Week two at Camp Mah-Kee-Nac was just as splendid as the week before, full of excitement, travel, competition and celebration.
The week began with our first Polar Bear Plunge. Those brave enough to volunteer had to wake up early and jump into the brisk lake. Lots of campers and staffers participated, and we had an even bigger group later in the week for the second plunge! Evening activity that night was one of our most exciting early-camp events, as we held our annual Green & White Sorting! Green & White is our yearly version of ‘color war’ and once you’re on a team, you’re on that team for life. All the new campers and staff members approached the ‘sorting hat’, then drew their team color, and were then welcomed to their new team with cheers, lifting, and lots of enthusiastic yelling. To kick off the G&W spirit, the Senecas took part in a watermelon challenge where they had to pop watermelons open using rubber bands while racing. The green team won.
Our athletes competed in many tournaments this week and did amazingly well. Various tennis, baseball, soccer, chess and basketball teams all brought home top three wins. And our B4 (going into fourth grade) kickballers had so many participants, we were able to field two full teams!
We kicked off the Stockbridge Series, a collection of events that get tallied at the end of first session to declare one big winner! The first event was the Stockbridge Marathon – a 2.6-mile course that weaves through the woods. Most campers and staff participated in the marathon. Many ran, some walked, and some cheered their friends on, but they all finished big! Later in the week, we held the Stockbridge Series Disc Golf Tournament, which is down to qualifying rounds. We still have Tramp Ball and Watermelon to go in the series.
This week also entailed the sendoff of our two oldest bunks – the Senecas embarked on a one-week journey to Costa Rica while the Algonquins headed out for a quick trip to Boston. The Costa Rica trip is a big highlight for our eldest campers; they look forward to it all year. During this time, they do everything from white-water rafting to ziplining to surfing. Most importantly, they spend a day volunteering at a camp for local, underserved children.
We had a BIG Fourth of July celebration that took place from morning to night. The holiday began with our annual Tough Mudder, which is a grueling and dirty obstacle course that always leaves the kids exhausted, exhilarated and extremely proud. Bunk by bunk, the campers battled through the course together – from moving cinder blocks to pushing a real car to carrying logs, jumping through small tires, Army crawling under a net, a wheelbarrow push and more. The bunks cannot proceed to the next task until everyone has finished the previous challenge, which encourages intense teamwork and group support.
After the Tough Mudder, we had our annual 4th of July Carnival with games, bouncy houses, a dunk tank, food booths, and more. At the end of the carnival, everyone gathered in the amphitheater, and bunks were able to bid on prizes using their raffle tickets from the day. Some of the prizes included “Fabi cleans your bunk”, “Trampball with Jake”, “Pontoon Party” and “Extra Tubing”. After all was said and done, the kids had the best day ever, and we closed the evening with a delicious cookout and yummy S’mores!
We ended the week with our huddle. During this time, everyone gathers by the campfire and reflects on their week at camp. Jamie talks to the campers about themes like respect, honor, kindness and more. This week’s theme was friendship, and after the dedicated teamwork the boys displayed during the grueling Tough Mudder, the kids could easily relate. We also bid a fond farewell to our Mini Maks. Mini Mak is a two-week introduction to sleepaway camp for kids who have never been to MKN. It’s a great way for younger campers (and first-time parents) to get familiar with the sleepover camp experience in a short amount of time and for the kids to have an unforgettable week!
That’s it for week two. Don’t forget, family & friends can get MKN news every day on MKN Today. Be sure to create an account and read about all about the daily happenings at camp.