What happens on the Montrose Magpies overnight? There is an overnight experience available for girls assigned to Montrose Magpies units the last day of camp.  The girls stay at camp after the younger girls have left, cook dinner, have a camp fire and spend the night.  They have a cold breakfast on Saturday morning, then go home.  Oh, and hopefully they sleep!
	When will the overnights be for the Caerphilly Catapults?  The Catapults will have two overnights.  Their first overnight is on Wednesday and they will cook their breakfast and lunch at camp on Thursday after Wednesday night's overnight.  The second overnight will be on Friday and they will have a cold breakfast on Saturday morning.
	How do I know if my daughter is ready to spend the night? Excellent question!  Although we will have spent a week with your daughter, we won’t know her well enough to determine if she is physically and emotionally ready for a successful camp out.  Camp Crossroads should not be your daughter’s first overnight camping experience.  Please consider these readiness indicators carefully: She wants to go and is not afraid to be away from home and parents are prepared to let her go. She is willing to sleep, eat, play with all girls, not just best friends. She can cope with unknowns -- strange places, darkness, woods and night noises. She can cope with the latrine and manage with little or no privacy. She can give graciously -- doesn’t always have to have own way; she can function as a member of a group. She is strong enough to carry own bedroll, pack, bucket of water, pot of food, armload of wood, etc.
	Does my 4th or 5th grade daughter have to spend the night on the overnight?   No they do NOT have to spend the night, and if there is any doubt about their readiness, we prefer they do not. You won’t appreciate a call at 2:00 am to pick up your daughter if she becomes homesick, nor do we enjoy making those calls.  If you know when you apply for camp that your daughter will not be spending the night, apply for the "Appleyby Arrows" program which does not include the overnight.  The Appleyby Arrows unit stays late, cooks dinner, then goes home at 8:30pm on Friday.

 

How will my daughter get home on Saturday?  Parents will be required to come pick up their daughter at camp on Saturday morning.  We'll publish a pick-up schedule in our welcome package to spread out the pick up times between 9:00am and 10:00am so we don't have traffic jams at camp.

My daughter wants to spend the night, but I'll need to pick her up early on Saturday morning.  Is that a problem?  Yes.  Saturday morning is rather hectic.  The units are preparing breakfast, packing gear and cleaning the camp.  When a girl needs to leave early, it's very disruptive to the routine and frankly, it's not fair that she isn't there to do her part of the clean up.  If your daughter needs to be somewhere on Saturday morning, she can't spend the night.  You will be assigned a pickup time between 9:00am and 10:00am depending on your daughter's unit assignment.  More details will be published in the welcome package.

	What type of supervision is provided during the overnight?  Girls spend the night in glen or Adirondack shelters (a covered, open-air, screened shelter). There are 2 female adults spending the night in their unit, but not in the same shelter. The “adult” shelter is normally no more than 30 feet away from the girl’s shelters. Believe us when we tell you that in the still night air, the adults will be able to hear every whisper, giggle and sound from the neighboring shelters!  Additionally, the camp directors are on site, one or more first aiders and any additional support the directors feel they need.
	What gear does my daughter need for the overnight?  An equipment list will be included in the Camp Crossroads Welcome Packet in June.
	My daughter originally said she wanted to leave at 8:30pm, but now she wants to stay.  Can she change her mind?  No, we're sorry, but this creates several problems.  Our volunteer staff members have purchased food based on the number of girls who indicated on their electronic RSVP that they would spend the night.  We have assigned volunteers based on the number of girls scheduled to spend the night.  Plus, our experience has shown us that invariably, a girls who wants to spend the night at 7:00pm frequently changes her mind at 1:00am!
	My daughter had planned to stay the night, but you called me at 11:00pm and asked me to pick her up.  Why didn't you encourage her to stay the night?  Well, actually, we did.  You can be assured that if we called you an adult has dedicated at least one hour encouraging her to stay.  A girl who is in tears at 11:00pm will still be in tears at 1:00am!  Please come get her without berating the volunteer staff or your daughter!  We want her to have pleasant memories of camp!
	My daughter came home in the middle of the night.  Why didn't you let her bring her sleeping bag and pack?  We've learned the hard way that an upset girl, packing her gear by flashlight, in a shelter of sleeping girls rarely gets things right.  Either something is left behind or worse, she accidentally packs another girl's gear!  This creates a whole new set of problems if the gear is not returned promptly!  So, if she goes home after lights out, she'll leave her gear until the following morning.  If a parent objects, the parent is welcome to park their car, walk to their daughter's shelter and supervise the packing by flashlight.

Revised: 01/09/12 12:39