We are so excited to see you this Visitor’s Day! The weather forecast for the weekend is calling for some hot weather! Please remember to pack a hat, sunscreen, and water bottle! Below is some general information about the day for those that are new and returning.
On our younger side of camp, it is a chance for the many families who have never stood on Walden soil to visit the property. And as many of our older full-season campers get used to being away from home, Visitor’s Day is an important halfway-point milestone. For everyone… even those 2- and 4-week campers leaving just a few days later… Visitor’s Day is the pride felt by children showing their parents a new skill like getting up on water-skis. Or the pride felt by parents hearing that their child is the “best cleaner” in the cabin. Visitor’s Day is an opportunity to eat delicious food, by a gorgeous lake, with your equally gorgeous family.
Parents have always been our partners in delivering this experience and transparency a fundamental tenet of the Walden Way. Even with all the pictures, letters, MASH and tracking calls, Visitor’s Day is also a time for parents to size their children up and down, and to check up on their camper both physically and emotionally… to ask them how they are getting along with friends… how they’ve adjusted to camp life. We can more confidently enter the second half when you agree that your campers are doing great!
Thank you again for trusting us with your children. It has been our joy and honour to “cherish our time in paradise” together. We do understand that it is a long drive for a short day (and for some just a few days before 1st month campers go home) but we have heard, and hope you will agree after-the-fact, that the visit is worthwhile. We are so proud of our beautiful setting and our amazing staff (not in that order) and we hope you enjoy every minute of your camp experience!
Many parents love to bring a full picnic with their camper’s favourite foods from home. And there are 100 picnic tables and 100 other beautiful venues around camp. We put out a nice spread for you too! There is a line that will move quickly, and we do have foods to accommodate special diets for you and your camper.
Our usual Visitor’s Day spectacular lunch will be served from approximately 1:00 to 4:00 p.m.! And this year, seating will be available in the Dining Hall and outdoor Patio! When the announcement is made, please enter through either the Colour or Seeker door.
The Tuck Shop will be open from 2:00 – 4:00 p.m. with snacks.
Traditionally, sweatshirts are made after the summer. It was typically something that teenagers would do with a little help from a parent. One of the kids would have collected their friends’ contact information… another would collect the sizes… one would call a sweatshirt store and do the design… one of the parents would agree to front the money while their child collected cash from friends… Babysitting money was the main source of this cash which is why the quality of the shirt was chosen carefully. The design was often hand drawn by the cabin artist… and some of the text would be inside jokes from the summer. One of the kids would email Sol and ask for permission to use the Walden logo. As long as the jokes were appropriate, he would agree and send the design file directly to the shop. One of the kids would plan a cabin get together for the Fall and this would time up nicely with the opening of a big cardboard box. They wouldn’t make sweatshirts every year – just that year… that year where they fused as a cabin group – a feeling that only they knew. And because the sweatshirt was made after the summer, everyone was included… the staff… the camper that was moved in from another cabin mid-session for a better cabin fit…
Parents have inserted themselves into this process and we think that we parents should take a step back.
Unintended consequence: Many things change at changeover. Certainly, the staff in each cabin will change and sometimes campers in the cabin change. These changes sometimes occur after changeover. We will only know who was in this cabin group for certain when the summer is complete. Sweatshirts (with kids’ names on it in particular) can create inequity… between cabins… and for campers from Canada or Mexico or Israel or staff added to the cabin.
Recommendation: Do not bring or send sweatshirts to camp mid-summer. There is an ABUNDANCE of stuff here already. Our kids are so privileged. Camp is paradise. They don’t need more. They don’t need huge cookie cakes and cabin sweatshirts on Visitor’s Day… they have you!
Rule: But if you must… If you must send something in a birthday package or bring something on Visitor’s Day for the whole cabin (and again, we don’t think you should), then you must create, pay for, and send TWENTY of them to ensure that everyone gets one. The item cannot have names of campers on it.
Unfortunately, the camp has received some packages that do not meet our package policy during the first three weeks of camp. The contents of these packages have been returned to sender or collected in our Tuck Shop. We wish to remind you that packages can only be given to campers on their birthday. Please do not send packages of any kind, food or non-food – this includes books, comics, and magazines. Our “Do Not Pack List” is included again for your information.
There is very little need for anything beyond the Packing List. In fact, it can be damaging to the camp experience when other items are sent.
The magic of camp is greatest when campers are free from the pressures of inequity. In school, students are segregated by their academic performance, the groups they move with, and the “stuff” they have in their possession. Camp is unique because it is often the only time in a child’s life when they can begin an experience with other children on a truly level playing field.
