Camp Seabeck

Seattle Summer Begins - Jun. 24

Let me tell you a little about the family vacation we have taken every year since I was about four.  Now I know family camp doesn't have quite the same appeal as say...Hawaii or...Italy.  But the fact that I still want to go back even though fewer of my friends are there year after year says something.  For me, summer started every year by getting on a boat and taking a trip across the Sound.

Seabeck Rooster Plus Some - Jun. 25

Seabeck is tiny little town on Hood Canal.  Where there was once a mill town there is now a conference center.  Across the highway is a general store, coffee shop, pizza place, souvenir shop, and the water.  

Light One Candle - Jun. 26

Our camp occupies the conference center for five days at the end of June every year.  The weather isn't always perfect, but it usually is.  An average day at camp will start at 6:30 or 7am with Polar Bearing, Yoga, or some other early morning activity of your choice.  Breakfast at 8 might not get everyone out of bed, but then the kids go off to their "classes" and parents get some free time to listen to a guest speaker, catch up on sports ladders, or dive into a summer read.

Bridge to Yesterday - Jun. 27

We gather back in the dining hall for lunch at noon.  Meals are family style by the way, and the conference center is fully staffed with servers so there's no need for guests to cook or even bus tables.  After meals, the camp is led is song by some wonderful and shameless musicians.

National Bird - Jun. 27

There are various activities and crafts offered in the afternoons; everything from volleyball tournaments, swimming in the lagoon, and hiking through the woods to classes for guitar, cribbage, and knitting. 

Seabeck Sky - Jun. 27

Dinner at 6 and then some programmed event followed by dessert, such as group dancing lessons followed by root beer floats.  The last night we are served grilled salmon on the beach and then gather in the Meeting House for talent night.  After everyone has wowed the crowd and the sky begins to grow dark, the high school students lead the younger kids who dare to leave their parents behind on a Scary Walk through the woods.  

Mock-Up - Jun. 28

A few of the activities that I haven't yet mentioned: tennis, fishing, kid's parade, porch rocking, camp fire, game nights, the list goes on and on.  A typical day for me ends after midnight, but the great thing about camp is that you can do as much or as little as you want.  As a kid, I would often get to camp and then not see my parents until it was time to leave (well not quite, but you get the idea).  I was busy riding my bike from one end of camp to the other, looking for my next cribbage opponent or out in a row boat.  There was always someone nearby to keep an out, so my parents never had to worry.  Family takes on a new meaning at camp and there's more than enough love to go around.  

http://www.campseabeck.org