When it Rains, It Pours!

After all those days of crystal clear weather, today reminded us that we indeed live on the edge of a temperate rain forest. The bell rang true through the early downpour and the lure of hot breakfast was strong as camp gathered for eggs, sausage, coffee cake, and some of the best grits I remember recently.

Down to the gym they went for morning assembly and even rain on a metal roof couldn’t compete with the singing they produce. Taylor Swift and Cripple Creek in particular could be heard in every corner of camp.

The rain had kindly let up a good bit just as activities commenced. Without lightning, one of the things camp teaches well is not only that life goes on rain or shine, but you can even have more fun in the rain! While clearly there are limits to this philosophy, the boys charged out of the gym and were soon quite willingly engaged in the morning activities.

This morning saw paddlers working on passing the gates course in the light sprinkle while sailors and fishermen also ignored the weather and did their thing. Tennis shifted to the gym for work on a dry surface and were practicing control in a game using the end walls of the gym, with a small net in the middle for tiny matches.

Pottery was unfazed by the weather and were working on choosing colors and glazing their pieces they intend of firing. Crafts was equally unaffected as campers worked on beads, finishing tie-dyes, and starting on paracord bracelets. Shooting sports saw camper working hard through the remaining targets between them and their next level before the end of the session. We have campers advancing in both archery and riflery quickly, with some possible shots at the golden arrow/bullet by the end of the week.

Climbing worked the tower as much as possible while also enjoying their bouldering cave time in the dry.

Mountain biking and the barn were both engaging in alternative lessons with guys learning how to fix a flat tire, pick a hoof, brush horses down, or lubing their bike chains. Hikers were hiking, not allowing rain alone to hold them in place.

Hikers and climbers both took trips out today. Hikers summited Sam Knob and had some spectacular views from above the Parkway. On their way to Black Balsam some inclement weather began rolling in and they wisely decided on a quick dash up Devil’s Courthouse before hopping in the van to find a covered lunch spot. They made it back to camp mid-afternoon looking excited and soaked.

Our climbers headed to the South Side of Looking Glass, though with that same Pisgah weather looming. Luckily the guys on the trip recognized the necessity of efficiency and sped the trip along at the kind of pace that allowed them to get some real climbing in before getting weathered out. Then they shifted further down into Pisgah and tried some bouldering problems before the rain became determined enough to chase them out of the forest entirely. Soaking wet and feeling good concurrently, they hunkered down in a dry spot in town that had big tables and board games where they wiled away a couple of hours having fun and feeling pretty accomplished.

Now come rest hour, the weather decided to make itself impossible to ignore and for most of the afternoon and evening heavy rain and thunderstorms rolled over camp. This meant our guys, tired after two and a half weeks of camp, settled into a relaxed time of naps and reading followed by games in the cabin and larger games in the gym and dining hall both. It was a remarkably relaxed time and well received by all involved.

It seemed that the day was not quite done testing our campers’ mettle. Camp’s power went out in the late afternoon which was the cause of no small excitement, and our kitchen staff handled the business. Dinner was prepped and ready on time and campers were already seated and eating lasagna, corn, peas, garlic bread, salad bar, and chocolate cake. Suddenly power came back on earlier than expected to a great huge cheer from all of camp. The torrential rain happening outside suddenly felt even more doable with electricity restored. The guys swung into evening activities with a gusto, crushed some evening snack, and headed back to cabins ready for a well-deserved warm shower and dry bed.

You will notice that today’s amount of pictures are quite light compared to any other day of the session. The combination of power outage and the large block of time engaged in lightning-appropriate activities will make for a much quicker perusal of the nightly pictures posted. There are a few nice images of our campfire gathering from Sunday that made their way into today as well. Please enjoy those, and know we will be back at it tomorrow with more shots from around camp!

May you all enjoy a warm, dry evening at home.

Woody Noland

Today’s Pictures