Summer arrives quickly in Maine!
I have lived in Maine for around 20 years and still the spring transition from frozen tundra to vegetative jungle surprises me every year. Spring is just incredible here! In just a matter of a few weeks the dramatic change in weather and landscape literally unfolds before your eyes.
The ice melts off the lake and docks and boats are hauled out of storage and are back in use before the water gets much above 40 degrees. Intrepid swimmers even brave the chilly water making the most of the days when it gets above 70 degrees.
The garden around the farmhouse at camp has started to spring up with lupines, irises and peonies. It is always a time to wonder how long they have been established there and remember the days that Betty Cobb would tend to the weeds before camp opened.
The rhododendron outside my office window is blooming a glorious pink and regularly attracts bees and hummingbirds. Anytime you step outside after 5am the air is filled with the noisy sounds of birds and the number of squirrels and chipmunks appears to have quadrupled overnight. After so many months of dark, quiet and cold it is a time of great excitement and activity.
It will only be a couple of very short weeks until it is officially summer and Camp Runoia’s 112th season will be beginning on Great Pond. Like the Maine spring things happen very quickly at the start of the season. The camp docks and boats are in, the horses have already arrived, staff are trickling in and there is a flurry of activity both in person and in our inboxes.
We cannot wait for camp to be in full swing, for our campers to be here and to be enjoying the hazy, lazy days of summer. The sounds of loons on the lake will soon be lulling us to sleep ad our days will be spent submerged in all that nature has to offer us.