Campers woke up to one of the best days of the summer today. FOURTH OF JULY! Proud to be an American, and the National Anthem could be heard throughout the cabins at 7 a.m. sharp. Everyone came hustling down to breakfast in red, white, and blue clothes for a big meal of french toast, sausage, and biscuits. After breakfast, the campers headed outside for an American-themed morning yell. Following the morning yell, campers walked across the bridge to the chapel for great songs and a true story. Today, our friendly neighborhood camp director John told the kids about the time he once saw an active volcano erupt in Nicaragua and how awe-inspiring the sheer power of that volcano was to them at the time. He used this story to create an analogy that explained God’s omnipotence to the campers. He finished by reading from Isaiah 26:2 and Psalm 91 before praying and sending the kids to “GO CLEAN THOSE CABINS.” 

We had two trips depart today, one being one of our first-ever sunrise hikes to Babel Tower in Linville Gorge. Aubrey S, Gary M, James A, Oliver R, Giancarlo Z, Carson K, Emerson F, Mathew H, Ben P, Simeon S, Will R, Duncan N, and Elias W left before anyone else had awoken and hiked a total of 5 miles to a swimming hole down in the gorge. There is an enjoyable rock jump at the swimming hole that all the boys bravely jumped off. Our other trip of the day was a climbing trip to Beacon Heights. Jack V, Owen T, Jack H, Cole B, Archer B, and Charlie C got to do some excellent bouldering way up at Beacon Heights, just a short hike off the blue ridge parkway. Beacon has some great rocks to climb and even better views of the Appalachian Mountains, making it an ideal spot for a perfect climbing trip. 

Back at camp, campers were working hard in their activities and having tons of fun. Over on the ranges, Jackson H shot his first bullseye in archery! In Riflery, Sam G got his bronze in his first-ever class. Up the road at the pickleball courts, Charlie V defended his title and won their in-class dink competition. We ate classic American chicken tenders, fries, and broccoli cheddar soup at lunch. Since today is special, we also had red, white, and blue Icee pops as dessert. After we ate, John announced cabin clean-up scores, with Little Piney coming out on top with a 9.75 out of 10! The Sultan of fun, Henry B, then announced who won last night’s mission impossible game, saying “Can I get a drum roll… THE BLACK BEARS”. 

We had another fun afternoon of activities before continuing the American theme at dinner with pulled pork, mac’n’cheese, and corn casserole. After dinner, the two tribes elected their chief and elder for these two weeks. Wells F was elected chief for the Golden Eagles, and Charlie V was elected elder. Evan B was elected chief for the Black Bears, and Jack W was elected elder. It will be awesome to watch these boys lead their tribes in healthy competition to try and obtain the very sought-after banner! The boys then headed up to play a favorite camp game El Presidente and then to finish celebrating the 4th with some fireworks. That concludes another fantastic day here at Camp Timberlake.

Signing Off,

David Reeder

Proud Black Bear

Trip Photographer

Kayaking Staff Protege

Tribal Basketball Coach

Stompers Knob Counselor

As seen in “Chad and Also Chad”