Volume 62 - Number 2 - Friday, August 17, 2001

Fishing is a lot of fun. We get to fish either on the docks or on the dam. You cast the line and put on the bait yourself. You need to keep the line still and the rod pointing towards the water. Sometimes you have to learn about how to get a hook out of a fishes' mouth. Sometimes you even have to use pliers. You are not allowed to use a barbed hook because it tears up the fish's mouth. You have to put the fish back in the water after you catch it. The fish normally bite the hook at the bottom. Overall, fishing is a good activity to take.

When people hear the word sailing, they think of a boat with a sail and a rudder going zig-zag against the wind. But I think, "Oh, they are right. It is like that." Well, sailing is more than that. I think it is that and a lot of fun. But the best of all is when there is a lot of wind and you flip over because then everybody begins to say a lot of things that nobody understands and it is so funny. This year is my first year taking sailing and I think it rules. It is the best. You have to try it next year.

Swimming isn't all work like some people say it is. Swimming can be fun, like when the teacher makes a deal with us. If we do everything that she asks quickly for a whole class, maybe she'll let us play games the next time. Sometimes I want to swim because it is so hot and it is nice to have a place that you can go to cool off and sometimes learn something.

At Camp Shohola there are many activities. Unlike many other camps, Shohola offers a wide variation of water sports, one of which being Windsurfing. In the 1st couple of classes you learn the parts of the sail and board, how to set the board and sail up, how to balance on the board and the wind directions so you always know how to avoid certain obstacles. Paula, Phil, and Gethin instruct the class. They're always helpful and are constantly working to help you improve.

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At CommTech I took Internet and Web Page Design, Radio Broadcasting and Electronics. In Internet class you can make a cool web page. In electronics class you can make all kinds of electronic kits. In Radio and Sports Broadcasting class you can talk about breaking sports news and learn how to do Play by Play announcing.

I think that all these activities go together because you need electronics to make the Internet and you need the Internet to look at sports records that were broken. The computer in the radio station is really cool. It is hooked up to the console so we can play audio off of the Internet and get information as it happens. There are now 14 computers in CommTech with a network to put them on the Internet. We can even send audio out over the Internet so our parents and friends can listen to our radio shows.

In video, you learn how to make videos. The counselor's name is Jason Cheetham. On his day-off, Larry teaches. You learn about angles, shots, scenes, the 180 line and we create our own movie. I recommend video. It is awesome.

Photography is so much fun. Kids can enjoy learning in a fun way. Photography is where you don't have to take an award winning picture to develop it. I love it when the counselor says, "Let's go take some pictures." You go all over camp taking as many pictures as you want. After you take all these pictures, you go and develop them. They are very hard to develop in the right lightness if you put it in the stop bath too long. But really, it is about kids expressing themselves in pictures of the bad and good things about a cabin. My teacher is Dave Love, other kids in the class are Ted Driggs Alex Hecker who are designing a left handed smoke-shifter.

In this class you learn how to design new inventions, or innovate things. I like this class because it makes you think until the extreme. I am designing an improved cabin by doing questionnaires and graphs

HTML is really cool. You make your own website that people can see all over the world! You can download cool pictures and people can know about you from around the world. Our counselors are Kyle and Rob and I am really glad I signed up for HTML.

Amateur Radio or Ham Radio is a very unique activity here at Camp Shohola. Started more than 35 years ago, we have the first and oldest radio club licensed by the FCC to a summer camp. There are only a handful of camp clubs as well. My first year I did not do ham radio, but my second year I did it both sessions and this year is my third year and I am still going strong and enjoying every minute of ham radio. In classes we get to talk to people from all over the world using short wave radio transmitters. We have also talked to people in space (on the international space station, not aliens), in planes and police cars, and on ships at sea.

The instructor for ham radio is Tom Gibson, which is a good omen in it self, he is one of the oldest people in camp and would have invented the light bulb if he hadn't been beaten to it. I was talking to Tom the other day and inevitably the subject of ham radio came up. I asked him how he had come to like and know ham radio. His reply was, "I got interested in ham radio when I was twelve years old and have been enjoying it ever since. I just was interested in electronics and building things which is close to ham radio." When did you get your first personal license and where? " When I was 14 and in Philadelphia." Did you get it on your first try? "Yes I did".

