Camp Nebagamon

Updates

Mailgabber – “What Keeps the Fires Burning?”

The Mailgabber column features submissions by members of the Camp Family. Interested in submitting for Mailgabber? Send submissions to Louis.

Current Nebagamon campers Nelson Mendels and Adam Eberhard started a podcast called “What Keeps the Fires Burning?” Their podcast is dedicated to all the experiences gained at Camp Nebagamon, with the goal of bringing together the camp family during these uncertain times. Episodes released every Sunday will feature interviews with campers, staff, and alumni, jokes, and stories, and all sorts of other Nebagamon content – their first full length episode features an interview with Director Adam Kaplan. The support of the camp family is very important to them, so be sure to follow their Instagram here, to get updates on the show and comment on episodes. Check out their website here to have the opportunity to send in audio messages that can be played on the podcast. Be sure to spread the word to camp friends, former counselors, or even just someone you know who would be interested. The more people that listen to the podcast, the more people in the camp family will be brought together to share their experiences. You can listen to the show on Spotify, Apple Music, etc. They hope you enjoy and thank you for your support! Keep the Fires Burning!

Mailgabber – Slowing a Landslide

Compiled by Louis Levin

Mailgabber features writing and other media by members of the Camp Family. This month’s Mailgabber comes from excited college applicant, and former camper and counselor, Dylan Fox (St. Louis, 2012-’17, 19). For one of Dylan’s college applications, in response to a prompt asking about something meaningful in only 250 words, Dylan turned his thoughts to Camp. You can read his piece, entitled “Slowing a Landside,” below. Interested in submitting for the Mailgabber? Send submissions to Louis.

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“Journal” hardly describes the loose paper pile originally bummed off Ari Krupnick. Its soft pages fold into each other perfectly, fringes from Ari’s spiral notebook still lining the left edge.

I unfurl it and begin reading the smudged black ink waiting for me: “DYLAN’S QUET JOURNAL: 7/27/17 – 8/9/17.”

The meticulously recorded narrative immediately transports me back to the Canadian Quetico. To my astonishment, sights, sounds, and smells of meals and campsites, waterfalls and rapids, still reside deep in my mind, like samples of an ecosystem collected by an ecologist for later analysis. Moments replay as if I’m experiencing them for the first time: a small, unassuming snapping turtle makes short work of a tough fish carcass, the remains of dinner; the sun, just peeking over the horizon, puts on a stunning display over Lake Argo’s luminescent ripples.

A wise woman once told me that preserving memories such as these is like stopping dirt in a landslide.

I feel again the camaraderie among our group, the permanent bond of brothers embarked on this journey together. I thank Tommy for the walleye he caught and masterfully prepared for us on the WhisperLite stove; I hone my canoe-frisbee skills with Oliver; I challenge Jonah to an epic match of rummy for a mere dab of our dwindling Arizona Heat mustard.

Flipping through my journal, I realize that I’ve slowed the landslide.

Dylan (4th from right) comes off the trail as a 9th grader

Mailgabber – A New Song “O Nebagamon”

In honor of Camp’s 90th reunion in 2018, Reed Maidenberg wrote and performed a new song about camp – “O Nebagamon”. He recently had the song professionally produced and made it available for everyone to listen to! You can find it here on Spotify and on other major music streaming services!

Reed Maidenberg performing at the 90th Reunion

Mailgabber — A 9th Grader Reflects

Mailgabber features writing by members of the Camp Family. This month, we present an excerpt from a school paper written by graduated 9th-grade camper Gabe Sloan-Garcia, as reflects on a poignant moment from his last summer as a camper. Interested in submitting for Mailgabber? Send submissions to Louis.

By Gabe Sloan-Garcia

Every summer since I was in 5th grade, I’ve gone to a summer camp in the North Woods called Nebagamon. It’s an all-boys camp in Wisconsin that specializes in making your summer the best parent-free summer possible. When I’m there, I forget Albuquerque and school and all the hardships that I face every year. I just live, every moment recognized and appreciated, in total and utter ecstasy. I love it there. It is my safe haven. It is the place where I can be myself.

