What a great Camp this year!!!

Almost 40 members of the extended EOTB family – young, old, and all ages in between – participated in the Camp and it turned out to be a huge success.

Thanks to Paul D., the campsites were well organized and everybody who was able to register in time had a good spot. Our hosts, the Black Donald Trailer Park, were gracious as always, delivering wood and message by golf cart right to our sites and checking several times a day to see if we needed anything. They even provided a backhoe to assist Brian after his RV and trailer off-road articulation demo.

This year the weather cooperated and we ran two trails a day as planned. On Saturday Chris P. lead a run to 3 Mountains, while Paul D. lead an intrepid troop to Quinn back to front, where it split into a smaller group who chose to detour to take in the Pinion Pass and its various lumpy geological attractions. All made it out relatively unscathed, apart from some rock rash. On the way back Paul decided to explore some interesting GPS anomalies, including a scenic tour of Govan Lake and environs. Good thing Paul is our club Map Guy or we would have been concerned, although fearing a late return, there were some stirrings of a Rib Revolt in the ranks.

In the end all our members from the various trails made it back in time for one of the true highlights of the Camp, a group smoked rib BBQ organized by Carol P. and featuring Hummer Bob as the Rib Master. Delicious was an understatement and the food just kept coming until everyone was full to the brim. With the campfire burning brightly it was time for one of Camp EOTB’s sacred rituals… Bite the Bag! The aim was to bend over and pick up a paper bag using only your teeth. Once everyone had done it, the bag was shortened an inch. In the end the bag was reduced to a scrap of paper and the organizer, Rod E. was forced to dig a hole to attempt to break a 4-way tie. Once Rod could dig no further, all 4 participants were still in the game and, for the first time in Camp history, a tie was declared between Melanie, Harry, Ben and Caitlin.

Sunday saw Chris P. taking a group on the Quinn Loop, while Vince P. took a group of about 8 trucks up to Crag Lake via the front door. Some folks had previously run buggies up the clay hill and had dug out ruts so deep it was virtually impassable. Enroute to the lake we met up with the H.’s who were camping there for the evening. After lunch by the lake, half the group came back out the front door, while the others went out the back door. All made it back to Camp safe and sound. Meanwhile, Paul D. and a couple of other ‘old hands’ explored a promising new trail and actually trailblazed a complete loop. It hasn’t been named yet, although Paul is considering calling it “Lockerbie Gone” after losing his rear locker part way around the trail.

The only real casualty of the weekend was to Burns’ tow vehicle, the Jeep Commander, which blew a water pump on Monday morning. With some help from Peter, Tony and the CAA, it was no more than a minor (but expensive) inconvenience.

Big kudos go out to all the organizers, including Paul, Carol, Hummer Bob, Chris, all the trail leaders and their tail gunners… please take a well-deserved bow. However, special mention has to go to all the members of our EOTB family who attended with their kids, dogs, tilting RV’s, kith and kin. This year there was a special sense of friendship and camaraderie in the air and, as a result, it was very special Camp, from which everyone took away fond memories. Thank you all, to everyone who participated!

Report by Burns M.