The camp was desperate to find someone to take over the canoeing and sailing in the mid-fifties, so sisters Nancy, Judy and Pat O’Tool took over the job. “The three of us took the sailboat called “Snipe” out on the lake and instead of laying on its side, it would totally capsize. Over and over […]
Kathy Baker
Row, Row, Row Your Boat–
Going to camp gave many young girls the chance to attempt boating activities they would have not given a thought to at home. Boating was one of those exciting choices that gave the girls new skills and confidence in themselves, and it also gave way to adventures on the lake and rivers surrounding the area. […]
Just Add Water!
Docks, floats, rafts and boathouse took on many shapes and forms to create swimming and boating areas on Loon Lake over the course of fifty-four years at Camp Maqua. Floats were made with drums fitted to them (donated by Imperial Oil) in 1933, according to notes in a ledger book “Removed front half of the platform […]
Swimming Tests–
“Swimming was always the main outdoor sport. Beginners advanced to red caps and once they could swim fifty yards, jump into the water over their heads, float on their backs and fronts and complete a dive kneeling from the raft, they earned a green cap. A blue cap was earned when the girls could swim […]
Synchronized Swimming, Water Ballet and Activities
Swimming was a large part of Molly Olson’s growing up years at camp in the forties and she learned at her grandmother’s pool club. She excelled at synchronized swimming at camp and it remained a part of her high school career, as well as performing on the swim team. She was proficient enough to swim […]
Swimming Across Loon Lake
In August of 1929, an article entitled “Maqua Leader Swims Length of Loon Lake” appeared in a local paper. “Kathryn Gudscheinsky, a Camp Maqua counselor, swam two miles in fifty-one minutes to the opposite shore, but the high waves made the journey longer for her return. Without a pause on that shore, she made it […]