Campography News

erev changeover (the night before changeover)

2010-07-28T14:36:50+01:00

Tonight camp will be celebrating our last night together with some of our campers, and preparing for our new campers to arrive tomorrow. Just a reminder: Our first session campers will arrive in Toronto at approximately 11:45 am at Seneca College, (Finch and Don Mills) Our second session campers will depart from Toronto at 1:30 pm at Seneca College, (Finch and Don Mills) To those leaving; have a great rest of your summer. We had a great month together; filled with laughs, good times, and sunshine. To those staying; let's keep the great times going. To those joining us; we have begun a great summer that will surely continue and be enriched by all of the new faces up here tomorrow. We love T-Lane!!!

Posted at Camp Timberlane

We made it through the rain.

2010-07-21T17:46:58+01:00

We have had so many sun filled days that the rain this afternoon was welcomed. During the C de B lunch today, the skies opened up and treated us to rain and hail. All campers and staff were safely in their cabins or the dining hall during the storm, and camp is now glowing and fresh. As quickly as the rain came, it also went. The sky is blue, the sun is up, and now the activities are back underway, in full force. See you all Saturday.

Posted at Camp Timberlane

Where has the time gone?

2010-07-20T15:39:50+01:00

With 20 days in and just a month left; where has the summer gone? This summer has seemed to fly by. We have all been enjoying glorious weather, great programming, and a spirit that is palpable. 2-day was a great program that included all of campers and staff in a bid to win back the camp, when Corey temporarily "lost" it for 48 hours. Intercamp competitions have been very successful in spirit and victories for T-Lane. This afternoon is the annual "swim across the lake" and we expect over 20 swimmers to cross Lake of Two Islands. Check back often as our Twitter account is back up and running and will be updated on a very regular basis. And, of course, see you on Saturday!!!

Posted at Camp Timberlane

Camp is looking great!!! (Breakfast Rocked)

2010-06-25T15:32:52+01:00

In the last 24 hours, the camp population has grown exponentially. Our Directors were here yesterday to welcome our Unit Heads and Head Specialists. After a great Steak BBQ dinner, it was right down to work. Our Unit Heads have been in sessions and workshops in preparation for the arrivals of our staff and campers, while the Head Specialists have been working day and night getting our activities ready. Camp is looking Great!!! The boats are in the water, the beds and mattresses are in the cabins, and the dining hall looks and smells beautiful. Everyone up here is excited and ready for the summer of 2010 to officially begin. See you all soon. One last note: For today's breakfast, the kitchen tried out a new recipe...Breakfast Burritos; and they were... Fab...BJay Nathan Muey Bueno...Benji "Cubby" Gordon Awesome...Brit Lowes

Posted at Camp Timberlane

Wednesday Morning Sunshine!!!

2010-06-23T13:47:05+01:00

Camp is looking amazing!!!

The cabins are ready, the Timberdome has been mowed, the lake is gorgeous, and even more awaits you upon your arrival.

Everybody up here has been working very hard to make sure Timberlane is as ready and beautiful as you remember it from last summer.

Chase, Sky, and Corey (and so many others) are eagerly awaiting your arrival.

Posted at Camp Timberlane

Are you ready?

2010-06-16T15:21:22+01:00

Here at the city office, we are putting on the finishing touches to what will be Timberlane's best year ever!!! Now is the time that campers and staff should be getting themselves ready too. Here is a simplified checklist to help you out. 1. Send in Medical Form. 2. Make sure you have baggage tags; White for boys and Pink for girls. 3. Get a great book for the bus or (the very few expected) rainy days. 4. Be sure you have addressed, stamped envelopes to write your family and friends. 5. Check to make sure your clothing is labeled. 6. Pack extra sunscreen!!! It's going to be hot and sunny this year. 7. Pack an extra hat. 8. Make sure you bring a refillable water bottle. 9. Get ready for the summer of your life!!! 10. Check you bus # and departure information. We are so excited for this summer to start and can't wait to see each and every one of you in a few short days/weeks.

Posted at Camp Timberlane

free tuck and sleep in...