In class we have learned the International Morse code, FCC rules and regulations about amateur radio and some electronic theory. But ham radio isn't all school work, we basically stick to the schedule but bend the schedule when we need to and have some fun. Also since the is only one class of amateur radio we can be flexible. For example, if it's hot, we can go on the roof and learn about the transmitter antennaes and find toys that somehow got up there. Or we can go into the radio station and use the computer to find cool stuff online about amateur radio. We can also go in the television studio and write articles for the "Argus" (which I am doing now) or watch Amateur Radio related video tapes. (In one class we spend about fifteen minutes learning about the history of Camp Shohola). That's part of why ham radio is so much fun. Our call sign is WB3DGR and we have a web page about our activity at http://www.shohola.com/wb3dgr with links to the "Argus" archives.

I'd like to thank Tom Gibson and all the other campers in ham radio for a great summer of ham radio.

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This year at Camp Shohola I took stained glass. It was one of my favorite classes. In stained glass you use materials such as glass, solder, foil, flux, and patina to make projects like dogs, mirrors, clowns, penguins and so on.
To make a project you start by drawing it. Then you cut out the pieces and glue them to the colored glass you want. Then you cut out the pieces of glass, and grind them to make them the right size. After that you foil and flux the pieces, then you are ready to solder. When you solder you put the pieces together. Following that you put a hook on and patina it. Patina is putting the color on the solder. That is why stained glass is so fun at Camp Shohola.

Silver shop is a very good activity because you learn how to cut silver, how to polish it, to solder and a lot of other things in Silvershop. In silver shop we can also make rings, key chains, or other jewelry made out of either brass, copper, or silver. We can also enamel a piece of work. Enamel is a powder that is put on the metal then put in the oven. The powder then heats up and is melted. I have lots of fun in Silvershop, and I know you would too.

Rocketry, a modern marvel! When people think of rockets, they think of 10 billion dollar chunks of metal that go into the air really fast. That's not what the model rocket instructor thinks of. The model rocket instructor thinks of a cardboard tube going at almost 2000 feet in the air. They think of the brilliant colors they spray on the rockets, or the preparation of the parachute which will bring your skillfully crafted projectile back to earth safely.
When I signed up for rocketry I had no idea what I was getting into. I thought I would just screw around and sleep in class, and not do the rocket. Boy was I wrong! Each class I'm ready to go that extra step to finish my BIG BETTY rocket. To me, rocketry is no longer just a fun craft, it's a commitment and a skill.

Stained glass is a modern and innovative art. In this class you are able to make just about anything you like. Just some of the projects you could do are: boxes. Hanging decorations, or presents. Starting with picking a project, then cutting the glass, grinding, foiling, and finally ending with soldering, The whole process of making a stained glass project is very enjoyable. Everyone can enjoy this fun class, beginners and experienced alike. Stained glass is a great class that anyone will enjoy.

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When I signed up for basketball, I didn't know it was going to be so hard. We had to do stretches (which wasn't so hard), then we had to do suicide runs. Every time we messed up, we had to do it again. Once, Je' Vaugn made us do 40 push-ups, and half of the people couldn't do 10 of them. On the other hand, basketball is fun.

Soccer is really fun. Sometimes you have to run laps. Soccer is really cool. Sometimes you think it's really bad, but it is really cool. I hope you like this part. Have you ever seen soccer on TV? It's like that. Ok.

Volleyball is when you hit a ball over a net and try to hit it where the other side can't hit it. The teachers are very nice. If you mess around, they make you run a lap. You may think they are mean, but they are nice. For the beginners, you learn how to serve and you learn how to hit. For a beginner, the 1st game you play is Newcomb.

Es un deporte de contacto, que sus bases son el hockey, futball, y soccer y se juega con un palo o una canasta. Se trate de meter gol en una porteria de 1 metro de ancho y 1.5 metro de alto. Hay a juga dores en el campo sin contar el portero. Yo soy ofensiba pero en latino america casinose sabedel mas divertido deporte de contacto y tambien es muy divertido para ver lo pue de ser el mejor deporte familiar.

