2 Girls’ Thoughts About Summer Camp

My daughters love to go to summer camp. Sadly, my older daughter has aged out, which means she is too old to go back after attending for seven years. Thankfully, my younger daughter can still attend, and she just finished her seventh year. She can still go two more summers.

Recently, I was able to get my two girls’ thoughts on summer camp. 

Camp Skyline Ranch

Our camp of choice is Camp Skyline Ranch in Mentone, Alabama, which is a two-week camp. The weather is great on Lookout Mountain, and Mentone is a hub for camps. Also, this is where Alpine Camp for Boys is, Camp DeSoto (girls), Camp Laney (boys) and several others.

Once we got back from camp this year, I asked each of my girls what some of their main reasons for loving camp were. I asked them individually, and they couldn’t hear each other’s answers. Also, I asked them to think of it in terms of as if they were speaking to a group of moms with young girls who had expressed an interest in attending camp.

The results were interesting. Here are my girls’ thoughts on summer camp and their favorite things about attending camp. 

1. Making friends from out-of-town

Making friends from out-of-town is an obvious one. But, I found it interesting that they do find value in this. In fact, they both named this one first.

Another thing one of them also said it is fun to learn the trends of other towns. One of them told me that Jackson girls were the only people at camp that parted their hair in the middle. I thought that was funny. 

Also, they said that only seeing these friends once a year makes them cherish the two weeks they have with them. This year for the first time, however, one of my older daughter’s camp friends came and stayed with us for a weekend. They do keep in touch with their camp friends throughout the year through social media and their phones.

2. No phones

I was shocked that not being able to have their phones for two weeks was both of their second reasons for liking camp. Of course, I would have thought this was a reason for them NOT to like camp. But I was wrong. One of them said by not having your phone, you can get away from social media pressures. The other one said not having your phone forces you to talk to people. (lol) Their answers sounded like just what I wanted to hear, but they were being truthful.

3. Fun activities

Next, both of them talked about the activities as their third reason for loving camp. One said you don’t get to do these activities at home every day. The other one said just that they are fun. Some of the activities are tower (climb a tower), circus (they have a device that trapeze artists use), cooking, tennis, horseback, bible study, archery, cheer, dance, gymnastics, fitness, art, flags, theater, mountain biking, fun swim, hiking, canoe, riflery.

Each night there is a camp-wide activity, and they are the same from year to year. Also, there are clubs that are arranged by color, and you are in the same club every year. They have competitions with the clubs. There is a talent show as well.

4. No judgment

They both said that there is no judgment while you are at camp. One of them worded it like, “you don’t worry about what people think of you; you can be yourself.”

5. Great counselors

Another one of their favorite things was getting to know older girls. One of them said they always have really good counselors. The other one said she liked the older girls’ influence on the younger girls. I like that they value their relationships with the older girls, and I hope that they will be a mentor for the younger girls, now that they are older. 

6. A break from your hometown

Another reason one of them loves camp is because you get a break from being in your hometown and get to do something different.

7. A break from your parents

The last one was funny to me. One of them said you get a break from your parents telling you what to do. Bless it.

In summary

It was fun to get my two girls’ thoughts on summer camp. For me, some of our best memories are from camp drop-offs and pick-ups over the years. We have been doing this for nine consecutive years, including my son’s years. Since their camp is between five to six hours away, we spend the night prior to drop-off and pick-up. 

Some years, we have camped in our Airstream prior to camp drop-off and rented a cabin the night before pick-up. Other years, we have spent the night in Birmingham. 

I love picking them up from camp. Obviously, I love seeing them after their being gone for two weeks, but I can also tell they are different when I pick them up. Unfortunately, yes they quickly get back into their normal life of technology and life pressures.

I have to hope that over the course of their lives, the total of 12-18 weeks of their lives away from technology and their parents out in God’s creation will be worth the investment one day. Thankfully, no one can ever take the memories away from them.

My brief camp experience

I, on the other hand, am jealous that my only memory from my one week of summer camp was being scared of a carpenter ant. During my only camp experience, I had to camp out on the ground in a sleeping bag one night. I was petrified, and my brain went all kinds of places in fear. A carpenter ant crawled across my sleeping bag near my face, and I was done with camp forever. 

I’m thankful that there are no carpenter ants at Camp Skyline. 

There are other camps across the Southeast that many from our area attend. I wrote about those camps in an article called Summer Camps in the Southeast.  Soon, I will be writing about other campers’ specific experiences at their respective camps.

What aspects of camp did I leave out? Which ones have your kids attended? Please comment below. 

Read Laurie’s story about how a recent life experience led to the birth of this blog, White Cotton.