In the Mailgabber column, a member of the Camp Family has the opportunity to share thoughts on Nebagamon in the Arrowhead. This month, Assistant Trip Director Andrew Meyer reflects on his Pre-Camp experience.
Andrew helping position the advanced rafts
If you’ve never been here for pre-camp before I highly suggest you take the time next summer and head up to the Northwoods for these special weeks. When you first arrive, Paul Bunyan greets you as usual, but the grounds have not quite grown into the magical summer green we generally think of when we think of camp; instead, what is most apparent is the lack of noise and the lack of a set up waterfront. The camp we all think of and love takes time and a committed team to bring this place to life after a long winter (if you haven’t seen the pictures make sure you go take a look at the inches of snow that fell in the month May on camp’s Facebook).
The first meal of pre-camp is held in the Big House on an unusually chilly late May night that should have been shaken at this point. Faces new and old are scattered around the table. We jump right back into the banter, the stories from summers past, and remembering talking about camp over the offseason. For those who can’t even remember how many times they have done pre-camp and those whose first time it is, something holds true for everyone: an immediate bond takes place due to the setting and the shared love for this place.
Pre-camp is a beautifully orchestrated jumble of different goings-on that result in the place we love, all ready for the campers. While one group pushes canoe docks into the water on tippy toes trying to salvage every inch of dry skin as humanly possible, another group is fully submerged arranging the diving board barge. In the coming days the crew will swap their aquatic duties for terrestrial ones. The cabins will be cleaned, the rec-hall assembled, and the fishing equipment delivered.
The shockingly cold water completely alters one’s view about what Nebagamon is to them. For me in particular, this place has become a summer fixture. My name is Andrew Meyer and I am working as the Assistant Trip Director this summer. I am from the Hudson Valley in the great state of New York. I graduated from Colorado College (2017) and have since lived in Wisconsin and Costa Rica. But the place I have spent the most time is right here in Lake Nebagamon. As I begin my tenth summer (seven as a camper, three as staff) I am lucky to be surrounded by coworkers from my class of 2010. If you don’t feel like doing the math I’ll just let you know that it has been nine years since all six of us were last campers here. Since being eligible to work on staff our year has always had a strong presence here on these beautiful 77 acres during the summer months, but why?
While pre-camp may be this special time of year, it is the upcoming season that gets us most excited. It is neat to think that there are going to be boys who have no idea that almost 15 years later they can still be working with the same guys, that they can be playing a game of cribbage on the Big House porch, a walk down to Lorber Point or even just walking through the gates after a long hiatus. It may be repetitive to say but… This place!!!
The calm that I definitely recommend everyone experience at some point will fade, but lucky for us we enjoy the energy of happy people.
Andrew Meyer is the Assistant Trip Director.