2010-05-27T20:20:00+01:00

Camp Timberlane is looking to fill some positions at camp for the Summer of 2010. Do you have friends that say each year, "I wish I went to camp" or "a camp job sounds perfect" or the ever popular, "I'd love to go back...for just one more summer." Well here is your chance to introduce us to great people, and here is their chance to have a great job, positively impact the lives of children, and above all have an amazing summer at T-Lane! We are looking for a ski instructor, a swim instructor, and a media arts team member. Please call or email us at the office. 416-923-7200 stuart@camptimberlane.ca

Posted at Camp Timberlane

It's the final countdown...

2010-05-20T16:00:15+01:00

We are within striking distance folks! Camp is looking great; it's a flurry of activity as Terry and the crew prepare for our arrival in 41 days! Also... Our two baseball teams represented this past weekend in the "Intercamp Classic" which helped raise much needed money for the eradication of Malaria and also to send children to camp who otherwise wouldn't have the opportunity. Way to go T-lane!!!

Posted at Camp Timberlane

Today's who's who in the camp office.

2010-05-11T19:23:00+01:00

Kayla Landen, Jordan Simon, Noah Mandell, Steve Kane, and Ida Gold. Tonight Timberlane meets with our friends at Baview Glen Day Camp to ensure another successful summer of BVG trips to Timberlane.

Posted at Camp Timberlane

Head Specialist meetings have begun!!!

2010-05-03T18:49:38+01:00

Willy Raskin paid the Camp Office a visit today. He is a busy guy, who has great plans for the summer of 2010! He is ready to hit the docks running...(not actually running; because that's not allowed on the docks, but...) after a trip to Israel and Europe he just can't wait to be back in Haliburton and on the most beautiful, Lake of Two Islands.

Posted at Camp Timberlane

Brit sent me shopping...

2010-04-26T18:18:26+01:00

Here were the items on my list... 1. A new industrial sized washing machine 2. New paddles for trip and canoe 3. Ton of materials for the copper enamling program Did we miss anything?

Posted at Camp Timberlane

Springtime in Haliburton...

2010-04-22T15:41:35+01:00

On Tuesday, Corey, Brit, Ida, Cindy, and I visited the camp. For Corey, Brit, and Ida it was a homecoming. Seeing the camp unveiled from it snowy blanket of winter; they were elated to see green grass. There were diamonds in the water as the sun glimmered off the lake's surface and a walk out to Chapel and Sea Scout became almost mandatory. Terry's crew has been hard at work on cabin renovations, new porches for some buildings, and have some other suprises in store for 2010 also. The one resounding comment overheard all day? "There's something missing..." What was missing? YOU! Camp is beautiful; the lake, the fields, the trees, and the buildings...but camp is not camp without the campers and staff. Cindy, long time health centre coordinator got to see her new infirmary for the first time, and instantly fell in love with the new building. Complete with a beautiful porch; everybody will want to stop by just to see the buidling and say hi to everyone inside. For me, Stuart, the trip to camp was great. As a kid I went to Northland and visited Timberlane during intercamp competitions or to meet up with staff on days off. I remembered T-lane being beautiful, clean, and filled with spirit. Folks, my memory did not disappoint! It was as beautiful, if not even moreso. Ida and Cindy took me on the grand tour, and from The Timberdome all the way up to Sea Scout, I was eyes wide open and smiling ear to ear. I don't need to tell anyone who has been there this; but, Camp Timberlane is gorgeous...absolutely beautiful! We here at the office are gearing up for the summer of 2010 and just can't wait to welcome you all home!

Posted at Camp Timberlane

Tune in tomorrow...

2010-04-19T14:22:50+01:00

...when the Timberlane Camp Office will be up in Haliburton visiting the site. We'll update you with pictures of renovations to buildings and shots of new projects that Terry and his crew have been working on over the winter months.

Posted at Camp Timberlane

Andy Barrie writes about the lessons learned from camp.

