Camp Nebagamon

Compiled by Louis Levin

The sense of adventure our campers experience at Nebagamon is unparalleled. Just coming to camp for the first time is stepping into the unknown -away from home, trying something new and unfamiliar. And then our wilderness tripping program pushes them further out of their comfort zones; each year new opportunities open up which are further and longer from camp as they progress through our program. But as an administrator/pencil pusher/desk jockey who’s been at camp for nearly 20 years, camp is pretty familiar and comfortable for me, and my job at camp means I don’t get to join campers on their wilderness trip adventures… My best option over the summer is to live vicariously through the stories our campers share at the conclusion of their adventures.

So, my adventures have to take place in the offseason, and finding a place to go camping during the winter can be a challenge from my home base in Chicago. This past month, my wife Maggie, some of her family, and I embarked upon an enormous adventure – we spent a week on a sailboat in the British Virgin Islands. Now I’ll admit, as vacations go, sailing the B.V.I. is usually not too similar to the Camp Nebagamon experience – it evokes images of superyachts, captain, crew, and private chefs, straight out of an episode of Bravo’s Below Deck. We chose to sail a different path – we were our own captain, crew, and chef on an older sailboat. Our boat was basically a larger-sized X-boat, just like the ones our campers sail. Simply a mainsail and a jib, it even had the same number of ropes! Compared to the catamarans and yachts we’d moor next to each night, our jalopy was pretty simple, and a little cramped for four of us, but that contributed to the campy feel.

I could write a handful of different Arrowhead articles about this trip, and I’ve cycled through them all over the past few days… I could tell you about how I learned to sail at camp and used those skills on this trip. I could describe how the trip pushed me out of my comfort zone like trips do for our campers. This could be a great article about group living as well; spending a week with just four of us on a 41’ sailboat made us practice a good amount of patience with one another, just like our cabin groups at camp have to do.

But the lesson I most took away from this adventure was learned from deciding to opt into presence. When planning this trip, we were certain we’d get pretty bad cell service, and rented a Wi-Fi hotspot to keep on the boat for emergency purposes. When we arrived, well, it turns out our phones worked just fine. This was not what I wanted out of an adventure! Being away from my phone is a crucial part of my camping experiences, and our campers’ experiences at Camp Nebagamon. So Maggie and I decided we’d still follow through on the promise of a screen-free camping experience – we turned our phones off, tucked them safely below deck, and pretended they didn’t exist. I left behind the notifications and alerts that light my phone up and, without fail, claim to be more urgent than they actually are. I spent time focused on the natural beauty of what can credibly be described as paradise, and connected more deeply with my family, playing cards and telling stories of adventures past on a once-in-a-lifetime trip.

The defining feature of this trip, for me, was that we opted in. With all the convenience of our phones right there below deck, it took some self control to break the phone habit and choose to be really present. And then when I got home, it dawned on me that I didn’t need to go camping to achieve this glorious, unburdened feeling our campers have every minute of the summer. I can opt in at home too! On a few different nights since we’ve gotten back, I’ve simply left my phone in another room. I’ve decided I can google that trivia question later, or respond to texts in the morning, or check my email once I get to my desk. It’s easier to opt into presence if you’re in the Boundary Waters where there is no cell service, but that feeling of true presence can be found if you intentionally seek it out.

Our campers are lucky. A summer at Nebagamon is designed to intentionally take them away from technology and foster this presence. At Nebagamon, the adventures our campers embark upon in camp and on trail are made much richer by the absence of screens. Campers create deeper friendships, gain a deeper appreciation of nature, and find a deeper immersion in the learning experience camp offers. And for how much I preach about the benefits of that experience, I’ve been enjoying benefiting from that presence myself, on this most recent adventure, and also, on a Tuesday night.

We have a lot of news to share from our reunions this past month – if you have anything you’d like to share with the camp family, send it my way or fill out the form here!

IT MAY INTEREST YOU TO KNOW… In Chicago, Gabe Fisher is playing percussion for a music conservatory, specializing in marimba. Alex Gudgeon is staying involved in camping as a day camp counselor at Camp Tamarack for 2nd and 3rd grade campers. Charlie Gilligan is hunting his next big scoop as the editor of his middle school newspaper – perhaps he can dig up a scandal on budding politician Linus Quinn-Pasin, Sophomore Class President and a member of the crew team at St. Ignatious College Prep, or perhaps he can take a broader lens and focus on the entire country of Spain, which is represented by Braden Montez in his school’s Model United Nations. Grant Hall is getting ready for PBD quiz bowl on his school’s quiz bowl team, and is in the Dungeons and Dragons club. Ben Varon is playing pickleball and on his school’s Super Smash Brothers esports team. There are some musicians in the windy city – Max Yarborough is practicing trumpet, Gray Wyler is playing electric guitar in a rock band and is a defender for his soccer team, Dylan Wolf is playing drums and tennis, and Kavi Vishnubhakat is working on his piano, as well as playing lots of tennis. And campers are playing every sport you can think of in Chicago, despite the inhospitable sports weather: Carter Gray is playing baseball all winter long in his indoor league, Aidan Huberman is playing water polo, Micahel Kerne is a shooting guard for his basketball team, Evan Friedman is playing tennis, Will Bratlein is a forward for his basketball team, and David Levick is competing in all-around events in gymnastics. Our runners are Peter Boutross who is training for the mile and a half for his cross country team, and Chase Kornblett who is running the mile and the 800 meter for his track team. Finally, Josh Wallenstein is sitting at home and waiting for camp… in his words, it’s “waaaay more fun than school!”

IN THE BIBS AND DIAPERS DEPARTMENT… It’s a boy, Theo Arzoumanian for Josh Weinberg (Chicago, 2004-’09, ’11-’14) and Nika Arzoumanian.

WEDDING CONGRATULATIONS GO TO… Brent Horvay (Chicago, 1996-2001, ’03-’06) and Ilse Escamilla, and to Blake Balser (Atlanta/Dallas, 2004-’10, ’12-’13) and Sophie Miller.