Telling Stories at Camp Sidney Dew

The folks at Camp Sidney Dew, the storied Scout Camp up near the Pocket in the panhandle of Floyd County Georgia, called a few weeks ago to ask me to do a one hour storytelling program for their campers. The event ended up get postponed on account of a Covid infection. But tonight I finally got to do that.

 

What a gorgeous location for a summer camp. 

But before I could get there I had to get through the security gate. 

I was sent to the Council Ring. I waited quite a while for my audience of about 80 to assemble. 

I had a little time to wander around and read the signs and notice the
special features of this special space.

Eventually the crowd took their seats. The camp supplied a great public address system which helps a lot in this sort of venue. I was tickled to discover that a significant part of the audience were folks from Ellijay. My "Yellowtail" story is set in Ellijay. I followed up with a ghost story -- "The Lieutenant's Jacket"--  which i set in Everett Springs for this telling. Afterwards I let the kids visit for a few minutes with a corn snake and a king snake.

One favorite moment: After I finished my tall-tale I asked the kids at what point they decided, "Wait a minute, this must be a talltale!" Several volunteered their eyeopening moments. One Cub Scout volunteered that he almost cried when "Yellowtail" (my imaginary Copperhead) died. 

The Council Ring signage includes the twelve attributes every scout memorizes 
and that I include in my "Yellowtail" story!

 

I am very curious about how this gravestone came to be here at Sidney Dew. Mr Hardin must have been a Scout and a supporter of the camp.

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Here are some comments from a post about this I wrote on Facebook:

Julie C. Watson
I didn’t realize it was still a BSA camp. Is the Girl Scout Camp still there?

Terrell Shaw
Julie C. Watson Gazelle Dew is gone but Misty Mountain GS Camp is just up the road a ways.

Julie C. Watson
Terrell Shaw not having been in Rome in a good while or a Girl Scout- I wasn’t sure! We need to camp up in that area sometime soon, and drive around! Thank you!

David Matheny
Terrell Shaw ..Near Lake Marvin?

Sarah Anne
What’s your traveling expense rate for Lynchburg?

Terrell Shaw
Sarah Anne might be a tough sell to the DNR. You just need to come back to Georgia! (I managed to tie a little GA ecology into it, and showed off a corn snake and a king snake.)

Michael J. Burton
So many memories of the council ring. Helped tote some those stones in 1957 as an order of the arrow initiate..

Bruce A. Day
I'm a little dyslexic... I read you were going to address SCOTUS...

Gleaning Facebook: Leslie Knope's Letter to Noah Lepp

My friends who enjoyed Bil Lepp at last spring's Big Fibbers Festival will get a kick out of this letter to his son Noah. Noah has just become an Eagle Scout. Be sure to read to the very end, but no looking ahead! Lillian Shaw, a Parks & Rec fan, will enjoy the letter, I'll bet. I post it here to preserve a chuckle for future need.

 

New Access for Armuchee's Nature Trail

 Thomas Fitzpatrick -- a former student of mine -- with his Dad Troy, is hard at work on his Eagle Project at Armuchee Elementary. It may be the most ambitious Eagle project of the dozen or so at our school. It is a new bridge, long stairs, and entrance/exit to link the lower section of our nature trail to the bus entrance to the campus. This will allow a complete circuit of the lower part of the nature trail rather than a "there & back" trip. I think this will encourage more use of that part of our campus for nature walks, writing in the outdoors, and such.

It's a long way down to the stream. Thomas is putting in steps with kid-size risers so that makes for lots of steps.

Thomas working at the top of the steps.

The new entrance is being built right at the bus entrance gate.

A few treads have been installed.

Troy & Thomas.

Now all the treads has been installed and the handrails are attached.

There will be a clear-span bridge at the bottom. We may need a bit of boardwalk on the far side.

These boulders had to be dug/pried out of the way. Ugh! So sorry I wasn't there to help that day! 

Boulders & boards.

AES has the World's Best Elementary School Nature Trail!

July 15 -- And now the Posts have been trimmed to size, the handrails installed on the steps, and the bridge joists are spanning the creek! Wow, Thomas, big progress today!