2010-04-16T15:46:05+01:00

Borrowed from The Globe and Mail; April 15, 2010 I was pushing 60 when, five summers ago, a man who was close to 80 reached into his pocket, pulled out an envelope and said, “I thought I might find you here.” Opening the envelope, I took out the paper that became my career. We were both at a summer camp reunion in Maine, where I'd first gone to camp as a kid, and where Norm had been a counsellor. I think of him every year at about this time, remembering when the arrival of spring mainly meant the beginning of the long slide that would deposit me in that other, parallel world called camp. Not that I had anything to complain about at home. Great parents. Wonderful older brother, kind of a Wally to my Beaver Cleaverish kid-brother self. My main interest in life was the not-cool hobby of puppetry. In the 1950s, this was alarmingly close to playing with dolls. So, at 7, I was sent off to camp, where, like one of my marionettes, Pinocchio, I might learn to be a real, live boy. Once there, I quickly distinguished, or maybe I should say extinguished, myself as the worst athlete in Cabin Four, or possibly in the camp. If I swung, I missed. If I caught, I dropped. If I threw (do you remember the seriousness of this offence?), it was like a girl. Which is why my life was about to change. The camp was small, about 70 boys, and the counsellors kept a close watch on the kids who were not going to pick up poise and learn self-confidence, as most boys do, by excelling at some sport or another. So it was that Norm, learning about my puppet shows back home, and figuring I must have a spark of showbiz in me, asked me if I wanted to go on the radio. Well, not exactly the radio. Actually, it was the camp public-address system. Every morning, roused a half-hour before everyone else by a Norm-supplied alarm clock, I'd trot down to the camp office, fire up the loudspeakers, play a bugle call off an old 78-rpm record and then, for 10 minutes, go on the air. The job was, as they say today, a great fit. Like my puppet shows, I was heard but not seen. And with weather reports and baseball scores, cribbed from a real radio station, and one rock ’n’ roll 45 per morning, I was a star. I had cabin cred. While I continued to strike out at softball, and didn't pass my deep-water test till I was 11, I'd scored doing my thing. Which is the same thing I went on to do in life, picking up where I left off at the student radio station in university, and a 40-year career behind the microphone. And the piece of paper in the envelope 50 years later? Norm, like every producer I've had since, was justly concerned about my undisciplined ad-libs. He wanted everything written down first, and what he pulled out of his pocket was my opening-day script. He'd kept it all those years against the day he might see me again. Over those same years, I've been repeatedly amazed by how many grown-ups did their most important growing up at camp. Out from under expectations at home (especially the self-fulfilling ones), they blossomed and bloomed into what they otherwise might never have become. Their weeks at summer camp, they'll tell you, sometimes shaped them as much or more than all the rest of the year combined. Which is why, every year, I write a cheque to help send inner-city kids to camp. They may never have heard the word “epiphany,” but they just might experience what it means. These children come from families with very little money. But you don't have to be poor to suffer from what Richard Louv calls nature-deficit disorder. In his book, Last Child in the Woods, Mr. Louv bemoans the disappearance of the natural world from the lives of too many children. Anxious parents, Mr. Louv tells us, see the outdoors as something their children need to be protected from. Girl Guides’ Ontario Council has announced it will be shutting down 16 of its summer camps. Provincial cutbacks in Ontario have seen four Outdoor Education Centres mothballed. When was the last time you saw kids building a tree house, turning a rock over to see what's living underneath or, my fellow Canadians, knowing the satisfaction and sense of accomplishment in sharing with a buddy the burden of carrying a canoe over a two-kilometre portage? In my daughter's case, these experiences led, in a straight line, through summer camp to Outward Bound, university and a career. Her doctoral dissertation examined the part outdoor experiential education can play in strengthening teenage girls' sense of themselves as achievers, collaborators and risk takers. And it all began with those summer weeks singing Land of the Silver Birch in Algonquin Park. As it began for me in Cabin Four with that alarm clock under my pillow. I tried to tell Norm all this at the reunion. He said, “Well, you know it wasn't completely altruistic – before I gave you the job, I had to play the bugle call. This gave me an extra half-hour to sleep in.” “That's okay,” I told him. “You earned it.”

Posted at Camp Timberlane

Are you a fan yet?

2010-04-15T15:59:54+01:00

Have you signed up for our Facebook page? Just yesterday Director/Owner, Corey Mandell posed a very important question to the Timberlane community. Outdoor Ping-Pong or Outdoor Shuffleboard. Make sure to visit our page on Facebook as we ramp it up for the 2010 summer.

