Camp Arowhon is a summer camp in Algonquin Provincial Park that is home to nearly 250 boys and girls and 100 staff each summer.

History

Lillian Kates established Camp Arowhon in 1931. The camp is located on the shores of Teepee Lake, in the southern part of Algonquin Provincial Park, about 175 miles north of Toronto. The Great Depression drove Lily Kates and her husband, Dr. Max Kates to look for a new source of income, and though misguided, she chose to get rich by starting a summer camp.

Lily had visited her daughter Shyrle at Camp Wapomeo on Canoe Lake, and stayed overnight at the Hotel Algonquin near Joe Lake train station in Algonquin Park. She travelled up the lake, and came across an abandoned camp called Camp of the Red Gods. The log buildings were magnificent, but it was an unfinished, overgrown, neglected property. Arowhon is less than two miles from Tom Thompson lake, site of the grave of Canadian painter Tom Thompson. Thompson was killed at Canoe Lake under mysterious circumstances.

Red Gods had been the brainchild of Ernest Thompson Seaton, a famous naturalist and architect. Seaton designed and built the camp on Teepee Lake (then called Buck Lake) in 1929. Camp of the Red Gods was to be a family nature camp, but it never opened, thanks to the Depression.

Lily ran Arowhon for several years, and then appointed her son Eugene as director. He ran the camp for nearly fifty years, until 1978 when Elly Markson was appointed to take over. After Markson left in 1987 there were several directors until Joanne Kates, granddaughter of the founder, arrived to save the camp from near bankruptcy.

The Camp and Its Program

Arowhon is the oldest co-ed summer camp in North America, drawing campers and staff from Montreal and Toronto, but also from New York, Buffalo, Tokyo, and Mexico. Arowhon has built its reputation on running a non-competitive program focused on individual achievement and a lack of bullying.

There are more than 50 handmade cedar strip canoes at Arowhon, some of them more than forty years old. The canoeing program was developed by Omer Stringer considered by many to be the father of style canoeing. Stringer’s student Chuck Lebow formalized many of his techniques, and this approach to canoeing reached its greatest popularity during the decade that Seth Godin was the lead instructor.

The camp was one of the first in the world to feature windsurfing as part of its program. Chosen as a more environmentally sound (and legal) alternative to waterskiing, the Arowhon windsurfing program became a model for many other camps that belong to the American Camping Association.

The original theatre at Arowhon was built by Lorne Greene star of two television series. Other notable performers to have developed their skills at Arowhon include Canadian personality Al Waxman.

In addition to its kayaking, rock climbing, riding and land sports program, the camp has developed an extensive canoe tripping program, sending campers into the Park for trips as long as three weeks at a time.

The northern lights (aurora borealis) shine many nights at the camp, located an hour north of Huntsville, Ontario and very little around to take away from its beauty.

Cabins and Buildings

Girls and boys sleep in separate parts of the camp. From left to right, facing the camp from the lake, the oldest boys are on the left, moving to youngest, then the youngest girls all the way to the oldest.

The oldest boys sleep in the Point, in cabins as small as four people. Cabins have electricity and sliding windows, but no showers. Cabins in the Point are labeled by letters, A through I. F and K are the largest cabins. The Point has its own swimming dock and an informal canoe dock as well.

Boys 11 through 14 years of age sleep in the Inter boys section. This comprises cabins 3, 7, 9, XA and XB. Cabin 11 has been converted into a staff cabin, while Cabin 1 is reserved for Eugene Kates, son of the founder, who has lived at camp since 1931.

The Main Lodge is older than the camp itself, having been built in 1929. It is a huge cedar structure, seating the entire camp and staff at once. Virtually the entire interior of the building is filled with plaques celebrating various endeavors, many of them designed by (or influenced by) artist Jimmy Kanters between 1959 and 1984.

Notable plaques include the Gasless Wonder, celebrating stranded motorboats, as well as various awards, canoe trips and sailing regattas.

Moving on to girls’ camp, the youngest girls sleep in cabins 26, 24 and 22, while the Inters live in 20, 18, 14 and 12. Cabin 16 has been converted into staff housing. The oldest girls live in the Curve with their own cabins and canoe dock.

The camp has recently renovated or rebuilt many of the cabins.

The Docks

There are 13 docks at camp. Point dock, Kayak dock, Boys swim dock, Inky dock, Canoe dock, Trip dock, Sail dock, Main dock, Windsurfing dock, Girls swim dock and Girls Canoe dock. One more if you count the Med Lodge.

David Curhan

It is believed by many that David Curhan, who attended camp from 1937 to 1954, came back to camp with a war injury after World War II. His legacy is his paddle, displayed on the wall of the main lodge, and the legends he left behind.

The Class System

Most of the skill-based activities at Arowhon are designed to push children to excel and to compete against themselves to improve.

To encourage this, participants can earn chevrons or awards. The Third Class award is straightforward to achieve, and represents basic familiarity with a sport. The Second Class award takes several summers to earn, and represents the beginning of mastery. The First Class award, of which only a few are given each year, represents the pinnacle of achievement. First Class recipients have gone on to become Olympic competitors, instructors and experts in their field.

Special Events

In addition to the traditional Color War, some notable activities at camp include Buck Lake, the Rustic Lounge show, Sadie Hawkins Day, Circus Day, Harry Holmes Day, the annual Green Leech Island Canoe Race and Parade, the Counselor Hunt, Cotillion and the end-of-year candle lighting ceremony.

The songs of Camp Arowhon have in themselves, created special events. These songs have been passed from generation to generation, and are a key part of the culture of Arowhon.

Color War is conducted over three days at the end of every summer. It includes a very complex theme which changes each year. Notable Color Wars include games celebrating the Cat in the Hat (1973) and The Lord of the Rings (1979).

Eugene Kates

Eugene Kates is a formidable personality, and largely responsible for the existence of Arowhon. His tireless devotion to the camp and its standards lasted nearly half a century. Known for his irascibility and stern manner, Eugene served as a father figure for literally tens of thousands of campers over the years. His never-reachable standards frustrated some, but his loyalty to the camp and tireless hard work never wavered.

Joanne Kates

Joanne Kates is the current director of Camp Arowhon. She is also the food critic for the Toronto Globe & Mail. Kates saved the camp from closure, reinvigorating the program and righting the camp’s finances. Together with her husband Leon, Joanne has also had a significant impact on children’s camping worldwide. Her speeches and programs for the American Camping Association have introduced bullying into the lexicon of camp directors and made a substantial impact on the way children are raised.

Statistics

More than 95% of all staff were campers first.

Every year, more than 20 people celebrate ten consecutive years at camp, and several celebrate more than fifteen.

There are several third-generation families now attending camp and a handful of fourth-generation campers as well.

Staff retention rate year on year is over 95%.

Notable Alumni

Jeremy Brown, American lawyer

Jill Jaffe Rudnick, Publishing executive

Jami Lichtman, American marketer and entrepreneur

Lorne Greene, Canadian actor

Seth Godin American author

Joanne Kates, Canadian food critic

Lloyd Alter, Canadian environmentalist

External links

Arowhon official Website