June 4th

June 4, 2026

We are already having a blast this session! The campers are settling in so nicely and really getting into the groove of Camp life. After a chilly first few days, the sun has come out, and we are soaking up every second of it under Old Bald!

Beyond Boundaries

Visual odyssey across continents
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Sands of Time

Stark beauty of desolate dunes
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Following Opening Campfire, we headed into two all-time favorite Evening Programs: Deck the Counselor and Auction. Deck the Counselor is one of the best ways for cabins to bond early on into the session. Each cabin comes together to create a skit, dance, or performance, all packed with creativity, inside jokes, and plenty of laughs that show off their cabin spirit. Auction is always a highlight! Every cabin starts with $1000 in Merrie-Woode dollars and bids on highly sought-after prizes, like front row for movie night or the chance to wear pajamas to breakfast. But not all prizes are known when they’re bidding; a handful of them are mysteries that only get revealed after they’ve been 'purhased' (like the lovely task of washing all the camp dogs!). When multiple cabins go all-in on the same item, things get intense, and counselors go up on stage for a very serious game of rock, paper, scissors while their cabins cheer them on.

Faces of Humanity

Portraits of people from around the globe
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Beyond Boundaries

Visual odyssey across continents
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Nature's Symphony

Breathtaking colors of our planet
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Sands of Time

Stark beauty of desolate dunes
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This first week has been packed with fun, new friendships, and plenty of opportunities for campers to get comfortable with their cabinmates and the routine of Camp. As soon as campers arrive, the spirit of Merrie-Woode comes right back to life and everything just feels complete. We couldn’t be happier to be here together!

Chug-a-wump, 

Robin & Frost 

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June 20th: Final Shows!

June 20, 2026
Our first session of the summer is wrapping up! While we are so sad to see these campers go, they certainly go out with a bang! The last day of Camp looks a little different from our usual routine. After breakfast, campers spend some time packing before heading to Castle in Chapel (which we’ve lovingly coined “Chastle”). The youngest three cabins finally get their turn as Castle hosts, and after leading us in a song, we move into one of the most meaningful parts of the morning: awards!! Here at camp, we offer levels and certificates across a variety of activities, and our final day is our chance to celebrate the hard work and progress these campers made over the past three weeks. This year, awards were given for passing levels in Kayaking, Archery, Tennis, Tumbling, Riding, and Mountaineering. We also celebrated a record number of new inductees into the Bullseye Club and Dam Swimmers (see the campers reciting the Dam Swimmers' pledge below!).

June 18th

June 18, 2026
With the end of the session getting closer, there are a ton of special traditions that happen in the last week of camp! This morning was the Bum’s Prank. The oldest cabin, Bum’s Rest, plans a prank for one of the last breakfasts of camp, complete with a theme, costumes, music, and more! This year, the theme was America, more specifically “God Bless Bum’s Rest,” in celebration of the upcoming 250th Fourth of July. They focused on the Hamilton/Founding Fathers/1776 aspect of American history, complete with powdered wigs for all involved! Instead of the wake-up bell, we were awoken by Reveille, followed by “The Star-Spangled Banner” and “Party in the USA.” Bum’s decked out the Dining Hall, complete with the “Declaration of Bum's Rest” (with Dammie’s signature bigger than John Hancock’s), the infamous fake horse, and a canoe right in the middle of everything.

The Merrie-Woode Values: Spirituality

June 16, 2026
Spirituality: Camp Merrie-Woode is a place of reverence and is based in the Christian faith. As we wrap up this first session of the summer, we are especially grateful for our time at Merrie-Woode, the Place of Rarest Beauty, and for the way that it reveals God’s presence in our daily lives. Merrie-Woode's natural beauty evokes a sense of awe and appreciation for our Creator in those who have the opportunity to observe it, especially the campers and counselors who spend their summers beneath Old Bald. Recognizing the importance of Camp as a sacred place, the first line of Merrie-Woode’s Mission Statement speaks of “a sanctuary of rarest beauty which inspires a lasting awareness of God’s presence.” Admiration of nature is often the basis of spirituality at Camp. Campers instinctively acknowledge that the many wonders of the outdoors are God’s handiwork. Some of our favorite reflections about Merrie-Woode are found in the pages of The Lake Fairfield Ripple , a collection of camper and staff writings and drawings published annually since 1923. In one early edition of The Ripple , a camper expressed the connection between God and nature in poetic verse:
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