Camp Widjiwagan
Encyclopedia
Camp Widjiwagan is a YMCA
camp based on Lake Burntside near Ely
, Minnesota
.
the focus is not on religion, but instead on wilderness adventure.
as an all-boys wilderness camp. In 1947, it held its first sessions for girls as well. It has, over the course of its existence, gained national recognition for its excellent canoeing and backpacking programs, as well as developed a strong Environmental Education Program, started in 1973.
When the YMCA purchased Camp Du Nord in 1961 and Camp Northland in 1981, Camp Widjiwagan helped set them up as YMCA centers on Burntside Lake.
while the final trip (entitled "Voyageur" trips) lasts around 45 days and involves travel to Nunavut
or Alaska
and often go north of the Arctic Circle
. Trips in between travel to Quetico Provincial Park
and the Crownlands in Canada.
In 1972, a parallel backpacking program was started. Backpacking trips are similar to the canoeing trips, except that time spent on trail is typically 2-3 days shorter, due to the need for travel days to and from camp. Backpacking trips take place in the mountain ranges of Isle Royale
, Wyoming
, Montana
, Utah
, Idaho
, Washington, Alberta
, British Columbia
, the Yukon
, and Alaska
.
Joe Seliga
Coleman Laffoon
Andrew Shue
YMCA
The Young Men's Christian Association is a worldwide organization of more than 45 million members from 125 national federations affiliated through the World Alliance of YMCAs...
camp based on Lake Burntside near Ely
Ely, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 3,724 people, 1,912 households, and 916 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,369.5 people per square mile . There were 1,912 housing units at an average density of 703.2 per square mile...
, Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
.
Mission
The mission of Camp Widjiwagan is "to develop, in young people, respect for self, community, and the environment, through wilderness adventure and environmental education." http://www.widji.org/mission.htm Although the Camp is under the purview of the YMCAYMCA
The Young Men's Christian Association is a worldwide organization of more than 45 million members from 125 national federations affiliated through the World Alliance of YMCAs...
the focus is not on religion, but instead on wilderness adventure.
History
Camp Widjiwagan was founded in 1929 by Julian Kirby, with the permission of the YMCAYMCA
The Young Men's Christian Association is a worldwide organization of more than 45 million members from 125 national federations affiliated through the World Alliance of YMCAs...
as an all-boys wilderness camp. In 1947, it held its first sessions for girls as well. It has, over the course of its existence, gained national recognition for its excellent canoeing and backpacking programs, as well as developed a strong Environmental Education Program, started in 1973.
When the YMCA purchased Camp Du Nord in 1961 and Camp Northland in 1981, Camp Widjiwagan helped set them up as YMCA centers on Burntside Lake.
Wilderness Adventure Trips
The wilderness trips are organized as single sex canoe trips, usually consisting of five campers and a counselor with the exception of the first trip, which is normally 4 campers and 2 counselors. Campers start attending when they are 12 or 13. Trips gradually increase in length and difficulty; the first trips (entitled "Intro" trips) last around 10 days and rarely venture outside of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area WildernessBoundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness
The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness , is a wilderness area within the Superior National Forest in northeastern Minnesota under the administration of the U.S. Forest Service...
while the final trip (entitled "Voyageur" trips) lasts around 45 days and involves travel to Nunavut
Nunavut
Nunavut is the largest and newest federal territory of Canada; it was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the Nunavut Act and the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement Act, though the actual boundaries had been established in 1993...
or Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
and often go north of the Arctic Circle
Arctic Circle
The Arctic Circle is one of the five major circles of latitude that mark maps of the Earth. For Epoch 2011, it is the parallel of latitude that runs north of the Equator....
. Trips in between travel to Quetico Provincial Park
Quetico Provincial Park
Quetico Provincial Park is a large wilderness park in Northwestern Ontario, Canada, renowned for its excellent canoeing and fishing. This park shares its southern border with Minnesota's Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, which is part of the larger Superior National Forest...
and the Crownlands in Canada.
In 1972, a parallel backpacking program was started. Backpacking trips are similar to the canoeing trips, except that time spent on trail is typically 2-3 days shorter, due to the need for travel days to and from camp. Backpacking trips take place in the mountain ranges of Isle Royale
Isle Royale
Isle Royale is an island of the Great Lakes, located in the northwest of Lake Superior, and part of the state of Michigan. The island and the 450 surrounding smaller islands and waters make up Isle Royale National Park....
, Wyoming
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
, Montana
Montana
Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
, Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
, Idaho
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
, Washington, Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
, British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
, the Yukon
Yukon
Yukon is the westernmost and smallest of Canada's three federal territories. It was named after the Yukon River. The word Yukon means "Great River" in Gwich’in....
, and Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
.
Environmental Education
Camp Widjiwagan also has an Environmental Education Program during the fall, winter and spring seasons. This program, started in 1973, allows schools to send up groups of students to the camp for a week. During this week, campers undergo some basic environmental education, including studying wilderness survival, plant and tree identification, basic hiking skills, and more. During the winter months, classes include animal tracking, the night sky, snowshoeing, and cross-country skiing.Notable alumni/staff/friends
Ann BancroftAnn Bancroft
Ann Bancroft is an American author, teacher, and adventurer. She was the first woman to successfully finish a number of arduous expeditions to the Arctic and Antarctic.-Biography:...
Joe Seliga
Joe seliga
Joe Seliga was a master builder of wood-and-canvas canoes in Ely, Minnesota.Joe Seliga was born to Steve and Anna Seliga in Ely, Minnesota and graduated from Ely Memorial High School....
Coleman Laffoon
Andrew Shue
Andrew Shue
Andrew Eppley Shue is an American actor, known for his role as Billy Campbell on the television series Melrose Place . He is currently on the Board of Directors for Do Something and is the co-founder of the social networking website CafeMom.-Early life:Shue was born in Wilmington, Delaware...
Other Camps with the same name
- Camp Widjiwagan, located on Lake SpringfieldLake SpringfieldLake Springfield is a 4,260 acre reservoir located in the city of Springfield, Illinois, southeast of downtown. It is 560 feet above sea level...
in SpringfieldSpringfield, IllinoisSpringfield is the third and current capital of the US state of Illinois and the county seat of Sangamon County with a population of 117,400 , making it the sixth most populated city in the state and the second most populated Illinois city outside of the Chicago Metropolitan Area...
, IllinoisIllinoisIllinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, used primarily by girl scouts - YMCA Camp Widjiwagan located on Percy Priest LakePercy Priest LakeJ. Percy Priest Lake is a reservoir in north central Tennessee. It is formed by J. Percy Priest Dam, located between miles six and seven of the Stones River. The dam is located about 10 miles east of downtown Nashville and impounds a lake 42 miles long...
in Nashville, TennesseeNashville, TennesseeNashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...