In the ongoing course of growing up, most kids look forward to the day when they will get to sleep in a tent, whether in the backyard with a buddy, at the lake with their family, or during their first thrilling outdoorsy adventure at summer camp.
So many of us, boys or girls, will never forget those warm or wet noisy nights sleeping under the stars for one whole week at a Cub, Scout, Brownie, Guide, church, or any type of group camp.
It was an exciting session without parents, brothers, sisters, and chores, and you hardly ever have a chance to get homesick, because we were always too busy having fun. I vividly recall my first campout with the Ponoka Wolf Cub Pack at Camp Woods at Sylvan Lake, which still remains active to this day.
When I received some photos of those great 1950s camps, I enlisted the services of congenial Ponoka old-timer Dennis Fredrickson, and together we came up with some names and some special memories for this Reflections feature.
• At the Gull Lake camp in the 1950s, the water levels were much higher then, coming up to where the tree line is now, and at that time there were only a few private cabins and absolutely no subdivisions. In those days we somehow survived with four to a tent, there were few sleeping bags, but we stayed warm and cosy in a bunch of blankets held together with safety pins, and looking something like a ‘mummy bag.’ When those fancy sleeping bags did come out you could not get them to close to the campfire, or they would soon become ashes, with a slightly singed lad dashing into the lake to cool off.
• A few years later the Central Scouting Association built a very fancy and more organized camp at Sylvan Lake, and Camp Woods has attracted hundreds of groups for countless decades. During the Gull Lake camps, all of our meals were cooked over the campfire, including steaming hot porridge, pancakes, hot chocolate, and heaping mounds of meat, potatoes, veggies and lots of beans. At the Sylvan camp, we slept in lean-tos, and if it rained or stormed we simply pulled the blankets over our heads and snuggled together. There were some nice ladies in a big cookhouse to prepared our meals, and we even had canoes and a diving board for supervised daily fun in the cool water.
• Our days were busy with swimming, fishing, carving, games, boat rides, learning all about nature, practising knots, tracking squirrels and getting chased by bees and bugs. It was always a real treat to sit around the roaring campfire after supper, singing songs, telling scary stories, and getting real tired, all before 10 p.m. lights out! After this any noise, especially fluffs were not allowed, and if you had to go to the bathroom we bravely snuck over to the outhouse with a flashlight.
• It was here among nature’s finest we supposedly learned how to cook and do dishes together as a team, whether we liked it or not. You had to get up when you were told, or you would miss breakfast, and one of the cardinal rules was to wash up and brush your teeth, and of course change your underwear, of which dear old mom had packed seven sets. We also had lots of respect for our camp leaders and volunteers, who were strict, but always there for us, with support, Band-Aids, tummy ache medicine and good advice.
• Our parents were allowed to visit camp only on the final weekend when we showed off the skits we had learned, and really strutted when we received the stars and badges that we had earned for first aid, safety, sports, cooking, and the weird woggles we had carved. In the same area as our camp there were likely other groups enjoying a week or learning about nature, including girls, but they were always out of bounds, except for a few amorous pack members who tried to sneak over for a peek after supper.
• Our daily camp rules included keeping the area clean, gathering firewood and cutting wiener sticks, and learning how to light a fire without matches. In those days long before cellphones, there was only one phone and radio at camp, which were used for emergencies, listening for the weather, or for calls from those parents who might be missing us.
• Back in town, on Jan. 17, 1953 Ponoka’s first spacious Scout Hall was opened in Central playground, and one of our favourite occasions, next to camp, was our annual Father and Son Banquet and those zany community scavenger hunts. Today our fine Scout/Guide Hall is located at 3924-46A Street close in Riverside, and plays host to many year-round events for members and their families.
Throughout the world Scout and Guide organizations are proudly celebrating more than 100 exciting years of giving thousands of boys and girls of all ages the opportunity to enjoy fun, fellowship, and a keen appreciation and respect for our precious environment. Please take it from so many of us who have enjoyed these programs over the years, it will always be one of the most rewarding experiences and adventures of your children. Watch for fall registrations at the Ponoka Complex for Scouts, Guides, and many other great community events.
Please send your suggestions for future Reflections topics to editorial@ponokanews.com or call 403-783-3311.