Editor’s Note: July/August 2012
Summer Camp
By Hilary Meyerson
A friend was commenting recently that there should be summer camp for adults. Take a look around at the incredible outdoor offerings for Northwest kids in the summer. My own kids are signed up for a plethora of ridiculously fun adventures: sleep-away horse camp on Vashon Island, traditional YMCA resident camp at Orkila on Orcas Island, mountain biking camp through Cascade Bicycle Club and the Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance, sailing camp—the list goes on. What about us—the adults?
The answer is that adult camp can be whatever you make it. Days are long in the Northwest, there is plenty of time to go to work then off to a recreational activity in the latter half of daylight hours.
This is the time for an evening sailing class, a climbing course, or an SUP lesson. The weekends don’t have to be full of just mowing the lawn and doing chores—plan ahead and make it a whole day of outdoor activities. (Hint: see our stories on Bellevue or the Columbia River Gorge in this edition.)
Outdoors NW’s mission is to help you find what to do and where to go to find that perfect adult camp experience.
If you’re looking for real adult “camp,” check out plush places like the North Cascades Basecamp in the Methow Valley which has a host of environmental learning/vacation packages, or R.A.W. Retreats, which offers cycling and yoga getaways for women. Or how about a rugged wilderness survival camp in Oregon? Whether your idea of camp involves high thread-count sheets or trapping your own dinner, it’s up to you to make it happen.
My perfect “camp” day in Seattle? First, waking up on a Saturday and getting out early for a hike in the Cascades before the trails get crowded. On the way back into town stopping at a farmer’s market for fresh produce and goodies for a barbeque down at Alki Beach. Then, grilling corn and salmon over a fire as the sun sets over the Olympics. S’mores to top off the meal.
Maybe I’ll make a lanyard as the kids play on the beach. It’s summer. Why should kids have all the fun?
~Hilary Meyerson