Gabe (far right) returns from his Quetico Big Trip

Every grade, 2nd through 9th, gets its own arsenal of camping trips that they can go on. For 8th graders, a trip called Isle Royale is offered, a 14-day trek around an island in the middle of Lake Supperior. It was the best two weeks of my life, until I came back to camp as a 9th grader. As 9th graders, there is a kind of graduation ceremony in the form of a trip. It’s a 14-day canoeing trip in Canada called Quetico. It is the mark of becoming a man and I loved every second of it. My best memories, hardest challenges, and the proudest I’ve ever been of myself have all happened there. Every day is at least 20 miles of canoeing and portaging. It was hard for the first few days because our packs had over 10 days’ worth of food for seven fifteen-year-old boys stuffed inside of them. Each pack was at least 80 pounds not counting the weight of a canoe when we had to take a canoe and a pack (A.K.A double-packing) at the same time. We had some easier days and some harder days but on the 8th day, we came to our longest portage of the trip, a 1.5-mile beast filled with waist-deep mud, overgrown trees, and perilous descents and climbs. It was called “Eat em’ up” after a 150-foot-long mud pit that put you belly button deep in mud. Halfway through the mud pit, I felt like I was going to die. It was sweltering hot, my clothes were dirty beyond recognition, and my body was exhausted. The mud was taxing, physically and mentally. I would press forward for a couple of feet and then stop, breathing heavily and barely holding up the 80-pound canoe above my head. When it became almost unbearable, I heard laughing from behind me. My friend Nate had taken his pack off and was jumping into the mud from a vine on the bank of the mud river. He looked like he was having a blast as he swung and jumped into the mud. Soon enough, my friend Ben dropped his gear and joined him, their laughter drowning out the voice in the back of my head telling me to quit, to just fall so I put my pack down, rolling the canoe off my shoulders. I climbed slowly out of the mud and got in line to jump and, after Ben went, it was my turn. I grabbed the vine, stepped back, and sprinted, jumping without hesitation. I flew through the air, a few glorious seconds of freedom, before slamming into the mud. I immediately sank up to my thighs and slowly kept sinking. But I didn’t care. I was laughing too much, having completely forgotten my morose thoughts only moments before. The feeling of hitting the mud was jarring at first but then was like nothing I had ever felt before. I can only describe it as the feeling of pushing your hand into Oobleck but with your whole body. For about thirty minutes, we just played in the mud and then we pushed through the rest of the portage in under twenty minutes. We killed it just because of a little break with some fun and laughter.

Mailgabber: A Pre-Camp Perspective

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 Meyer positions a dock

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.

Mailgabber: 5 Tips for Planning Your Spring Break from an Assistant Trip Director

By Jamey Sharp

Jamey Sharp finishing the grand portage trip

Hello camp family! Jamey Sharp here from the ever hip and drizzly Pacific Northwest. I spent last summer hidden deep in the basement of the Big House as the Assistant Trip Director.  My days were filled with buying land-use permits, making van driver schedules, and heckling the Trip Director, Adam Fornear. Whether it was helping precisely count the 18 slices of turkey and provolone cheese that go into a Cruiser Lunch with the Quartermaster, checking van tire pressure with our fabulous trip drivers, or making sure that our trip staff understand the importance of looking for a campsite in the BWCA no later than 2 pm, I know that the little things are what make a great trip. That’s why I am to help you plan an awesome Spring Break trip. Here is a list of five stand-by rules for dreaming up that perfect trip. Go big, but not too big, as we have an incredible summer of trips lined up with the first vans rolling out starting June 21st!

