I spent the first two weeks of August at Camp Chief Hector for the eighth summer in a row and am intending to return again next summer. Camp has been an important part of my life since I was eight years old and it is by far the most exciting part of my summer, if not year! The camp that I go to is an excellent facility and has tons of exciting activities but I tend to think that what really makes my camp experience is the people and the atmosphere of camp in general!

I suggest that every kid should get the opportunity to attend summer camp! Whether it be a day camp, an overnight camp or outdoor school, it is heaps of fun! Some nice tips for parents that are sending their kids off for a few days would be to pack rain gear; when I say rain gear I mean the whole shebang: rain coat, rain pants, rain boots. Nothing spoils an awesome day more than being soaking wet because you weren’t prepared for the weather! When I was around 12 I hated wearing my rain gear because I thought I looked like a goofball but honestly I am in love with my gear now!

Every year I spend several days meeting new friends, challenging myself and going on out trips. For the past four years I have chosen to go on canoe trips which I enjoy a lot; this year I got to canoe down the North Saskatchewan river for 5 days. We began our journey at Nordegg and finished at Rocky Mountain House, which added up to a total of 160 km. We spent the days honing our canoeing skills and venturing through rapids like devil’s elbow! My favourite part of camp is the out trips because they bring everyone so close together and there are a lot of opportunities to be independent like setting up and taking down camp.

Campfire Craft on DLTK’s Crafts for Kids