Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
New roof on Lount Lodge
A new season at Camp Stephen's brings with it some big changes.
Lount Lodge, built in 1980-81, has got a new metal roof, thanks to Graham Lount.
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| Graham Lount: Lount Lodge rededication Aug. 24, 2012 |
The old cedar shake roof looked good, but for several reasons-pine needles being one of them-it just didn't hold up to the elements. The old shakes were removed in the late fall and the new roof has been put on over the past couple of weeks.
The background story about the roof is posted here: Lount Lodge reborn
The new roof is just one part of the upgrade of the log lodge. Over the next few months the exterior walls will be refinished to bring back the golden glow of the red pines we cut down on McPherson Island in the spring of 1980.
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+Lount+Lodge+75%25++completed+with+new+roof+April+23,+2012.jpg)
Also, Tara Law recently gave me some old photos of the lodge's construction I'd never seen:
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| From left to right; Burton Boryen, me, Mike King, Mitch Campbell and Marty Katz. We're moving logs around the site by hand, using log peavies. |
More are posted here: The Lodge Half Done
- Bruce
Saturday, March 24, 2012
50th trail anniversary update - mark your calendars
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1969 six week
Phil Reece
Peter Spence
Jim Kane
Jim King
Paul Robinson
Grant Mohr (missing) |
We met March 21 and made some great progress.
Ashleigh Hall, Kayln Murdock, Tara Law, Janet Young, Les Robinson, Leif Larson, Steve Allen, Wayne Johnson, Dave Vankoughnett, Dave Wright, Grant Platts, Perry McGregor and myself attended.
The plan so far :
- We intend to create an ongoing fund aimed at raising money for the Trail program and Camp Stephens. It will look a lot like the Y's Strong Kids campaign, but it will be designed to reflect the values and impact of the Trail program and Camp Stephens. We will start work on it soon. Money from the fund, to be decided by Camp Stephens staff, will go towards things like replacing old life jackets and paddles or whatever, depending on what's needed most.
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| Old logo. |
- Dave Wright and Punch Jackson will co-ordinate a series of "Punch Talks", a series of public podcasts on the unique history of the Trail program and the people who've been involved.
- We will also launch a series of short videos made by Trail alumni on the impact of the Wilderness program. This will allow any one of us, no matter where we are in the world, to make for example a two-minute video on how the Trail program shaped our lives. These videos will be posted for public viewing. Myself and Leif are to co-ordinate, but your help is needed, obviously.
- Grant and others are collecting as much information as possible on the history of the six-week trip and Wilderness program; routes, log books, photos, participants, stories, whatever we can get. We intend to create both a static and virtual display, so that this rich history is saved for all to view and share.
- We and the YMCA-YWCA are looking at hosting a sunrise ceremony to bid farewell to the 2013 six-weekers. It will be held at the new Camp Y near Woodlands Saturday, July 13, 2013. It would feature a pancake breakfast (Tara to co-ordinate). Trail and camp alumni would then spend the rest of the day, with their families, enjoying the amenities of the Y's newest camp in Manitoba, including a pool with water slides, a high ropes course and climbing wall and nature trails you can either walk or bike. There's also mini-golf. Yup. Mini golf.
Here's the layout of Camp Y and a short video of what it looked like at the end of March.
- The six-weekers return Saturday Aug. 24, 2013 at Camp Stephens. This day is theirs and theirs alone.
- An Trail alumni five-day canoe trip will leave camp either the next day or on the Monday. There will be cost, but it has not been finalized yet. It will be co-led by a current staff tripper and alumni tripper. Depending on interest, shorter trips can be organized.
- The five-day trip will return to camp the following weekend, the Labour Day weekend of 2013 (Aug. 30-Sept. 2).
- Trail and camp alumni (and their families) can come out to Camp Stephens on that weekend for three days at camp with programming focused on 50 years of the Trail and Wilderness programs, organized and run by alumni. There will be a cost. - The camp work weekend for 2013 is May 17-20. Alumni are invited to participate. In the past I've brought my kids.
- The 2012 camp work weekend is May 18-21. Again, alumni can come out to work and play. Basically, all camp needs to know is how many of us are showing up. We meet at the boat dock by the laundromat, across the Safeway, Friday evening. Bring work gloves and your bathing suit.
We also also looking at setting up an alumni association, similar to the Y's Camp Pine Crest in Ontario.
Naturally, we have a lot more planning to do. The dates, however, won't change.
Our biggest challenge is getting the word out. We still need to connect with a lot of people. And as we get closer to 2013, we'll also need more help in pulling it off.
We also need your feedback. If there's something we've missed, we need to know now. Remember, events at Camp Stephens have to be co-ordinated around regular summer programming. Camp Stephens is a very busy place in July and August.
Our next meeting is April 25, 6:30 p.m. at room 334 of the Manitoba Legislative Building.
