Camp Cowanbunga
Kayaks resting beside the dock at dusk, lake gone still

Chapter Four · How the days get filled

Activities

Nobody schedules anything. Somehow there's never a dull hour.

On the line

Fishing

Walleye and jack, right from the dock. The lake gives them up generously to anyone with a rod and a little patience, and there are three ways to chase them: planted on the dock with a coffee, drifting on the pontoon with half the camp aboard, or alone in a kayak working the reed lines at first light.

The biggest catches become legend, and more than one has earned its place on the year's crest.

A jack held up for the camera, fresh from the lake Rods rigged and ready on the pontoon Evening lines off the end of the dock
Send it

Shooting

With a hundred acres and no neighbours, the camp has room for a proper long range setup: target practice at distances between 100 and 450 yards. The lineup includes precision work on AR500 steel gongs as small as four inches across, shooting games, and the occasional Tannerite exploding target for when a hit deserves an exclamation point.

There's trap shooting too, clays thrown against the northern sky and shotguns doing their best to interrupt them. Hearing a four-inch gong ring at 450 yards, or a clay break clean, never gets old.

Steady on the rifle, working the long range Bench setup for precision work Spotting hits downrange
Tracking a clay with the shotgun Prone behind the rifle, settled in for the long shot On the glass at the shooting bench
Low and slow

Cooking

Cooking is a high priority at camp, and the proof is bolted to the ground: a permanent wood-burning offset smoker built for long duration cooks. It can hold up to ten full racks of ribs at once, which is not a hypothetical. Pulled pork goes on before breakfast and comes off after dinner. Ribs spend the afternoon in the smoke.

The range goes well past barbecue basics: bacon-wrapped chicken lollipops, reverse-seared sirloins finished over open flame, and whatever else somebody has spent the off-season planning. For the full menu, see Camp Life.

The offset smoker loaded with racks, smoke rolling Ribs coming up on the grill Steaks on the barrel grill by flashlight
The permanent offset smoker, a camp fixture The firebox burning down to cooking coals Tending the smoker through a long cook
In the water

Kayaking & Swimming

The kayaks live at the shoreline and get used the way bikes get used in a small town: constantly, casually, and without anyone asking permission. Paddle the bay before the wind comes up, or take the long way down the shore and see how far forty-two kilometres of lake really is.

Swimming needs even less explanation. The dock is the diving board, the lake is the pool, and on a hot July afternoon the water wins every argument.

Kayaks staged off the dock on calm water Mid-air off the end of the dock Hauling out onto the dock after a swim
Off the beaten path

ATVing & Hikes

The machines earn their keep here. ATVs and the side-by-side explore every corner of the hundred acres and keep going into the adjacent Crown land, where the trails belong to moose and the maps run out of detail.

Then there are the midnight trail hikes: rifle in hand, headlamps glowing, the boreal forest a different country after dark. Equal parts patrol and pilgrimage, they end back at the fire with stories that grow a little each year.

The side-by-side rolling down an evening trail Walking the green trail into the forest Headlights and headlamps on a night run
Around camp

Games & Everything Else

Between the marquee events, camp runs on smaller contests. Some involve skill. Some involve luck. All of them involve trash talk.

Poker

Texas Hold'em tournaments under the gazebo lights. Chips are cheap. Pride is not.

Archery

Bows, targets, and the quiet satisfaction of a well-placed arrow.

Driving Range

Golf balls into the meadow: chipping, approach shots, and the annual long drive contest.

Fire Making

Part chore, part craft, part competition. The fire is rarely out before the last person sleeps.

Beer Darts & Bola Ball

The lawn game rotation, played to surprisingly serious standards.

Frisbee & More

Whatever fits in the meadow. New games audition every year. Few survive.

Cards on the table late into the night Full swing off the meadow tee, lake beyond Lawn games underway in the meadow
Silhouettes around the grill at the gazebo as the sun drops
Day's end, supper on, nobody in a hurry

No agenda. No itinerary.
Somehow the days are full anyway.

See all of it in the photo galleries, or read the stories behind the days in Field Notes.