Greetings from Hilltop. Junior Session 2022 has begun, and we’re off to a great start. As many of you know, our travel plans were challenged today by a flat tire on the bus from Seattle, but all the campers are here, and all is well.
Campers being dropped off by their families were here on schedule. Those dropped off at Skyline walked on the ferry with four of our staff, and we picked them up at that Orcas ferry landing in our van. They arrived by dinner at about 5:45. Campers who were on the bus, Woodland Park and Seatac campers, were shuttled by our van from the broken down bus to Skyline Marina in three trips, and got on the private water taxi, arriving at camp at about 7:45. Because they were arriving so late, we had pizza en route rather than feeding them at camp (minding all dietary restrictions).
So, it was a bit of a crazy day, but all the campers are here safely, and camp has begun. In a huge stroke of luck, no campers tested positive for COVID at any arrival site, which is fantastic news.
Junior Session is meant to be a taste of the Four Winds experience for younger children. We’ll spend the week playing, exploring, trying our activities, and making new friends. For the campers, it’s a grand adventure in a new place, taking those first steps away from the normal supports of home in a wonderful environment. For our staff, it’s a fun change of pace to work with younger campers, who are a bit less concerned with coolness and more willing just to be free and play at camp. Got half an hour to kill? An imaginary adventure, trying to get from a cabin to the Lodge being seen by no one, is just the ticket. That’s the kind of fun we’re trying to have a Junior Session, and these campers will eat it up.
Tonight, especially given the late arrivals, we’re focusing on simply getting moved in and making sure the campers are comfortable. Tomorrow, we’ll have a miniature version of our big session Rotation Day in the morning, visiting the nurse, taking the swim test, learning some songs, and taking cabin photos. In the afternoon, we’ll jump right into activities. Given that we only have a week together, it’s best to jump into the routine quickly.
You can follow along with the action in a couple of ways. We’ll post short updates every day of Junior Session on Twitter. You don’t have to join Twitter if you don’t want to. You can just follow the link. I’ll post here on Thursday and Sunday as the campers are headed home. Mail can be a bit tough given Junior Session’s length, but we will have the campers write a postcard at breakfast tomorrow that will go in tomorrow’s mail, so you should get that by the end of the week. Finally, if you’d like a real-time update on your camper, feel free to call our office. The staff will check in on your camper and get back to you.
We’re looking forward to a wonderful week with these youngsters, laughing, playing, and having a ball. Thank you for sharing them with us.