- Bruce and Perry
Friday, March 2, 2012
Camp Stephens 50th Trail Anniversary meeting
A group us met Feb. 28 in Winnipeg to start planning what we need to do for 2013. It was our second meeting.
Who was there: Les Robinson, Laurie and Lynda MacIntosh, Leif Larson, Steve Allen, Kayln Murdock, Dave Vankoughnett, Perry McGregor, Margaux Cadieux, Ashleigh Hall, Tara Law, Jim Arthur, Dave Wright, Grant Platts and Punch Jackson.
All eras of camp and trail were represented. Allen is the current director of Camp Stephens and Vankoughnett is the Y's general manager of fund development and communications.
All eras of camp and trail were represented. Allen is the current director of Camp Stephens and Vankoughnett is the Y's general manager of fund development and communications.
Our next meeting is March 21 at a location still to be determined:
.
We have several ideas so far on how we can mark the 50th and make a lasting contribution to camp. We haven't picked dates yet, but will soon to allow you enough time to find your trail jacket and plan a trip to attend.
Besides a chance to get together, our main goal is to raise funds which can be used by camp in future years, like replacing old tents or life jackets. The second goal is to set up an official alumni association. The third to is build an awareness of wilderness conservation and the importance of a wilderness experience in a young person's development.
The fourth is to create a permanent record of the Trail program, including a display of six-week trip routes which could be both static and web-based, and a video history.
Events are still in the formative stage; nothing is set in stone. Briefly, here's what we've discussed:
- A pre-reunion event which could include a folk-fest, a symposium on nature-deficit disorder or a wine and cheese event, something like a TEDx talk for people who know what gorp is.
- Alumni involvement in the sunrise farewell to the 2013 six-weekers, perhaps hosting a pancake breakfast open to other alumni to attend.
- A reunion event in Winnipeg in the summer of 2013 to mark the 50th anniversary. Personally, I believe beer must be involved. I do not see how this can be avoided.
- An event at camp. How this is organized, we're still discussing. We don't want to overshadow the return of the six-weekers as this day should be theirs, not our's.
- There are also plans to run at least one alumni canoe trip out of camp. Different dates are available, so more than one trip is possible. Family trips are also possible.
Everything we're planning will done with Y's blessing. All organizing will be done by us.
As this progresses, we'll need some extra help.
The first thing we need of you is to reach out to former Trail alumni, trippers, camp staff and others connected to the Wilderness program.
The best way at this stage is through the Camp Stephens 50th Trail Anniversary group page on Facebook. If you're not a member, please join and add others from your friends list.
We are also exploring how we can include those of you outside Winnipeg in this process. If those of you living in Australia or Great Britain or Transcona have any ideas, fire away.
As plans become more precise we'll update you as quickly as we can. We always welcome your input. My email is campstephensalumni@gmail.com and you can post public comments on the Facebook group page. - Bruce
Sunday, January 29, 2012
The knife rack
Made by head cook Laurie MacIntosh and painted by Brad Abbott, the knife rack was mounted on the back of the stove partition in the dining hall kitchen in the early 1970s. Abbott is now an architect in Toronto. MacIntosh lives in Winnipeg with his Lynda.
The rack stayed there until recently when it taken down as it was suffering damage from the wear and tear of the kitchen."I remember is that I was asked to do these caricatures of the kitchen staff for some special occasion," Abbott says. "I can’t give you a date but if you can find records of when that crew was all together in the kitchen you will have it.
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| Kitchen staff circa 1975. Head cook Laurie MacIntosh is on the far right with Dennis Dyke, Bob Berry, Vern Bloomfield and Paul (?). |
Abbott, a counsellor and tripper at camp, says he still has numerous paddles lying around from camp.
“One of my prized items was a set of moose antlers that we brought back from our six week trip. Burton Tutt (Boryen) fashioned an elegant curved shield to fit across the skull of the horns and I painted our names and a few things about the trip on it.
“It was one of the first trophies six weekers brought back and it was hung in the dining hall, thereafter it became a tradition.
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| The rack can be seen over the kitchen door. Ted Spear is seated at the table on the left in the plaid shirt. |
“About 10 years ago my good friend and fellow six-weeker Ted Spear realized that all these trophies including our ‘rack’ had been removed from the dining hall and lay forgotten at the back of the boathouse.
“We decided to save it so under the cover of darkness we slipped into camp and stole our rack. It hung in our family boathouse for several years about two miles from camp until one day I felt badly enough to return it. I do not know if it is still at camp.
“There is one camp item that I very much treasure. I have always wondered what I should do with it. On our six week trip our leader Don Taylor kept a detailed diary. When we returned from the trip I had my mother type Don’s diary and I made a book with a cover made out of deer hide. As well as the diary itself the book included some sketches of mine, a newspaper article from the Thompson Citizen (we were celebrities), and a collection of all the letters I’d written home in a little pouch on the back cover.