  1. It’s never too early to start planning. I do not recommend planning or packing out a trip the night before you leave. That time should be spent taking care of personal matters such as calling family or putting together your trip journal. So, it is essential to start hitting the maps and trip reports as soon as possible. I used to coax myself into studying during college with the idea that after a few hours of reading, I could start looking at topographical maps of the next mountain to climb, or the interstate map for the next road trip (in case you are wondering, I did graduate on time). We love getting out there and for many of us at Nebagamon, our memories of previous trips and dreams of future trips are sometimes just as powerful as a dip of the paddle in the lake or a mile on the trail. The truth is that the trip begins as soon as we start to imagine it.
  2. Jamey Sharp showing off pita pizza

    Jamey loves a good Pita Pizza

    Keep the menu simple. For anyone reminiscing about a Nebagamon trip, it is often the food that sticks out in their minds. It goes both ways. You remember that hefty pot of Mac & Pep craftily paired with a side of fresh caught Walleye. Oh, and you definitely remember the north country’s finest “bag-hit” dessert that followed. But, you also remember those meals that didn’t go exactly as planned, like that time the noodles were accidentally dumped into the dirt while attempting to strain out the water. Or, you might be shiver at the thought of the mysterious (and supposedly healthy?) quinoa curry that was prepared by your trip leader after they finished their first year of college on the west coast. Either way, feeding time is important and memorable. You can go big and try that new recipe or technique, but, sometimes it is best to go with the dish that makes everybody comfortable. Whether it is Pesto Carb, Pita Pizzas, Chocolate Breakfast Dessert, or Jambalaya, you can’t go wrong with the classics.

  3. Break your routine. While springtime is often associated with new life, growth, and blooming flowers, it feels like it is more realistically spent stuck inside with an endless assignment and the daily checklist. For many of our campers and staff, the school routine is in full swing: alarm, snooze button, alarm, wake-up, go to school, stay awake at school, go to practice, go home, eat dinner, go to bed, repeat…and don’t forget the 50+ times that we are likely to check our phones throughout the day! Needless to say, this is a great time of year to try something new. This doesn’t necessarily mean finding the most exoticdestination in the Yo Yo Islands and dragging your family there with you.  It might mean waking up early in your hometown to catch the sunrise, taking your bike instead of sitting in the morning rush-hour, and most importantly, putting that phone away. Whether you are hundreds of miles out of phone service or sitting in your living room during spring break, try a day with the phone completely off.Campers sitting on a dock, isle royale
  4. It’s the people. This is one of the most important aspects of Camp Nebagamon and our style of tripping. We don’t only go out there to cover a ton of miles, walk on uncharted territory, or as a wayof escaping. We go out there, often times with complete strangers, to accomplish something together, to learn from each other, and more often than not, just to hangout and laugh together. So, on this spring break trip, make sure that you are valuing the people that you are with.  Try to learn one new thing about everyone on your trip. Teach everybody how to play cribbage or euchre. Tell a funny story about something that happened last summer on your Mississippi River trip or try to figure out something that has been on your mind throughout the school year. My biggest life questions and challenges have been figured out through casual conversations with a buddy on the trail (it’s like counseling without the co-pay).
  5. Don’t get (too) lost. I want to be clear that Camp Nebagamon will not be liable for anybody’s search and rescue bill. Always bring the appropriate gear, do your research about where you are going, and have an escape plan. However once the essentials are covered, there is something to be said about not planning out every tiny detail and being able to go with the flow, also known as the Fornear Method. Which moments do we really remember and recount at the dinner table 10 years later? It definitely isn’t the trip when everything went according to plan, the mosquitos decided to stay home, we were in our sleeping bags by 7:30 pm, and nobody had to wake up in the middle of the night to use the pit toilet. The beautiful, interesting, full, and laugh-worthy stories always involve changes of plans, flexibility, and perhaps a little bit of adversity. While we now have the ability to read thousands of trip reports, see 5-star ratings of every single pit toilet in the BWCA, and even virtually walk into the coffee shop that we are thinking about visiting on a screen at our fingertips, a trip that is over planned loses the opportunities that present themselves along the way. That trip leader that is just so fixated on returning to that awesome waterfall that they visited 10 years ago, or finding the amazing campsite that they found online, might be blinded to the new, even better opportunity that lays right in front of their eyes. They will miss the even better waterfall or more memorable campsite that lies hidden just a few feet off of the trail just because it was not part of the original plan. So, keep your options open. Go with the flow. Don’t plan exactly where you are going to camp every night and turn around if you’re not liking what you are seeing. In other words, try to end up somewhere that you never could have imagined.
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