Posted at Camp Timberlane

Did you know that...

2010-04-13T19:35:07+01:00

on staff at Camp Timberlane in 2010, there are: 2 Davids 2 Mels 3 Carlys 3 Michaels and.... 4 Coreys

Posted at Camp Timberlane

83...What is 83?

2010-04-08T14:42:46+01:00

Eighty-three is the sum of three consecutive primes (23 + 29 + 31) as well as the sum of five consecutive primes (11 + 13 + 17 + 19 + 23). It is also the amount of days that are left until the summer of 2010 begins at Camp Timberlane!!!

Posted at Camp Timberlane

Why go to summer camp?

2010-04-07T15:28:54+01:00

Inspired and borrowed from our friends at pbskids.org Did you know that over TWENTY MILLION North American kids go to camp every summer? Whoa! Summer camp has been a North American tradition for over 150 years. Back then, before air conditioning was invented, hot city summers were miserable and even unhealthy for children, so escaping to the country for a few weeks became a popular trend. Today, kids have different reasons for making camp a part of their lives, such as: To Meet New People Camp might give you a chance to be with people from different cities, or even different countries. It’s a great way to make cool new friends and learn about different places and cultures. Michiko, 13, puts it like this: “I loved camp. I met this girl named Manny who lives in Montreal (I live in Toronto) and she is cool. She speaks French and I speak Japanese. We taught each other words. We liked to swim in the lake a lot. She was a really nice girl. We are going to camp again this summer.” To Try New Things Most camps offer games and activities that you probably can’t do in your backyard or even your neighborhood. You might try archery, sailing, pottery, dance, obstacle courses, and a hundred other cool things! Staying home and doing “the same-old same-old” can be boring, and camp can let you mix things up. To Challenge Yourself Not all the things that kids do at camp are easy…they’re not supposed to be! Fresh challenges -- like trying new sports, learning new crafts and games, or pushing yourself to achieve something -- can be very rewarding. Take it from Arabella, 13, who told us: “I went to summer camp and I passed my swimming test! I can barely swim, so it was a big accomplishment. I felt great afterwards.” To Appreciate Nature There’s a great big natural world out there, and going to camp helps you learn how beautiful and important it really is. Without trees, soil, water, and wildlife, the Earth (and all the people on it) couldn’t survive, and getting out into the woods or mountains can give you a better understanding of how the web of life works. To Get a Change of Scenery Sometimes it’s important to get away from familiar territory and find a “new place” for yourself. Camp offers the perfect opportunity to make a fresh start, see and experience a variety of things, and find out how you think, feel, and act outside of your normal surroundings. It can even be great to get away from your family and friends for a while and just be you. To Learn New Skills All the activities and instruction at camp are great opportunities to learn something new -- such as pottery, sailing, or tap dancing -- that could end up being your favorite hobby. Camp can also help you develop important life skills like independence, self-reliance, and confidence. Since you’ll be living with a whole group of people, it’s also a great way to learn about cooperation, compromise, and tolerance. To Get Healthy With all the fun, games, and physical activity, going to camp can be a great way to get exercise and fresh air. Swimming, hiking, and playing sports are a much healthier alternative to hanging around at home all summer. To Have FUN! When you get right down to it, going to camp is all about having a good time. Learn more about summer camp in Ontario and Camp Timberlane by giving us a call or checking out our website. www.camptimberlane.ca 416-923-7200

Posted at Camp Timberlane

Favourite Timberlane rainy day activity???

2010-04-06T14:24:13+01:00

What is your favourite rainy day activity? It looks like it is going to rain right through until lunchtime and then it will be a beautiful day. What does your cabin love to do when it's raining outside? Post your answers or submit them to stuart@camptimberlane.ca

Posted at Camp Timberlane

Check out some 2009 "Weekender" fun!!!

2010-04-05T14:31:05+01:00

www.camptimberlane.ca/gallery5/main.php?g2_itemId=41293&g2_navId=x7965f126 Cut the address above and paste it into your browser to see some great shots from last summers' Weekender group. Some spots are still open for the 2010 Weekender program.

Posted at Camp Timberlane