Martial Arts is really fun. You learn moves for self-defense like kicks, stances, and punches. You also learn pressure points to knock someone out instead of hurting someone. Our counselors are Mark, Sarah, and Steve. Well, I'm glad I joined Martial Arts.

Golf Is fun. At the classes you can hit golf balls at targets and sometimes you can win prizes. Some times we go to golf clinics and learn more from pros. You can also go to the driving range at Costa's. There are trips where you can go and play golf against other camps. If you like golf, but don't know how to play, then sign up for golf class.

In 11-under roller hockey you get to have a lot of fun. I take it on period 5A. My teacher is John Gushman. In all usual classes we do some drills, and then we scrimmage. This year we got new goals. They are very nice.
Sometimes they have 11-under hockey tournaments. Most of the time they are Pike County, in which we compete with other camps in our area.
11-U roller hockey is one of my favorite activities. The people in my class will agree with me when I say 11-u roller hockey is awesome!

Upper camp football is wonderful. Larry Tanner taught football at period 2B. In the beginning of the class, Larry taught us plays and then makes up practice them. The plays incorporate passing, receiving, and running routes to avoid the defense. After we have practiced the plays, Larry sets up a round-robin and we play against other small teams practicing the plays we have been taught. Plus, some plays that we put together. Larry usually gives us hints and tips so that we get better at the plays. Larry's football class on period 2B is a great way to learn football skills. I plan to take football for the rest of my years at camp and I think you should to.

Lacrosse is my favorite class. It's taught by Sarah and Sipho. In lacrosse you learn how to catch, throw and cradle the ball. We work on shooting at the corner and the sides of the goal, because it is harder to cover those areas of the goal. So year after year, I'll sign up for lacrosse.

What you need to learn...

• * Loading
• * How to group better
• * Shooting positions
• * Breathing
• * Aiming
• * Parts of a gun
• * Caution
• * Rules
• * Misfire

• Get in shooting position.
• Load bullet into chamber.
• Lock the bolt.
• Take aim.
• Breath in, then breath halfway out, fire, and let the rest out.
• Unlock bolt, and casing will automatically eject.

15 and under basketball is a class of great variety. We do everything from working on the basics of boxing out, lay-ups, learning different zone defenses, press defenses and other basketball skills. The practice and training are hard work but eventually we get to use those skills in a scrimmage. The scrimmage games are lots of fun and are some of my parts of camp.

Volleyball is always one of my favorite classes and I've taken it both months. The counselors for volleyball are Mike, Sipho, Fred, JeVaughn and Sarah. Canteens are often given out in the class, for example, whoever gets the most consecutive serves over the net received one. Last class we had a of the "Weakest Link" where you have to keep setting up the ball for the next person, if you dropped the ball or made a bad pass you were out and the last man standing was the strongest link.

During softball we practice cutoffs because if the ball is hit to the outfield the cut-off can get the ball in faster. We also practice hitting and fielding. Every class we have lots of fun. We laugh and smile every minute. We learn something new every day. We also go to tournaments and play games against every camp we can.

Some people will say that there are differences between these two sports of the marksman. Others will say that there is nothing the same between shooting the bullet and shooting the bow. I believe that they are brothers. They share some qualities and others are completely unique.

Riflery is a precision sport. You aim for groups that are tighter than our currency. Quarters, nickels, dimes, pennies and even just tears. With practice it can be learned quickly, but it does take time to master it. To be a good shooter, a tear in the black is more beautiful than the Mona Lisa.
Archery is all about the middle. The yellow part of the target is what is really concentrated upon. In my opinion, archery takes longer to learn. It takes the entire body to shoot. But when you can finally hit the sun, you can reap the sweet rewards of success.
Riflery and archery have their similar qualities. They are about becoming the best you can and sticking it to the target. But, different paths may be taken to get there on both. The rifleman will control his eye and breath. The bow man will learn to control his body and arm. To all you prospective masters, remember to focus and keep it fun.

I think archery is the best sport. I am really good at it. I get to learn how to hold a bow properly, how to score up the points, and more importantly, we learn safety.

