Camp Rotary (Clare, Michigan)
July 2004

July means only one thing for Boy Scout Troop 1085 and Matthew: Summer Camp at Camp Rotary, a BSA camp located between Clare and Harrison. It was a fun week spent sleeping in army-style tents (no zippers!?!), eating camp food, enjoying wholesome fun, and avoiding bugs,

Matt (and three others) completed the PATH program (which I'm told stands for "Probably a Turtle House"), which included a five mile hike, another two mile hike with full packs, and a lots of knot tying. It was hard work, but the boys learned a few things and complained very little. The boys also got to do many fun things, too, like shoot rifles, play team-building games, and go boating.

All the boys in our troop went fishing, sometimes from the shore and sometimes from rowboats. Matt caught a fine bluegill, I caught a handful of bass and sunfish, and Scout Josh caught a campout record 17 1/2 inch bass. The boys also caught countless bugs and a nice garter snake (boys, of course, will be boys).

After camp, Matt and I headed up to Higgins Lake to visit with my good friend Julie MacArthur (in from San Francisco) and her family (a fine bunch). Then we headed home, making a stop in Mt. Pleasant and Central Michigan University, where Matt got to see the place where his parents met, Barnes Hall (I married the girl next door).

Camp Rotary
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