders were last night. The teams this summer are the White Mojave Wolves, Red Choctaw Bears and Blue Shawnee Ravens. Two male and two female counselors lead the teams (Chiefs and Elders), and campers from Groups 3-5, as well as CITs (Warriors, Hunters, Councilmen and Tribesmen).

The competition has been fierce, and the enthusiasm has been through the roof! Despite the rain this morning, our first Activity period was an action packed roller coaster full of thrills and excitement. The White Mojave Wolves pulled off an incredible victory in a hilarious game of Human Foosball in our Hockey Rink. Not to be outdone, the Red Choctaw Bears snatched a close victory during Parachute Games in our Gym.

Unfortunately, the rain forced us indoors in the early afternoon. Crazy Games lived up to their name and were indeed C-R-A-Z-Y: pass the Life Saver, counselor cling wrap, basketball waddle, dizzy bat races and a hula hoop challenge! When the dust finally settled on the craziest of the crazy games, the Red Choctaw Bears ended the activity victorious and went into the afternoon activity session in the lead.

Our Second Activity Period contained another Human Foosball match and an exciting round of Chopped in our Cooking Department. The Blue Shawnee Ravens and White Mojave Wolves cut into the Red Choctaw Bears lead by both winning their respective Human Foosball matches. The Blue Shawnee Ravens cut even further into the Red Choctaw Bears lead by winning Chopped!

Tonight our evening activity will be a thrilling heads-up, survival of the fittest, quickest and smartest Pop Culture Quiz! The campers and counselors are gearing up now! Let the best team win and until then, ILC U THERE!

Happy Monday, everyone! It was another beautiful day in Starrucca, PA. The birds were singing, and the sun was shining. Our temperatures climbed into the 80’s once again, and some late afternoon clouds provided some much needed shade for our campers and counselors.

We started early today because our oldest campers left bright and early on their Teen Trip! After a quick meal of warm bagels and cold cereal, our campers loaded up on two charter buses and set their sites Toronto bound. Their itinerary today consists of a fun filled afternoon at Canada’s Wonderland complete with dinner at the park. The action continues tomorrow as they have a full day of activities in Toronto. Those of us left behind are extremely jealous!!

The fun today wasn’t just reserved for our Teen Trippers though. This morning we had a group of over thirty go out on a coal-mining trip. Our campers went to a coal mine in Scranton to get a tour of the facilities. They even get to ride down into the mine some 300 feet underground. It was in operation for over 100 years but now it’s just used for tours.

We also sent a group of campers on our 3rd session tubing trip down the Delaware River. Our campers struck gold with the weather today; it is perfect for floating down the river.

Tonight’s evening activity was our Camper/Counselor Talent show. We had ten acts tonight that sang and danced their way into our memories. The campers were enthralled with the many varied talents of our campers and counselors.

Tonight also marks the beginning of Tribals! Tribals will be a two-day, three team event that encompasses all facets of our Island Lakers skills and cunning. Stay tuned for a breakdown of Day One tomorrow. Until then, ILC U THERE!

Happy Sunday!  I know you’re probably so sick of hearing me say this all summer long but today was truly another beautiful day in Starrucca, PA.  Today was clear blue skies in the morning and mostly sunny in the afternoon with temps up to about 80 degrees.  It’s finally warming up to summer temperatures once again.

Today was our 3^rd session trip to Cooperstown to the Baseball Hall of Fame.  Lots of campers, both boys and girls, went on the trip to enjoy a day of everything baseball.

Last night’s evening activity, Miss ILC, was hysterical!  Our campers laughed the entire night while our counselors looked pretty silly up there on stage dressed up as women singing, showing off their talents, and answering questions about world peace (Ha!).  It was a fun, memorable night for everyone here at Island Lake.

Tonight’s evening activity is the SOCIAL!  DJ Dennis will be here at ILC yet one more time to rock the house (or shall I say, rock the camp gym).  Yet again, the girls will get dressed up and some will doll themselves with make-up while the boys, well, we’ll be lucky if they shower and comb their hair.

