One might think that after the rowdiness that is Cowboy Joe, the following day might seem dull and lackluster in comparison. Yet, as the bugle’s ring bounced off the mountains that contain camp, campers sprung out of bed with the same electricity as the day before, if not more. We all found our places in the dining hall, and campers were hailed with a delectable spread of biscuits, with chicken and countless other toppings.

Today we welcomed back campers that went out on an overnight to represent camp at the Camp Cup, a kayaking competition that seeks to produce cross camp comradery between young paddlers. Scott R., Ford L., Jake L., and Adam V. demonstrated their ability as some of camp’s great kayakers. Of this group, the campers that were in Greybeard were met with another surprise! Campers in the cabin of Greybeard were excited to find out that today was the day of their Greybeard Trip! They started off their day by cooking their own breakfast at camp’s outdoor grill. Then they travelled to the Black Mountain Home for Children and joined with the volunteers there in a service project. Afterwards, Greybeard got to go tubing down the Lower Green River, and then got to go see an Asheville Tourists Baseball Game! What a great experience for these campers in some of their final summers at camp.

Meanwhile back at camp, we were lead in a morning yell with all our stomachs very full. Boys filed to the chapel to join together in song, followed by a cautionary tale by our very own Austin S. regarding his outdoor escapades as a younger lad. Camp then switched into high gear, as the cabin cleanup race picked up immediately after the message. By this point in the session, each cabin is functioning as a well-oiled machine, and the cabin cleanup process operates as smooth as ever. Campers know the rigorous standards of the cabin cleanup graders by now, and are all hoping to pull out on top. Before we knew it though, the first horn rang and it was time to go to our first activities of the day!

Even though there are only a number of days left until closing ceremonies, camp is anything but winding down. It seemed today that campers made the decision to not leave camp without making final efforts to master their activities. Today marks the last day of certain activities for our Monday/Wednesday/Friday schedule, so every class had their special way to close off the session. In Pottery, campers simply began to glaze their pieces they have been working hard to finish. The only thing left to do is fire the pieces in the kiln and wait for the final products! Not too far away, Cooking class essentially prepared Breakfast 2.0 with homemade sausage biscuits. Drew C. and Will R. demonstrated prowess behind the apron and stood out as Top Chefs. Backpacking Class got to chow down as some treats as well, with a fire making lesson finished off with learning the perfect s’more making technique. Alejandro D. and Ben R. showed off their fire making skills and gave the class a bit of instruction as well!

Before we knew it, it was time for lunch. Like ants to a piece of candy, the dining hall was stormed with hungry boys ready to eat whatever was placed in front of them. The meal today was reminiscent of something many of us eat at home, grilled ham and cheese sandwiches and potato chips. A meal always well received, lunch gave us the necessary fuel to push on through our day. During Lunch announcements, we found out that the Iroquois won the game of Pirate Ball the night before. Being a Seminole myself, I was not happy upon hearing these results, but I had to give the Iroquois a hand for a job well done. We also found out the scores of cabin inspection. A very notable score being the typical winner of the Cabin of Greybeard getting last place. The big news of the day was that the youngest cabin of Tomahawk ended up winning the race today!

Departing from lunch, it was time to go to rest time, and then out to the endless opportunities of Free Time. The Main Course of Free Time Today was that it was rocket launching day. Campers that have been tirelessly working on building their rockets in Rocketry class finally got a chance to watch their creations blast off into the sky! Max C. and Mason J. got a chance to launch their rockets and received Gold Bars! In addition to the many other campers, Cole H., Ben S., and Alberto C. got to launch their rockets and received the corresponding bronze bars! In addition to the rocketry fun, some campers sought to gain elective marks by running the Tomahawk Trail. Today, Cole L., Will L., and Matthew R., joined in the 2.5-mile loop through the trails of camp in pursuit of this mark. Before we knew it though, rocket launching and running time had ended and it was time to go to our afternoon activities!

As the afternoon began to heat up, camp was on the move toward their activities with a little bit of shade. Up at the Mark in Fencing, campers Nick G. and Nick P. both worked together to finish off their session strong, which resulted in both obtaining silver bars! A little bit further down the mountain in Riflery, Nick G. also moved one step closer to his bronze bar, as he shot another target!

The afternoon transitioned to dinner time and soon enough campers got the chance to enjoy a staff favorite meal tonight, Fettucine Alfredo! As we all filled our stomachs with the countless carbohydrates of delicious pasta, we learned that tonight we join together in the epic tribal game known as GREAT ESCAPE. This huge camp wide scavenger hunt involves every member of the tribe and upon hearing the announcement that we would be playing this game, camp went nuts! I can only hope my Seminoles will pull out the win as I type this. Things are settling down here at camp tonight and it seems that end of the session is drawing too near too fast. As today comes to a close let it be known that another wonderful day on the marvelous grounds of Camp Timberlake has come to successful conclusion at last.

Signing off,
James C.
Proud Seminole
Stomper’s Knob Counselor
University of Tennessee Class of 2019