Register Today

It’s a beautiful morning at Miniwanca and at Graceland. Blue-bird skies and all the sunshine you could ever want. Stony Creek is rushing after the rain this week, and the wild raspberries just finished ripening.

The campers and leaders are running back and forth, grabbing their gear and checking out bikes. As we move into the last week and a half of camp, our final trips are departing and there’s a nostalgic feeling all around Graceland.

 Trailblazers departed moments ago for their 3-day hike in the Manistee National Forest. They’ll hike nearly 20 miles on the North Country National Scenic Trail experiencing some of the most beautiful forested land Michigan has to offer.

Our Explorers are back in camp after 4 days of cycling around the coast of West Michigan. Yesterday they participated in the many different Founders Day activities, and today they’ll begin preparing for their 6-day canoe trip down the Manistee River. This morning they packed up all their gear and food into dry bags. They’ll spend the afternoon canoeing on Stony Lake and Stony Creek to start practicing paddling and boating skills they’ll need for their excursion.

 Adventurer campers have completed half of their cycling trip up the coast of West Michigan. For the next two days they’ll be on the Leelanau Peninsula, enjoying afternoon ice cream and sunsets on the beach. They’re excited for the second half of the trip where they’ll bike through central Michigan and the Manistee National Forest on their way back to camp. It’s possible that they’ll cross paths with our Explorers who are canoeing close to where the Adventurers will be biking!

 Voyageurs are enjoying a gorgeous silver (cloudy) day in the Georgian Bay. They are crossing channels to wild, uninhabited islands and are becoming much more confident in their paddling skills. They’re learning to read currents and the weather, and more than that they are settling into a wonderful sense of family that has developed within their group as the weeks have passed. We’ll be picking them up in just five short days, so we hope they’re enjoying their final days on the water!

Our Odyssey campers will experience a culminating point in their cross-country Odyssey today as they ride into Merrowvista. They’ll be greeted with cheers from Merrowvista campers and staff as they ride in past the Farmhouse, drop their bikes, then run down and dive into Dan Hole Pond. They’re having to work around some cloudy and rainy weather today as they plan their ride in, but they’re excited nevertheless.