Training begins at the Melwood Recreation Center!

While most folks were dusting off their grills, and enjoying a three-day-weekend, Melwood Recreation Center staff were hard at work during pre-summer training. Over the last couple weeks, program leaders and full-time staff have been completing a whirlwind of trainings to ensure that our campers and travelers have a safe, fun, and engaging experience.

Three of the Recreation Center’s most popular activity areas require extensive training before participants arrive: Canoe/Pond, High Ropes, and Archery.

Nothing says “summer” more than paddling around the water in a good old-fashioned canoe, right? We love having this classic camp activity available for our participants. We’re also excited to announce the return of paddle boating! During their 2-day training, staff mastered not only the fundamentals of canoeing, but also new and fun ways to make an already fun activity even more exciting and inclusive. One of the creative new pond games that participants have to look forward to is tug-of-war!

One of the highlights at the Melwood Recreation Center are the multiple high-ropes courses and elements. We are proud to say that the majority of our ropes courses are inclusive and adaptable for individuals of ALL ability levels. During training, temperatures went well into the 90’s, but the coolest part of training is going down the zip line 5 or 6 times.  Also, when you’re standing 30 feet in the air atop Nessie, you get a new perspective on things.

 

Movies like The Hunger Games, Brave, and The Avengers have made archery mega-popular over the last few months. The funny thing is: We’ve been doing awesome archery for years!! While we may not have the skills of Katniss Everdeen, our archery instructors spend hours training on safety, skills, and technique at the archery range. We’re excited for new archery games this year including Battleship and more. For campers who aren’t thrilled by the idea of drawing back bowstrings and aiming at targets, we’ll have other fun archery-themed activities like making quills and wrist guards.