The Character-Building Power of Summer Camp

By Alex Kvanli
February 01, 2025 (comments)

What is character and how can it be “built?” Most people have an intuitive sense of character but find it difficult to define. Great thinkers have pondered this subject for centuries. Aristotle defined good character as “the life of right conduct—right conduct in relation to other persons and in relation to oneself.” Thomas Lickona described it as “operative values, values in action—knowing the good, desiring the good, and doing the good.” Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. reminded us that “intelligence plus character—that is the goal of true education.” The American Camp Association defines it simply as “intentions and actions that...

10 Camp-Inspired Activities to Do With Kids

By Alex Kvanli
April 07, 2020 (comments)

Looking to mix things up at home with your family? Try one of these activities from our very own playbook! The keys to success for most of our activities is that they must be themed, hosted by high-energy quirky characters (who never break role), and the set should contain several props. Camp Voyageur’s in-camp program features all of these activities and with a few modifications, you too can catch the Voyageur Spirit with these great projects!

5 Reasons to Pick Camp Voyageur

By John Burgman
October 02, 2019 (comments)

There are countless things that make camp special, but here are the aspects—in no particular order—that get cited most often by current campers, staff, and alumni as the keys to Voyageur’s enduring allure.

How Wilderness Adventures Foster Lifelong Success

By Alex Kvanli
March 18, 2019 (comments)

How can we teach children that failure is not the end of the road? Our mindset, or attitude, governs nearly everything in our lives. It determines the way we live, experience the world, and make decisions. Our mindset shapes the way we view ourselves and subsequently what we can accomplish. According to Stanford University psychologists Carol Dweck, there are two types of mindsets: In a fixed mindset students believe their basic abilities, their intelligence, their talents, are just fixed traits. They have a certain amount and that’s that, and then their goal becomes to look smart all the time and...

A True Well-Rounded Education

By Alex Kvanli
February 28, 2019 (comments)

Don’t trust the gradebooks.

Nature's Effect on Our Brains and Well-being

By Alex Kvanli
January 21, 2019 (comments)

Why are we drawn to nature? What makes the great outdoors so great?

Wise Words From Our Past

By Peter Grunawalt
June 05, 2018 (comments)

In the 1980’s Camp Voyageur’s founder and director Charlie Erdmann wrote an article in the local Ely Echo. We believe his words are as relevant now as they were back then, and would like to share them with you. Here is the word-for-word article:

A Band of Brothers: "Commando Day"

By Peter Grunawalt
July 23, 2016 (comments)

Campers returned to camp on the 19th of July, with most of our groups paddling right up to the docks. That of course creates a rowdy atmosphere, as kids really open up on their first round of trips. In fact, that’s the first thing we notice when they come back; they’re MUCH louder. Getting no more than a day to catch up from their wilderness adventures, several big events took place, which I will go on to explain in some detail. The first event occurred on what will probably be one of the hottest days of this summer, and thankfully,...

A Photo Worth 1,000 Words

By Peter Grunawalt
July 13, 2016 (comments)

Behind each and every photo you see at camp, there's a story, though they're not always so apparent. In fact, some of the most meaningful photos to our campers may simply look like, for example, two teenagers building a fire to boil water in a rusty coffee grounds can. Little do you know how powerful this image is to those who partook in the Voyageur Olympic games several days before this photo was taken. I'll explain. Every summer, once per session, we host what is called the Voyageur Olympics. I talk more at length about what exactly goes into the...

Aloha! Session 1 Ends, Session 2 Begins

By Peter Grunawalt
July 10, 2016 (comments)

Just as campers from Session 1 started making their way home on Saturday, new campers from around the world started journeys both long and short to the peninsula. It's quite the experience to say farewell to a group of boys and young men that you've come to know so well, and then welcome another 30+ campers the next day. But of course, after a GREAT night of rest (and sleeping in a little, maybe), we're ready to turn our full attention to Session 2 and some of the amazing things we have planned for our campers. By the end of...