Outdoor games is a very fun activity to take. We get to play a wide variety of games including Newcomb, ultimate frisbee, twenty one, and many different types of dodge ball. Twenty one is my favorite game we play. You sit in a circle and count around the circle until someone gets to twenty one. There are a lot of rules in the game that make it very challenging and fun. That is why twenty one is my favorite game.
Games class is taught by Sara Head, Sam Edwards, Steve Godfreid, Steve Ritchie, and Christian Spannhanke. They all make the class even more exciting then it already is. Sometimes they would plan the games we'd play and other times they would let us decide when we get their. One type of dodge ball we play is suicide dodge. In suicide dodge there are no sides and everyone runs all over the place. It is very chaotic but still a lot of fun. Overall, outdoor games class is a very fun and exciting activity to take at camp.

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There is a lot to say about the Apache race. It is an event that requires speed, strength, and team spirit. The Apache race is a camp spirit event for the Green/White competition. Who is the best this year? Who will win? Will it be Green or white? There are many possibilities for the outcome of the Apache race this year. It is possible that the green team could win all of the events, or the white team could also beat the green team in a flash. I followed the Apache race and I thought that it was the best one ever. Some people were mad because they lost, but it didn't matter because everyone that participated, even the counselors that helped out in the Apache race, were winners. Overall, it was good. Everyone was fast, energetic, and enthusiastic. The skills tested in the Apache race were planned for the kid's entertainment and enjoyment. Good-bye. See you next year.

For our cabin night we left after fifth period and went tubing on the Lackawacksen River. After we finished our tubing we went back to camp and had a cookout near the pavilion. We then camped out in the pavilion until the next morning.

Every other year we have a gold rush and carnival day. Some of the working seniors act as the sheriff, deputies, judge, bankers, jailers and outlaws from the gold rush time period. The working seniors organize both the gold rush and carnival. For gold rush they have to paint lots of little rocks gold and platinum, then hide them in the creek and section it off into different groups for the cabins as gold claims. If you were caught stealing gold from other cabin's gold claim area a deputy or the sheriff would arrest you and send you to the judge who would in turn most likely send you to the jailer. Also if a camper caught a bandit they were given a reward of 2000 dollars. Two of the bandits were Billy the kid and Jesse James, they both had a 5000 dollar reward. At the end of the gold rush the cabins turned in the gold and platinum to the bankers in exchange for carnival money. Smaller pieces are worth less money than bigger pieces are. My cabin got about 40 grand. That afternoon there was carnival. It was great. Every cabin had a different concession. There was a dunk tank, an ice cream stand, frog races, snow cones, "gaga", bowling, fries, pillow fights, and basketball. My cabin did mini golf. Overall, Klondike day was awesome!

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Every Wednesday, Friday, and twice on Sunday campers get canteen, or candy. On every canteen day, there are half-hour long lines for candy, while David Seskin checks in two kids at a time. Once each camper gets through the line, he has a choice of many types of candy, such as M&Ms, Skittles, Oompas, Gobstoppers, and an assortment of ice cream bars. The money used for canteen is taken out of each campers account, and the money for every canteen not used is given back to the camper's family.

Three times a day the campers and staff would enter the dining hall ready to eat. The biddies would get there 15 minutes before the meal, and set the tables. Then the bell would ring and the dining hall would be filled with hungry people. Making meals for over 200 people is a pretty tough job, but the kitchen staff did it and they did a pretty good job. The kitchen staff consists of Cathy Gibson-Smith, Marnita Henderson, Olivia Wyche, Patrik Hengerics, Michal Krebs, Tomas Plichta, Milan Sahul, Tomas Stanek, and Jozef Stas. In addition, the entire female staff takes shifts working to make sure that everything runs smoothly. This year, like every other year, the food was excellent.

When nearly one hundred and fifty kids spend all day playing sports and running around on rocky paths there are bound to be some bumps and bruises. However, Theresa Cammack, Chris Detamore, and Helen Simera treated every affliction campers can get from infections to sunburns to the many, many bee stings. They also do inspection, where every camper has to shower and come to them so we can be sure that everyone is keeping clean and healthy.

One of most campers' most awaited days of the week is laundry day and many campers need two. Each Cabin has one day week where the each camper stuffs all of their dirty, filthy clothes in a bag and sends it down to the two lovable laundry ladies whom without we would all be lost. On behalf of the entire camp I would like to say thank you for putting up with our filth.

