You know how the boy scouts get to go to scout camp every summer? Well our church is awesome and makes sure the girls get to go to camp too. Depending on where you live, who is in-charge, etc., the camps vary some. My camp in CA (Camp Ritchie) was THE GREATEST. We were in the Sierra Nevada's on a beautiful lake, went rappelling, canoeing, water skiing, on a 3-day hike up Half Dome, did crafts and learned the camping essentials. We slept in cabins (no a/c or electricity, just screens and wood bunks) and had the greatest "cook-ies" that made us the most delicious food. Man I miss camp. I went there 6 years as a girl and 4 years as a leader at waterfront - best job at there!
Camp here (Camp Misty Mount) was in the foothills of the Appalachians in WV. It was alot different then the camp I am used to, but was really good. We were grouped by wards, not years. I ended going up to help with the "Old King Franc" group (Franc pronounced like "honk" - because that's obviously funnier). It was all the young women from the Old Town, Franconia and Kingstown wards. Apparently zero adults from those three wards could get time off to go to camp so it was myself and two girls from other singles wards as their leaders. (pict #1) So that was fun. The groups had to make all their own meals. We helped the girls start the campfires, and they learned how to cook breakfast and dinner in the fire and on propane stoves. (pict #11, #12, #13, #14) We slept in cabins with electricity, no a/c or plugs, just lights. I would have given a million dollars for a/c up there. It was SO humid.
Humidity was the worst when hiking. The first, second and third year girls all go on hikes; starting with a short hike and by year progressively getting longer. Ashley went on the third year hike which was supposed to be a 5 mile hike, but one wrong turn ended up making it 8 miles. Oops. Before that day I judged them for having such wussy hikes, my fourth year hike was 3 days of backpacking 20+ miles to make it up to the peak of Round Top. But after that day I learned how much more taxing it was to hike in the humidity. I would have committed hari kari if I had to backpack 3 days in that. They asked me to go with the fourth years on their rock climbing "hike". Right up my alley; I was excited. I thought we would just like walk a little path to the rock faces. We did walk a little path, A LITTLE VERTICAL PATH. It was no more than 1.5 miles, probably only 1 mile, but it was at a severe angle for 2/3 of it. Carrying the climbing gear up the steep grade in the humidity, I sweated more on that little hike in then I did doing workouts in full turnout gear at the station or even on that fire. It was crazy.
We got to the rock, scouted out routes, watched and learned as the priesthood set up the rappels and climbs. (pict #8) The girls were awesome on the rock. They all overcame their fears and everyone rappelled and climbed. (pict #5 & #7) We took a break for lunch and to read scriptures for half an hour. It was amazing to be in the woods with 20 teenage girls and have complete silence as each of them sat reading and enjoying the peace and beauty of Gods creation. I may have broken the silence once or twice to take a picture from the spot I had scouted out to read at (pict #6). It was so nice. After that the priesthood set up new routes and we did some taller climbing and rappelling. The girls were worn out by the end, but it was a great day.
The next day we did archery in the morning. The priesthood set up a range and taught the girls how to shoot a bow and arrow. Everyone seemed to enjoy it, but no one took to it more naturally than Ashley. She was like a female version of Robin Hood. (pict #2) That picture was taken right before she got a bulls-eye. BTW: I don't know if I mentioned it earlier but Ashley went up as an assistant stake camp director. (pict #10) She was like the number 2 woman in-charge. She rocked! The girls loved her.
Then we all went to the lake just down the road. It was a muddy little lake. They rented canoes and paddle boats for the morning and swam. There was also a trail to hike to a waterfall, which I opted to join the girls on. By "waterfall" they meant "stream that runs down the rock face of a tall hill in a forest and happens to catch some air after going over boulders in a couple of spots and pools in a few rock divots". It was little but the girls enjoyed themselves. Have I said yet what a great group of girls we had at camp?
They were such awesome girls. It was such a diverse group, unlike any that I've ever seen at girls camp. Three girls drove up with me and two of them were excited because they had never been camping. "Ever?" I asked in disbelief. She said that they never had enough money to go camping. Which blew my mind. Growing up for us, correct me if I'm wrong Mom, camping was the affordable vacation. One of our girls had just moved here from Vietnam. She lived there her whole life with her mom, until three months ago when her mom married a LDS man and they came to VA. She is not a member, so her step sister flew out here from Utah to go to camp with her so she would know someone. They were so good together. I could go on about individual girls, but I think this is going to be a long enough post as is.
It was just so cool to see this group, that in an other setting would most likely not associate with one another, come together as friends. They all shared the same Chirst-like love that looks beyond outside appearances and social backgrounds and united them by core values, beliefs and faith. They all knew, or were somewhere in the process of coming to know, that they are all sisters and daughters of God. That they are all equal in God's eyes and that they all have an individual plan from a loving Father in Heaven. That He loves them and is looking out for each of them and will always be there for them when they just ask.
That is truly why I love girls camp. Sure the weather and the hikes and the activities are all that we talk about. They do make up part of your girls camp experience. But the most important experience any of the girls have at camp is the opportunity to gain and/or grow her own testimony of the gospel and her relationship with Heavenly Father. I am so grateful to have gone to camp as a girl and to have had that opportunity. I know that one week of the summer built up my testimony as a teenager and helped me make it through that next school year until I could get back to camp and do it again. Same thing as an adult, that's why I didn't mind taking off a week of work and flying back to CA every summer. I was sad when I had to stop. But hopefully I'll be able to go the full week next year and help out at this camp a little more. Okay, I'm done. If you made it to this point in the blog, I am impressed.
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