North Country Camps

A summer home away from home

Story by Lindsay Panzica
Photos courtesy of NorthCountryCamps.com

Summer camp is where kids can get their first taste of adventure and independence away from their parents.  Whether the experience lasted one week or eight, one year or many, they are memories that last on long after those days are over.  The programs offered at North Country Camps enable kids to have these same experiences while enjoying the wilderness around them.

North Country Camps is an organization that runs and oversees two different camps; Camp Lincoln for boys and Camp Whippoorwill for girls.  Camp Lincoln was originally opened in 1920. 
Colba F. "Chief" Gucker founded the camp on a farm by Augur Lake.  Chief sold lots to his colleagues at Lincoln school, and over the years the camp grew into a full summer camp for boys.  His son Pete Gucker took over the camp from his father after WWII and he feels that they offer children a truly quality experience.

“What we think makes us special is we have an emphasis on exploring the natural world,” says Pete Gucker former camp director.

The Whippoorwill camp for girls was opened in 1931 when they bought more property from another old farm. 

Gucker’s daughter, Nancy Gucker Birdsall, who is now the director of both camps, was once in charge of Whippoorwill.  Nancy has spent most of her life with North Country camps beginning back before she was even old enough to be a camper.

“I spent my pre-camp years here as sort of a camp brat, and then came here every summer as a camper as well,” Birdsall says. “I eventually came back as a counselor, and then gradually worked my way up through the ranks to where I am now.”

Gucker says that the reason that North Country Camps runs two separate camps for boys and girls rather than one co-ed camp is because the camps were established before co-education was popular, and they have chosen to maintain the separate camps over the years. During the day, there are activities that boys and girls can participate in together, but at night and during the rest of the time they are separate.

“We have kept the camps separate because we find a real importance in enabling boys and girls to function separately from each other,” Gucker says. “In terms of child development there is a difference between being a boy and a girl, therefore I think there is a benefit of living with males and females, and having them as role models.”

One of the aspects that make these camps so special is their Wilderness Trip program.  The wilderness program includes a wide variety of activities including hiking, backpacking, canoeing, sailing, horseback riding, bicycling and more.  Campers can spend as little as one afternoon hiking one of the camps numerous trails, or as long as several days exploring on an overnight trip.

“I think that there are two main factors that really add to the quality of our camps,” Gucker said. “One is that the camp sprang from early concepts of progressive education where children learn by doing, the other is the full advantage of the location, the programs include a lot of hiking, canoe trips and more.”

Kate Green, director of Whippoorwill has been working at the camps since 1998.  Green is originally from England, and began working at the camps as part of summer exchange visa program, but loved it so much that she returned.

“I just really loved the community and the philosophy of the programs, so I just kept coming back year after year,” Green says.

Green agrees that the Wilderness program is an excellent part of the overall camp experience that they offer. Green feels that the trips are all about learning to respect the wilderness. The campers learn to be out in the woods and are responsible for learning safety tips and helping to plan meals and other aspects of the trips.

“Its such a far cry from what they experience in the city and it gives them a great opportunity to experience nature,” Green says. “Its lovely to see campers develop a passion for that.”

Doug Furman, director of Lincoln is another North Country Camp native. His grandfather also helped start Lincoln, and like Birdsall, Furman grew up spending his summers at the camp. Having been with it for so long, Furman feels that it’s the people involved with the camp that make the atmosphere such a positive place to be.

“The people who run the camp are dedicated, intelligent and creative people and you remain loyal to them for the rest of your life,” Furman says. “There have been several counselors that were very influential on me, and there are a bunch of kids that have stuck with me over the years.”

Furman feels that one of the most rewarding things about being part of this community is watching children develop over the summer and over the years.  Children who come to camp come with all different ability levels and the experiences they have at camp allow them to grow and further develop their skills.

Furman remembers one summer when a boy came to camp as a complete non-swimmer.  By the end of the summer, the boy had passed all of the basic swimmer tests, the last of which is swimming back and forth across the lake.

“It was really amazing to see this boy go from not being able to float to being able to swim across the lake,” Furman says. “That is something that has really stuck with me.”

Birdsall agrees that part of what makes this camp so special is the tight bond amongst those who go there.  She has found that sometimes as early as the second day campers feel as though they have been there for their entire lives.

“I love seeing how groups of girls and women and boys and men can come together as a community and grow this bond,” Birdsall says. “For many it’s like a second family.”

Have you ever been to summer camp?