A Walk on the Wild Side
A Place of Friendship and Discovery at Camp Unalayee…
Tucked away in the Trinity Mountains, just a few miles from Scott Mountain summit, sits a picturesque basin and a summer camp called Camp Unalayee, or Camp U for short. “We’re a residential summer camp for kids ages 10 to 17. We take them out into the Trinity Alps Wilderness on backpacking trips ranging from three to 15 days. Our tagline is ‘place of friends’ because it really is that, with the mission of our campus to bring kids together from different backgrounds and give them life-changing outdoor experiences,” explains Executive Director Martha Stryker.
Camp Unalayee was first founded near Santa Cruz in 1949. “Our camp’s been around for 75 years, and we haven’t changed a lot in our program. Camp history says the first group that was brought together was 50 percent Japanese-American boys and 50 percent white European-American boys. Of course, that was post-World War II and intended to create cross-cultural relationships, so I love that part of our history,” notes Stryker.
But by the 1950s, the group was looking to expand, and someone in the community happened to know about a parcel of land for sale in the Trinity Alps. “At that time, it wasn’t wilderness yet, so they purchased a large piece of property around Mosquito Lake. The whole lake basin was established as the camp site, and 1956 was the first summer kids gathered there,” Stryker says. “When the Wilderness Act of 1964 was introduced, people from camp went to Washington in support of the Act, but also to ask permission to maintain private property within the boundaries of the wilderness area to continue to provide this experience for children. Permission was granted, so now, we have a key to a wilderness gate and have special permits for any camp vehicles. What it also means is that we are so uniquely located that kids can get to into these internal wilderness basins on a one-day hike, whereas if they were starting from a trailhead, it would be much more challenging. That helps remove barriers for a lot of kids to experience these incredible places.”
The camp offers a variety of wilderness adventures, from a 15-day summit-to-summit hike for experienced backpackers to a more relaxed Family Camp in August. But the 15- and 10-day sessions that offer a combination of camp days in the basin along with multi-overnight wilderness hikes make up the “classic” Camp Unalayee experience. “At the start of camp, the kids all meet at the Scott Mountain summit, and from there, they walk to camp,” Stryker says. “On that first walk we sort of figure out what type of a camper they’re going to be by how they manage it. Then, they’ll spend the first few days in camp doing traditional summer camp activities, like boating, arts and crafts and archery, and the kids get a lot of freedom to choose their activities.”
Meals are enjoyed in small family groups of eight kids and three staff members, and breakfast and dinner are cooked over a fire. The kids help prepare food and wash dishes. In the evening, everyone gets together for campfire time, and the staff and kids take turns preparing songs and fun shows. After a few days, they go on a three-day backpacking trip with their small group.
“When they come back, they have a couple more normal days and or different hikes of their choosing based on some sort of a theme or an activity, or distance. And then, at the end, they walk that same road back out from camp to the Scott Mountain summit, and it’s a whole different experience because they’re a different person than they were on that first day. And the friendships that they build are just incredible,” describes Stryker.
Stryker can personally attest to how life-changing camp can be. “I first came when I was 10 years old, and then I continued as a camper and eventually a counselor. I actually met my husband at camp when we were both working there in our 20s. I’ve only missed one summer since I started going, and that was in 1999 because I was studying abroad in Europe.”
The camp’s sense of community makes it so memorable, she says. “It’s a really unique group of people who all care about each other and this space, and share the values of outdoor living and being simple and unplugged. Kids gain a sense of themselves because they have independence in a way that they don’t usually experience at home. They also learn to live in a community and see how important each person’s role is in their group with daily tasks. And then just being in a place that’s so remote and pristine, it all has a huge impact on kids. Parents are always writing us at the end of the summer saying, ‘Wow, my kid came back so much more aware and kinder.’ Really, there are just so many intangible benefits that come about because of the internal change that happens within kids when they’re outside, away from family and find themselves fully accepted by a whole new group of people.” •
Camp Unalayee • www.gocampu.org
