Trip Report
Camp Rubenstein
Summer Camp 2025 was held this year on August 8 through the 13th near the beautiful Eagle Cap Wilderness at Wallowa Lake. As in past summer camps, this year’s camp was named after our club president, Denise Rubenstein.
This was probably the most unique summer camp we’ve had in that it was held at a private resort campground, owned by the Methodist church, that offered a wide range of camping options for our participants. In addition to the traditional tent and RV sites, we also had dormitory housing plus sixteen cabins ranging in size from one to three bedrooms. In addition, this facility came with a dining hall and a complete kitchen staff to cook our meals and wash our dishes. This meant there was very little setup and no assigned jobs for the week, giving our campers more time to enjoy all the diverse activities in the area.
Our use of a private resort this year meant there was no need to haul in our traditional summer camp equipment, so no huge rental truck was needed this year. We did have a small setup crew show up a day early to set up the game area, bulletin board, and registration table and to prepare for the complicated check-in process of making sure everyone got to their assigned lodging. Summer camp officially started at 3pm on the 8th. By that evening all 98 of those who had signed up for summer camp had arrived.
The evening activity at summer camp is usually a campfire; however, due to the fire danger, campfires were banned, so instead we got together in the outdoor dining area each evening to hear trip reports and announcements. Sunday night was set aside to honor our club president, Denise Rubenstein, for taking on a very challenging job.
Our primary activity during summer camp is always the hikes, and our great location at Wallowa Lake gave us convenient access to this area’s beautiful hikes to alpine lakes, waterfalls, and mountaintops. By summer camp’s end our group had gone on at least fifteen different hikes, not only in the Eagle Cap Wilderness but also in nearby Zumwalt Prairie and at several Hell’s Canyon overlooks. The most popular hike of the week was Hurricane Creek with 55 hikers, followed by the Chief Joseph trail with 37 hikers. Other popular hikes were Mt. Howard and East Peak Springs, both requiring a 15-minute ride on the Wallowa Lake Tramway. The longest hike of the week was a 19-mile trek up the Lostine Valley to Mirror Lake by Jane Leng. She didn’t return to camp until 10:45 at night.
Our location at Wallowa Lake also gave us access to other activities besides hiking. Several of our group went kayaking at night on Wallowa Lake with clear-bottom kayaks. The nearby town of Joseph offered a very pleasant collection of museums and gift shops for those who were looking for a relaxing stroll. Some of our group took a tour of the bronze foundry in Joseph, and at least ten Obsidians went on a railriding adventure. Closer to Wallowa Lake, some participated in miniature golf and even took a horseback ride. And right in camp, the extensive lawn gave our members plenty of room to enjoy an assortment of games, including cornhole, badminton, ladder golf, tossing a Frisbee, and more.
After participating in eleven summer camps, this is probably my favorite. The location, food, housing, and weather were all excellent, and the staff that runs the camp were wonderful people. My one disappointment with this year’s camp is that it was too short. We deliberately made this camp a day shorter because of the extra cost; however, there was just so much to do and not enough time to experience it all. I’d like to encourage everyone who enjoyed this year’s camp to express your appreciation to the Wallowa Lake United Methodist Camp by leaving a positive online review.
For Summer Camp to happen, a lot of volunteers come together to take on the many tasks that need to be done. I am always surprised and grateful for all the talented and generous people we have in the Obsidians.
I wish to express my sincerest thank you to the following people for helping make this year’s Summer Camp a success:
Summer Camp Committee
Lana Lindstrom: Committee Chair
Pam Caples: Summer Camp Treasurer and in charge of registration.
Angie Ruzicka: Entertainment, duty assignments, nametags, and hiking sheet
Sue Wolling: Wrote all the Summer Camp articles for the bulletin
Holger Krentz: Camp Book editor
Also to our Setup Crew
Marguerite Cooney
Bea Fontana
Alex Lockhart
Lynn Meacham
Angie Ruzika
Darko Sojak