There is another very real reason not to send items beyond those listed. So much effort has been expended to ensure that camp is a safe environment. Many items, particularly electrical appliances, although seemingly harmless, can pose a risk to the safety of campers.
We hope you understand that this policy is re-examined regularly and formulated with the assistance of experienced camp and safety professionals including our local fire department.
Parents can control what is sent to camp. Camp staff can control what is kept at camp.
Please share in this responsibility of making camp a safe and productive environment by ensuring that only items that appear on the Packing List are sent.
Grandparents of all kinds… We’re so excited to have some of you join us on Visitor’s Day! Please take it easy! We will have some golf cart transportation available throughout the day, making loops around camp but you are wisest to hang out at our ‘Naches Nook’ by the Tuck Shop for some cold water and shade! Your grandchildren are excited to see you!
Riverview Motel
9261 Combermere Road, Combermere, Ontario K0J 1L0
Tel no.: 613-756-3633
On the scenic Madawaska River close to local shopping, Mastercard & Visa accepted.
Stevenson Lodge & Marina
1840 Lower Craigmont Road, Combermere, Ontario K0J 1L0
Tel no.: 613-756-3505
Year round, boat, motor & canoe rental, small marina, fuel & repair service, restaurant.
Wingle Inn
275 Wingle Road, Regional Road #2, Palmer Rapids, Ontario, K0J 2E0
Tel no.: 613-758-2072
Peaceful & quiet Bed & Breakfast, family restaurant, good quality food, nice view of Ottawa Valley.
Benaaron Guest House
5281 Boulter Road, Bancroft, Ontario K0L 1C0
Tel no.: 613-332-0892
info@benaaronguesthouse.com
Brides’ Gate Inn & Grail Springs Spa
2004 Bay Lake Road, Bancroft, Ontario K0L 1C0
Tel no.: 613-332-0154
Best Western Sword Motor Inn
146 Hastings North, Bancroft, Ontario K0L 1C0
Tel no.: 613-332-2474
Swiss Inn Motel & Restaurant
Highway 41, Denbigh, Ontario K0H 1L0
Tel no.: 613-333-2221
Piper’s Rest Bed & Breakfast
15 Slate Falls Road, Denbigh, Ontario K0H 1L0
Tel no.: 613-333-9462
Mountain View Motel
18508 Highway 60, Barry’s Bay, Ontario K0J 1B0
Tel no.: 1-800-363-6936 or 613-756-2757
Ash Grove Inn
42524 Combermere Road, Barry’s Bay, Ontario K0J 1B0
Tel no.: 1-888-756-7672
Located opposite beautiful Kamaniskeg Lake – every room comes with a view of the lake and breathtaking sunsets.
Chippawa Cottage Resort
835 Chippawa Road, Regional Road #1, Barry’s Bay, Ontario K0J 1B0
Tel no.: 613-756-2703
Some housekeeping cottages, boat & motor rentals, restaurant.
Opeongo Trail Resort
262 Ohio Road, P.O. Box 220, Combermere, Ontario K0J 1L0
Tel no.: 613-756-3509
opeongotrail@mv.igs.net
Housekeeping cottage rentals on scenic waterfront lots, fully-serviced tent & trailer sites, showers, washrooms, dock and sandy beach.
Dreamer’s Rock Bed & Breakfast
35556 Highway 28 East, McArthur’s Mills, Ontario K0L 2M0
Tel no.: 613-332-2350
Little Mississippi Inn
35556 Highway 28 East, Bancroft, Ontario K0L 1C0
Tel no.: 613-332-2350
A message from the Parking Master:
Dear Visitors,
Sun in the city, and even more sun at camp. The weather this summer has been hot with quick rainstorms to keep the grass green! We are not complaining! Hot weather is wonderful for encouraging kids to go swimming and stay involved!
Once your car is parked, we ask that it remain that way until you wish to leave camp. To preserve the safety of your children and our visitors, cars are not to be driven anywhere around camp certainly not to a camper cabin. You may notice that some areas are blocked off with chains, white traffic barriers, picnic tables, canoes, or garbage cans – please do not try to cross these lines as they demarcate “No Driving Zones” at camp.
Please be patient with our parking process. We do not promise to be fast, but we do promise to be fair and safe. Our gates open at approximately 11:00 a.m. and we hope to have everyone parked before noon. Families that arrive at 9 am will see their kids at noon… and families that arrive at 11:15 will also see their kids at noon.
Please follow the directions of our camp greeters and parking staff. One year, a staff member was almost hurt by an impatient parent. Please don’t rush! The campers will not be let out of the buildings before noon and I hope your child will be a staff member one day.