Tomorrow morning, bright and early at 6:30am we leave for our teen trip to Toronto, Canada.  Our 9^th grade and up campers who signed up for the trip, along with 10 staff including myself (Wendy) and Trip, will be heading out of camp on two coach buses and we will make our way to Toronto for 2 days and then Niagara Falls for 2 days.  Everyone is very excited for the trip.  We will post photos of the trip with our daily summer photos when we return on Friday.

Parents of campers on the teen trip, a reminder that if you’d like to speak with your child while we are away, just call the hotel at night time after 9-10pm and ask to be connected to your child’s room.  Hotel details were mailed to you this past June.  If you’ve misplaced it then feel free to call camp for the information.

Today’s special feature,…SKATEPARK!

While I’m away on the Canada trip, Dustin will take over the blog for me.  No doubt, he’ll do a fantastic job reporting to you what’s going on here at ILC while also entertaining you.  We’ll be back home to camp late Thursday night, so I’ll be back behind the keyboard once again on Friday.  Until then, ILC U THERE!

The following is a link to our weeks 5 & 6 video.  Enjoy it!  https://vimeo.com/103056272

Today is another beautiful session 3 day here in Starrucca, PA.  We had blue skies and temperatures in the mid to upper 70’s today.  Last night’s Revival Night break was fantastic!  We started off Crazy Games in the gym with dodgeball and then started playing the revival music.  A henchman came out to the crowd and the kids all screamed and ran down to the waterfront.  Once there, our henchmen all joined one another on the beach via boat from the island, some rose from under the docks in the lake, and a couple rose from under the sand on the beach.  It was fun to watch and the children enjoyed their favorite evening activity.

Today is our last day of Legos with our science department.  A woman who specializes in Legos brings them to camp and our campers build some amazing creations from them.

Our 9^th-12^th grade boys played a home game of basketball today against another camp.  Our boys worked hard and played hard but unfortunately fell short of a win.  They were happy though because they said they had fun and played their hardest.

Today’s special feature,…waterfront!

Tonight’s evening activity is Miss ILC,…for real this time, we promise!  Our male counselors get dressed up as females and compete against one another in a variety of categories.  It’s a lot of fun for our campers to watch as our counselors embarrass themselves,…uh, I mean show off their amazing talents for all to see.  Should be a good time tonight!  We’ll tell you more tomorrow.  Until then, ILC U THERE!

Hi Island Lake families!  Believe it or not, it’s another beautiful day in Starrucca, PA.  Does it feel a bit like Groundhog Day around here when I mention the weather?  Ha!  Today we had partly cloudy skies with temps up to the mid 70’s.  This morning started off cool but by afternoon it was a shorts and t-shirts kinda day.  Perfect camp weather!

Our 7^th – 10^th grade girls went out of camp to play in a volleyball tournament and we’re happy to announce that WE WON!  Go volleyball girls!!!  It’s always a great feeling for the kids to come home winners.  Well, I mean, our campers are always winners, but it’s fun to win sports tournaments too!  Hehe!  Tomorrow our 9^th – 11^th grade boys will play in a basketball tournament so hopefully they’ll do just as well.

Today’s special feature,…TENNIS!

Tonight’s evening activity is,…..Crazy Games!  Ok, I’m fibbing, it’s going to be Revival Night but shhh, the kids are all expecting it to be Crazy Games!  It’s so early in the session that no one is anticipating Revival.  It should be a great surprise for everyone.  For those of you who are not familiar with what Revival Night is, just ask your children when they return home.  Let’s just say, it’s our campers’ all time favorite evening activity!

In the real world we hear it’s now officially the weekend.  We lose track here at camp, but enjoy your weekend and until tomorrow, ILC U THERE!

Today is the first day of majors and minors for our 3^rd session.  Our campers are getting right back into their routines with activities once again.  For those who are new to the 3^rd session, they are first starting with their activities and it’ll become routine to them before they know it.

The skies were partly cloudy today and the temps are once again cool in the high 60’s to low 70’s.  Pretty wild that our summer temps are so low this year but hey, it beats the heat and humidity that the summers usual bring!

