Packing for Camp in 5 Simple Steps
Step 1: Download and print the CV Clothing and Equipment List and Joe Camper.
Posts tagged with wilderness adventure camp
The Bent-Shaft Advantage
Efficient Paddling For most of us at camp, canoeing means sitting back, relaxing, and enjoying nature’s beauty. But for some paddle enthusiasts, speed and efficiency matter more than anything. That’s why we’re sharing a quick review of efficient paddling techniques.
How Wilderness Adventures Foster Lifelong Success
How can we teach children that failure is not the end of the road? Our mindset, or attitude, governs nearly everything in our lives. It determines the way we live, experience the world, and make decisions. Our mindset shapes the way we view ourselves and subsequently what we can accomplish. According to Stanford University psychologists Carol Dweck, there are two types of mindsets: In a fixed mindset students believe their basic abilities, their intelligence, their talents, are just fixed traits. They have a certain amount and that’s that, and then their goal becomes to look smart all the time and...
My First Boundary Waters Canoe Trip
Your first overnight adventure is guaranteed to be a stretch. One astute camper captured his first Boundary Waters trip for posterity in the 2018 Paddle Post newspaper. My First Boundary Waters Canoe Trip I have been to multiple national parks and forests, but I didn't know what to expect here at Camp Voyageur. The first few days at base camp we practiced canoeing and fishing nearby, then we headed out for six days with counselors Alex and Evan bound for the Canadian border and the Crooked Lake fishing grounds. I felt this trip would be difficult, but I was excited...
2019 Trip Options
Register for trips by emailing the Camp Voyageur Trip Director, Alex at
Nature's Effect on Our Brains and Well-being
Why are we drawn to nature? What makes the great outdoors so great?
Wise Words From Our Past
In the 1980’s Camp Voyageur’s founder and director Charlie Erdmann wrote an article in the local Ely Echo. We believe his words are as relevant now as they were back then, and would like to share them with you. Here is the word-for-word article:
In-Depth Gear Guide
Alright parents, yes only parents; unfortunately even if you tell your children to read this they probably won’t, this will be an in-depth look at different types of gear your child will need for camp, and will likely use outside of camp. I still recommend you go over camp’s checklist, linked here. However, if you’re looking for specific recommendations, or need help choosing between different brands, then you’re in the right place! These recommendations are based on my six years as a camper and three as a counselor, so I've been around the Boundary Waters block. My experience has...
"7 Ways to Maximize Misery" (WARNING: Sarcasm)
Uhhh, so what is this about? I’ll stop with the click-baiting. The purpose of this post is to share a video which I feel speaks to some tendencies in not just teens, but in many of my own peers, that can become reinforced as habits that ultimately undermine our own happiness. It follows closely the work of psychologist Randy J. Paterson, who wrote the book “How to be miserable: 40 strategies you already use”. By necessity, summer camps intervene Many of the points addressed in the video are simply impossible at camp. You live and eat with your peers everyday,...
The new case for a tech-free summer camp experience
Given the historic precedence of computers and the internet and how integrated technology has become in our children’s modern education, spending a month or two away from screens is a much bigger commitment than it used to be. In fact, if I had to describe the largest cultural shift in the last decade, it would have to be that what we consider “normal” amounts of exposure to screens and computers has perhaps tripled in length. But taking this even further, I’d argue that for our kids, the internet is much more than just a tool. It is increasingly becoming a...