Beach Day

The day dawned with excitement swirling in the air.

The campers glanced at each other, knowing what would happen. Some conversations included words like waves, sun, water, sand, rocks, and boats. The campers rushed through breakfast, wanting to get to the beach as soon as possible. The campers flocked to the fireside and kept a lookout for the yellow school buses scheduled to rumble up the gravel road towards us. After roll call by the staff, the buses were loaded and we were off!

As we left Camp Taloali and embarked onto the highway, the isolated campers finally saw signs of civilization, such as houses, cars, and stores. Campers started playing games such as Captain Ship, the Hat Game, Black Magic, and luckily, Mary Beth ‘Mabe’ Baierl brought a game, called ‘Skipbo’ and other card games; the buses were loud with excited campers yelling and hooting.

After two painstaking hours of bus riding, the campers and staff finally arrived at Newport Coast, where campers grouped up then set out to explore the coastal town. Some of them went to look at sea lions, some of them went to look for something to eat for lunch, and some went for a walk and many went shopping. But that wasn’t what we were really waiting for! After approximately two hours, the campers met up again, ready for the BEACH!

Again, after another roll call by the staff, the buses were alight with the chattering, screaming, and nervous faces trying to get a peek at the next destination of the day. As we entered Newport Beach State Park, all the campers faced towards the coast, straining to see the endless Pacific Ocean, but that was not possible. A grassy, sandy hill rose, blocking our view of the ocean. The campers and staff labored up the hill of loose sand, and several campers marveled at the sand. “The sand was the best thing to touch!” Camper Amy Hesser said. Several campers and staff who arrived at the top first gasped.

Thighs burning, the travel-weary campers and staff ran down the hill, screaming and laughing. They had overcome several obstacles - the long ride, the anxiety leading up to the moment, and the hill - and it was definitely worth the wait.

The ocean was shimmering, but to our disappointment, the weather wasn’t very good, it wasn’t sunny as we visualized. But some campers, such as James Wilson, remained optimistic and said, “the beach was an enchanting place!”

As everyone ran to the shore of the Pacific ocean, many of the campers shed their clothes! Some eased themselves into the glacial waters, but most simply plunged themselves into the salty ocean and splashed about as if it were a hot day! The campers who stayed dry called the crazy swimmers the “Polar Bears of YLC ’10!”

After all the fun, the evening program coordinators, Renca Dunn, Luba Douziech, and Mark Ramirez announced that all of us have to do our group skits. After several impressive skits, the results were - Group A, B, and C got the cruel thumbs down, while Group D got the modification sideways thumb. Group D was both joyful in that they didn’t have to create a whole new profile, but disappointed because they thought that their performance should have earned the thumbs up.

Next up was the sandcastle competition. The groups dispersed to create a sandcastle that represented who they are. But as the groups started forming the base for their castle, the staff called the campers to pose for the traditional ‘YLC’ picture. The groups were frustrated but trudged up near the hill. The campers arranged into the letters, and the finicky staffers took forever to adjust the angle of the ‘Y’, the straightness of the ‘L’, and the curve of the ‘C.’ Finally, the picture was taken to our relief!

The campers ran back to our sandcastles and toiled on the sandcastle so hard that we even sweated in the cold weather! Finally, time was up. All the groups took pictures with their mighty sandcastles. We’re looking forward to tonight to find out which one of the groups is the winner. The campers then spread out to have a conversation with friends, or take pictures together, or play games.

After an hour, dinner was served, and all campers ran to line up for the deliciously grilled kabobs and vegetables, and watermelon slices. Some campers sat on the floor, some sat near the fireplace, and some sat on wooden picnic tables. For dessert we were surprised to get rice krispie treats!

The lucky birthday girl of the day was Bree Clayton, and we sang ‘Happy Birthday’ to her! All of the campers were visibly satisfied with smiles and full bellies. After dinner, Staff Joshua Weinstock announced the policy of ‘LNT,’ and after several guesses to what it meant, he told us it meant ‘Leave No Trace’ so the campers then proceeded to clean up. After the park was cleared up, the shivering campers ran up to the bus, the source of warmth, where they would chatter quietly and nod off to sleep. The environment in the bus was very tranquil and the feeling of satisfaction was in the air.

After we arrived at the familiar Camp Taloali, many campers were either falling asleep or very energetic despite the spent energy at the beach. We resumed our ‘YLC 2010 Good Night’ tradition and the day ended with marvelous memories.

Campers are clustered around the buses, ready to go!
The cute sea lions that were resting by the Newport pier.
Eating at the locally famous Mo's!
Dan Brubaker decided to join us on our field trip!
Campers of YLC 2010 at the beach!
Some of the Polar Bears wanted to immortalize their sheer bravery with a picture!
Most of the Polar Bears of YLC '10!
Each team took turns enacting group name skits!
Skye Dreumont, Bradley Chappell, Kylei Brooks and Nicole Strom for Group B.
Group D presenting their fortress of a sandcastle!
Group C standing by their sprawling sandcastle.
Group B reveals their creativity with their sandcastle.
Group A proudly showing off their sandcastle!
The wonderful, spicy staff of YLC 2010!
Campers of 2010 doing the traditional YLC pose!