There are three types of staff that will be giving parking directions: OPP Officers, Local friends of Walden, and Walden Staff. Please thank them and give them your attention and respect. Some of these men and women are our local reserve firefighters!
For many years, Walden Visitors lined up on the opposite side of the road. In 2018, our friends at the OPP asked us to find a better way so as not to hold up through traffic on an increasingly busy Highway 28. We implemented a new system with success! And so, with their help, and the help of our neighbours, we are keeping the changes we made last year to the ways in which we park cars on Visitor’s Day. The “new” plan is detailed on the next page.
The very first cars to arrive will be parked in the staff parking lot. These families will have to wait in the staff parking lot until 11 am.
Please ignore the unpleasantness of seeing some extra cars around camp. We have tried to keep them out of site but sometimes that isn’t possible. Camp is cleared of cars on all other days of the summer!
Thank you for your cooperation on this great day,
Seth Cole, Parking Master, 41st Summer at Camp Walden
Campers are excited to see their families! If you have any difficulty finding your camper amidst the excitement, please come to the office where you will be connected with them.
Colour and Comic campers can be collected just outside the building called OMNI.
Zodiacs Boys will be in the Warehouse.
Zodiacs Girls will be in the Zodiac Unit.
Do not enter unit until noon.
Seekers will be in the Seeker Unit.
Do not enter unit until noon.
CITs will be in the Halfway House.
The following members of camp’s Leadership Team will be available outside the main office for most of the day.
Associate Director, Seth Cole, and Program Directors, Matt Sherman & Jamie Collins, will be circulating around camp throughout the afternoon to answer any questions you might have about our skill development programs.
Dining Hall Manager Lyndsay Cloughley will be eager to discuss any Food Questions or Special Diet Questions with her fellow Kitchen Heads in the Dining Hall.
Jelly Konigina, our Head of Camper Relations, will be available near the office throughout the day.
Health Coordinators, Josh, and Cassidy will greet you at MASH during the afternoon.
Amanda, Ashton, and our other office staff will be in the office helping your experience be as wonderful as it can be!
Before you read on, please note that: the price is the price (see below). As we communicate throughout the year, extension rates are flat rates. That is to say that sibling, alumni, cheque, and other discounts do not apply. The cost is: more than if you had registered for this length of time originally, but less than the cost of the session sold separately. Accommodating late requests for extensions are wonderful but do cost camp more.
If you thought JULY was a blast, wait until you hear about what happens at Walden in AUGUST!!! There are lots of campers registered for August and there are still spaces available in all units. The List is way too long but here are some of the highlights of our August programs:
The following extension rates are for all campers including both July and Home and Away:
Add 3 more weeks: $5763 ($5100 +13% HST)
Add 2 more weeks: $4746 ($4200 +13% HST)
Add a 3rd week: $1695 ($1500 +13% HST)
If you are interested in extending your child’s stay at camp, please visit the Camp Office. There are openings in many cabins. Please understand that placing your name on the Extension List indicates a commitment on your part. Please also be aware that although we ask you for your commitment today, we cannot guarantee to you whether a spot is available until Tuesday! We cannot make promises about cabin grouping at any time.
We strongly discourage campers going home and returning to camp over changeover. CITs are away on canoe trip. We know that some kids need an orthodontic appointment or other kind of “reset”. No matter what the reason, medical or otherwise, a one way bus ride costs $75, and two-way $125 + HST.
Saturday July 19th, 12pm – 4pm
We recognize that Walden campers come from various family structures that may require alternate arrangements around Visitor’s Day. We also know that there are some families who have children at multiple camps with conflicting Visitor’s Days. Regardless of the reason, we are happy to work with your family to help make accommodations for a successful visit with your camper(s)!
We typically recommend the day before Visitor’s Day for alternate visits though other dates can be worked out if that date does not work for your family.
Please note that there may be camp-wide programs, unit field trips, or cabin canoe trips in the days before or after Visitor’s Day that your child may not want to miss, so we recommend consulting with our office before solidifying a date for your visit.
Campers have had a wonderful summer at ski! Over 100 people asked to show off their skills at ski and a random selection of campers was made! A schedule has been created and is posted in the dining hall, at ski, and the cork boards by the office. Everyone is invited to come watch the skiing but only those on the list should ask to ski.
If siblings are both participating, you should find that they will be scheduled consecutively.
Please understand that skiing and fun is very important but your safety is paramount! Jess & Zane, our wonderful heads of ski, may make changes to ensure the integrity of the ski program and the safety of all participants and observers.
Happy Skiing!
New to Walden? Have a look at our Information Sessions or find out about our Discovery Programs.
Already registered? Make sure to fill out our Spring Registration Form so we have all of your up-to-date information.