“If I say so myself it is a nice piece and thanks to Don not bad reading either. It is safely stored at my cottage near camp.
“If you feel there is a more appropriate home for it I would consider donating it to the camp.”
- Brad Abbott
Saturday, December 10, 2011
2013 50th Trail Anniversary Call Out
The Camp Stephens Trail Program has had a lasting impact on the memories and friendships for many of us.
The 50th anniversary of the Trail Program is in the summer of 2013, and a few of us think it's a pretty good reason for a reunion. Ideas for events include a canoe trip and a folk fest.
We've been down this road before, though.
In 2002, with the support of the Y, a number of Stephens Trail junkies formed a 40th anniversary committee. However, the 40th event never really came to be as we couldn't get a reasonable number of former paddlers to participate.
Largely, the difficulty was in connecting with paddlers from the 60's, the 70's, the 80's, 90's and those of you in this century.
That's all changed. Social media has allowed us to reconnect no matter where we are in the world. The main meeting place is here (Click) on Facebook.
Now, we all know that you don't slap together a canoe trip and hang out a shingle hoping people will come.
We need your help in planning it. Our goal is to form a 50th anniversary committee. We'd like to begin soon. We also know many of you are thinking the same thing.
So let's get it started. You can help us by forwarding this letter to other Camp Stephens Trail paddlers, no matter what era.
If you want to be involved in planning an event, please email Perry McGregor pljmcg@gmail.com with your contact information (email and phone). No one is too old and no one too young to be involved. Our tent is big.
Once we have a list of volunteers, we'll meet in person to start our planning. Obviously, the meeting will have to be held in Winnipeg, but we also want to include in some way those of you living in London or Australia or Brazil and beyond. Because we want you here in 2013, too.
Cheers, Perry and Bruce
P.S.
Friends,
If you think Canada's wild places should last forever, please check this out:
We support CPAWS. We hope you will too. If we won't stand up for the wilderness who will?
Dave Wright Eileen Askew
Jo Wright Alex Paterson
Margaret Paterson Dean Wright
Ted Wright Brian Law
Cam Young Wes Peters
Pam Wright Kent Paterson
Steve Wright
Monday, December 5, 2011
For the kids -- that's Y Sharing Christmas Spirit: Unwrapping the good being done this season in our city
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| Ken Gigliotti / Winnipeg Free Press Dave Vankoughnett wants to give kids new experiences. |
Winnipeg YMCA-YWCA general manager, fund development
CHARITY: Strong Kids
How I'm sharing the
Christmas Spirit:
"We have a holiday campaign, and each of our branches will be putting up banners about giving throughout the season, where you can have four choices on how to help children. What it means is that throughout the campaign, you can subsidize memberships for kids who don't have an opportunity to go to the Y. We'll make sure that they get there. For as low as $20, kids that can't afford it can to come to the Y to learn new skills or build relationships or give them a sense of a place to go. The nice thing about the memberships for kids is that you get swimming lessons included. There's also sending a kid to camp, like Camp Stephens and our new day camp, Camp Y. There's also the international program that we have."
How you can help spread the Christmas Spirit:
The easiest way to make a donation is through the Y's website (www.ywinnipeg.ca/gift) or by mail. Cheques can be made payable to: YMCA-YWCA of Winnipeg
3550 Portage Ave., Winnipeg, MB R3K 0Z8. Donations can also be made at any branch. You can also make a donation in the memory of someone.
My Christmas wish:
"One of the reasons I come to the Y is because I believe in making the community a better place, and I think that's what we do. My wish is for everybody to have an opportunity to experience something that maybe they never have or to be in a position in their life where we're able to help them."
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition December 5, 2011 A6
Saturday, November 26, 2011
Monday, November 21, 2011
Lount Lodge - new roof
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| Work this fall on replacing Lount Lodge roof. |
A while ago I did a piece on Lount Lodge needing some work. The photos were sent to me by the Y's new general manager of fund development and communications Dave Vankoughnett, ex-Blue Bomber offensive lineman.
In this pic old cedar shakes are coming off and a green metal roof, like on the dining hall, is to be installed. Many of the shakes were rotten.
Below are two of the new cabins. You can read more about them here and here and here.
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| One of the new cabins added to the line this fall. |
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Camp Stephens 50th Trail Anniversary in 2013
There was an attempt to have a 40th anniversary in 2003, but it fell apart because organizers couldn't connect with all you faded paddlers.
If you want to be involved or kept up to date, please join Camp Stephens 50th Trail Anniversary on Facebook or follow developments on this blog.
Here's a sample of the Facebook conversation:
If you want to be involved or kept up to date, please join Camp Stephens 50th Trail Anniversary on Facebook or follow developments on this blog.
Here's a sample of the Facebook conversation:
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