The big talk around camp is our upcoming teen trip to Toronto and Niagara Falls.  We’re busy preparing for it and plan to take almost 90 campers and 10 staff with us.  This trip is usually the highlight of the summer for our older campers as they are anxiously looking forward to next Monday when we depart for this 4 day/3 night trip.  We’re getting pumped!

Today’s special feature,…CIRCUS!

Tonight’s evening activity is groups.  Here’s a list of what everyone is doing:

Boys:  Group 1- dodgeball ;  Group 2- gaga;  Group 3- basketball competition;  Group 4- touch rugby;  Group 5- kickball

Girls:  Group 1- campfire;  Group 2- cupcake competition;  Group 3- 70’s dress up aerobics;  Group 4- music video contest;  Group 5- family feud

It’s going to be a chilly night, but luckily those bunks stay warm from the daytime air.  Until tomorrow when it’ll warm up once again, ILC U THERE!

We made it!  Changeover Day is behind us and today was our first full day of 3^rd session.  Where did the summer go?  The weather today has been a roller coaster.  We had a chilly start to the day but temps rebounded nicely into the 70’s this afternoon.  After a brief shower 4^th minor, the skies cleared and the rest of the day was gorgeous.   Our campers were extra busy today with 4-minors full of level testing, auditions and trying out new activities they might take as majors.

As is the tradition on 4 Minor Day, we normally have Panic, however, we decided to throw the campers a curveball and have a camp wide game of Counselor Hunt instead.  One counselor from each bunk dressed in their best camouflage and found a super secret hiding spot on camp.  Our campers and their remaining counselors had one simple task:  find as many hidden counselors as possible in the allotted time.  Each found counselor was worth a different point value; some were worth up to 50 points while others were worth negative points.

At the conclusion of Counselor Hunt, our group leaders went around to their bunks to help the counselors sign up their campers for their majors.  Our department heads set up shop in the office to solve any conflicts a camper might have whilst choosing their majors.  We use this extra step to ensure that no camper is ever closed out of an activity.

Tonight’s evening activity was groups!

BOYS:  Group 1 – Gaga; Group 2 – Campfire; Group 3 – Touch Rugby; Group 4 – Capture the Flag; Group 5 – Kong Pong

GIRLS:  Group 1 – Dodgeball; Group 2 – Photobooth Party (the campers play dress up and have their pictures taken); Group 3 – Bunk T-shirts; Group 4 – Cupcake Wars (may the best decorated cupcake win); Group 5 – Trash bag Fashion Show (the campers design an outfit for their counselors using only trash bags)

Enjoy your evening and until tomorrow, ILC U THERE!

Today was our 2^nd changeover day for ILC summer 2014.  Where has this summer gone?    We can’t believe we are starting our 3^rd session already!  This morning it was difficult to say goodbye to so many amazing campers.  We hope they all had a fantastic summer and now return home with wonderful memories to hold onto until next summer when we can all be back together here at camp once again.

In the meantime, summer continues as we enter into our 3^rd and final session.  We are excited to get to know many of our new campers who are arriving with fresh haircuts, clean white sneakers, and exhilarating grins from ear to ear.  Our campers who stayed on from session 2 are pumped up to make new friends and see many from last summer.  We know the 3^rd session will be just as incredible as our previous 2 sessions.

We are also busy preparing for our big 3^rd session teen trip to Toronto and Niagara Falls.  About 90 campers and 10 staff will be heading to the good ol’ country of Canada to spend 4 days and 3 nights checking out the sites, racing around in Jet boats, and enjoying the Maid of the Midst under and around Niagara Falls.  This is the highlight of the summer for many of our older campers so we’re all revving to go.

The weather was beautiful today until about 5pm or so when the storms came through.  Nothing too bad but it’s been raining on and off ever since.  Regardless of the weather, tonight’s evening activity of “Make Your Own Sundae” (Aka “Make Your Own Mess”) will still go on in the canteen this evening.

The following are some photos of the buses arriving today.  Enjoy and until tomorrow, ILC U THERE!

      I couldn’t resist tossing in this photo of me in the air!  Our camp photographers are great, huh?