At Camp Shohola, almost all the paper work is done at the lower office. It is the first building you see when you enter camp. When someone enters or exits camp, they must sign in or out in the lower office. Judy Olsommer runs the office and is always there to help you. Her job is much harder than it may seem. She answers hundreds of phone calls a day and organizes all the camper and staff accounts. The lower office also has a conference room and an office for senior staff. Without the lower office and Judy Olsommer's work, the entire camp would be in chaos.

One of the most important crews of Camp Shohola, The Maintenance department, is by far one of the most forgotten. If something as small as a screen breaks, or a water main explodes, who do you call? The maintenance crew! I just would like to take the time in this 2001 edition of the "Argus" to recognize the valued efforts of Reino Johnson, and Ron Zeiler. Some of their major projects this year include, putting up the lights at the basket ball court, fixing up the parking lot including building the maintenance shed, fixing vans, and fixing the leaky roofs of camp. On behalf of the "Argus" and Camp Shohola, I would like to officially thank Reino and Ron for their hard work everywhere around camp.

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As you continue your hike along a knife- edged ridge trail, the shrouded mist gives way to the 10 foot visibility to an incredible view of surrounding mountains; or, paddling down a class three rapid river on a really hot day with the water drenching you, when you battle the hydraulics. For me and many other kids, camp is the only place where we can have these awesome experiences while climbing, hiking, kayaking, and biking. After being at camp for 5 years, the activities were fun but I as ready for a change. Trips are my way to travel around the east coast. From Fryer Island to the white mountains. Camp Shohola's trips offer the widest variety of ways to either get an adrenaline rush or to relax. That is why I think trips are the best.

Early in the session, we took a group of kids over to Pine Forest Camp in which we participated in a Pike County Climbing Tournament. The camps involved were Shohola, Pine Forest, Lake Greeley, Timber Tops, Netimus, and Lake Owego. The group was made up of Ben Jacobs, Phil Weiner, Chis Gkahopoylos, Justin Cohan-Shapiro, Brian Bomalowski, Jesse Moy, DJ Dennis and Juan Manuel. We came out on top winning all but two events.

The Big Y is a great rafting trip to go on. When I went, about 30 kids went along. It is a 3 day and 2 night trip to Ohiopyle, Pa. which is in southwestern Pennsylvania. The trip started out on a bad note because there were 3 vans going and I chose the one that the lights did not work. That delayed us about an hour. Once the trip got going, it wasn't so bad. We stopped for lunch around noon and arrived at the campsite after about eight and a half hours of driving. Then we unpacked and chose our tent. I slept in a 6 man tent which was very roomy.
The next day we got sorted into raft groups of six. We drove 10 minutes to the rafting trip company and signed waivers. Then we drove to the Youghiogheny river and got a safety brief from a guide. We took out rafts on the river and started paddling. Before we reached a series of rapids or hydraulics, the kayaking guides told us how to raft down them. The rapids were fun but not too hard. Only occasionally would a person fall out. The most fun part of the trip was at calm areas where you could splash other rafts or get out and try to push or pull people out of their raft. One time, Justin Von Schmidt jumped on my raft and pushed everyone off. Then we had sandwiches and bug juice for lunch. After that we finished the river and got tee shirts. We then drove to a park that had a natural water slide. It was a long smoothed out slide in a bunch of rocks. That was very fun. We went back to camp had dinner and went to sleep. The we spent the next day driving back to camp. Once we got back we unpacked and slept from our tiring trip.

Nature is a very fun and enjoyable way of learning about the world around you and the things that inhabit it. Every year, Kit gives each Nature camper a tree. The camper fills in the details about the tree that he would like such as: height, color, description and location. The camper then gets a bark rubbing of his tree and also gets a leaf sample. Both parties then sign the paper and the tree becomes the campers'. We learn about many other things during the classes which include: the local animals, what they eat and where they are located, survival techniques for out in the open, finding signs of certain animals, how to handle animals and how to identify trees, plants and all vegetation.
This is my 2nd year of Nature at Shohola, and I think Nature is a key activity to take at camp and the stuff we learn, and do would help in later life. I think Nature is really cool and I intend to take Nature again if I come back to camp.