Memories from Judy

Judy, from Atlanta, GA attended Blueberry Cove Camp in the 1960s and recently wrote to share some memories with us!

“Muddling”

You do not know how many people over the years, I have told about this strange but wonderful activity that I participated in Tenants Harbor, Maine.  I was lucky enough to have chosen this fun activity one morning, during our daily morning council meetings. I remember that after the bell rang,  following breakfast and clean-up,  we would all have to report to our morning “Council Meeting”. We would sit out in front of ” The Main”, and hear the updates of special activities or an update on trips for the day. We could choose one of many possible daily activities.  I was always open to trying something new. So, one morning I chose the activity ‘Muddling”, and five or six of us campers and a counselor or two,  all headed down to our private beach for all of this fun. I remember that you could only do this activity, “Muddling, during low tide. This was the time when our harbor was at the lowest tide levels. If I remember correctly, the water was almost completely gone out of our part of the harbor. We would find pockets of mud, where we could sink down, it seems maybe even waist deep, and spread mud all over us, even our hair and transform into these “little funny-looking-mud” monsters. I remember we looked like little “mud aliens”, as we walked back to camp to clean up before lunch.

Meal Time:

It was always fun to be the waiter because you were able to make the choices, for what cereals or foods you wanted at your table. I remember there was oatmeal and cream of wheat and bowls of brown sugar. They served the Creme of Wheat instead of grits. of course, I was accustomed to grits but found out that this was more of a Southern dish. There was a first bell for the waiters, then the second bell was for everyone to come to eat. I especially remember the ” blueberry pancakes, and blueberry jam, that the kitchen staff made from the blueberries the campers had picked and shared. They would also cook the periwinkles, mussels, and clams that we collected too. Of course, there was always melted butter on the table for us to use for dipping.

I also remember our Carnival Day, I remember the Lobster Feast Day, sailing out for an overnight trip to Bar Island, the island connected to another by a Sandbar. I remember our overnight trips and climbing Mt. Katahdin. I remember feeling so free as we skinny-dipped as our way of bathing on the trip, of course for me it was girls only! We would stop to gather fresh spring water to fill and replenish our canteens.

I remember once, choosing to go to a local sardine packing factory, and it was so smelly, OMG!  One morning activity I chose to go out on a local lobsterman’s boat. He showed us how he pulled up his lobster traps and kept his lobsters and threw back any crabs caught in his traps, for the crab fisherman. I also once, went on an activity to a local animal auction. It was at the beginning of one camp summer. We bid on the animals and purchased all of our farm animals. We brought a goat, lamb, calf, pig, and chickens, back to camp. These were our pets. I remember going to rock quarries and diving off rocks.

I remember Ann Goldsmith and Ed and his wife, their small children, and their dog. One of my counselors was named Joan and another counselor was Peggy. She was also one of the horseback riding counselors. I also remember the horse “Stardust”. Smile.  I remember Ed, coming around every morning waking us up with his banjo and songs.  I remember he would wake us up with the song lyrics “Rise and Shine and Give God the Glory, Glory” he would make up some funny songs, sometimes the songs would let us know what was happening special for the day.  I have so many more stories to share, from my unforgettable summer camp experiences. I had so much fun during my Blueberry Cove summers. I remember them so vividly in detail, just like it was yesterday.

The camp was so small and such a close-knit family. A few campers, that I remember were some of my bunkmates. There was Wendy, and Laura, and my closest friends were Jill Cannon (NYC) and two sisters,  Leslie and Neysa Dillon ( Newton, Mass.) I also remember a boy named Seth, and I remember that the comedian Sid Caesars’ nephew was at camp too.

I was the only camper from the south. It is where Tuskegee University where the Tuskegee Airmen started. I would travel from the south by train with my mother. The trains are still one of my favorite ways to travel. I would always meet all of the Blueberry Cove campers at Grand Central Station in NYC. We would all travel up to Rockland, Maine in the sleeper cars. This was always so much fun.