Onteora Scout Reservation
Virtual tour: Lake Area

Across the road from the administration and maintenance areas is the Parade Field, a large grass-covered area used for retreats, parades and flag ceremonies. I remember going there, both as a camper and a counselor, for camp-wide flag lowering ceremonies.  There would be hundreds of campers, all smartly attired in uniform, complete with troop and patrol flags. While the field had been well kept in my time, it was looking pretty ragged in later years. This view from 1988 shows some of the higher grass and bare spots that marked the once spotless field. By 1983 it was even worse, with nature doing its best to reclaim the area. Happily, another trip in 1998 found the field in much better condition, with the grass recently cut. Next to the flag pole is a large stone and plaque, which reads:

Just to the left of the parade field, facing the lake, was a large amphitheater used for camp fires and award ceremonies. Scouts entered from the Parade Field, passing underneath a very large statue of an Indian warrior. The statue was about 20 feet tall, and can be seen on Jim Sannerud's web page on Onteora. Consisting primarily of rough wooden benches in a horseshoe shape, the amphitheater also had a stage area with two spots for bonfires on either side. There were some impressive Indian dance performances, with the dancers arriving across the lake by canoe. Award ceremonies were also conducted there, and I received my Eagle medal there in 1969. Today, all that remains is a clearing, covered mainly in ferns as nature reclaims the site. If you look carefully you can spot a few weathered logs with rusty nails, the remnants of the old benches.

As you continue along the road that rings the parade field, you'll pass the former site of the Tuttle House, a now-demolished structure once used for staff housing. I believe it was once the home of the camp caretaker, Leland Tuttle. The house would have been just to the right of the tree in this picture. Pretty nice view, isn't it? Keen-eyed observers may spot a cloud of dust from a camp truck passing by. As you can tell, the road is dirt at this point, and anyone who has driven their own car through the property can probably remember wondering if their muffler and tires would survive the trip.

Just down the road from where the Tuttle House stood was, years ago, the camp's third waterfront area, Buckskin dock. The map shows it as the Boating Center, but back then, it was used for both swimming and boating programs. Interestingly enough, the dock was brought up from Camp Wauwepex in 1968 or 1969 when summer camping there began to die out, and we took it as a sign that Onteora was the better of the two camps and would outlast Wauwepex. So much for our predictive abilities...

Each of the waterfronts had a dock, small beach and boating area. The docks were put together every summer and consisted of deck plates on a scaffold-like frame that extended down to the lake bottom. Hauling these things out of storage and putting them together was one of the worst parts of being a counselor, for they were big, heavy and covered in grease.

Each waterfront used a buddy system, with all Scouts being tested for swimming abilities and assigned a color rating (red, white and blue.) You were given a tag with your name on it, and you and your buddy would hang your tags together on the same hook when entering the lake. There were periodic "buddy checks", where a whistle would be used to stop all activities and the buddies would need to raise their hands together to show no one was missing. The system seemed to work, for I never heard of a drowning incident.

There were also canoes and rowboats at each dock, which could be used for fishing, racing or just a ride around the lake. Each dock also featured events such a mile-long swim and classes for the various aquatic merit badges. For many of us who didn't have a pool back on Long Island, the waterfronts were one of the best things about camp.

The lake, by the way, is Orchard Lake. It's well named, for at one time, this was an apple orchard! Yes, the lake is man-made, created by the damming of Sprague Brook. When I first arrived at Onteora in 1963, you had to be careful while boating on the eastern side of the lake, for there were plenty of submerged trees ready to snag you. Even now, in 1998, some remnants of the orchard can be seen sticking out of the water.

To get to the main part of camp you cross a small bridge across Sprague Brook. Off to the right stood a very rickety and decrepit wooden dock, a legacy from the property's former use as a fish and game club. I gather that was one of the former trout fishing areas. There's no sign of the dock today, nor of the campsites once in the area, but it's a very quiet and picturesque area. Next, just after crossing the bridge, you come to a crossroads. From there you could go to the three main camping areas (Chiefs, Tribes and Buckskin), spend some money at the Trading Post, visit the other two waterfronts or the camp chapels.

We'll continue the tour by heading south along the shore of Orchard Lake. This road was once the main entrance to the property, and while it is no longer passable past the dam, it once connected with Onteora Road. I believe there was a bridge over the brook but can remember thinking it didn't look like it could hold a car any longer. The road passes by the former sites of the Chiefs and Tribes waterfronts; on the map, the old Chief's site is shown as the "Swim Center", but the Tribes waterfront has vanished. It was located at the end of the trail seen near the Teddy Roosevelt Program Shelter.

Also along this road were the Jewish and Protestant Chapels, with the Catholic Chapel located on the road to the Buckskin area. Only one chapel shows on the map; this is the former Jewish Chapel, with the Protestant Chapel site now used as the "Kenneth Heim Memorial Campfire Ring". There were once a few campsites on this road, just as it left the Trading Post area, but they don't show on the map and have long been retired.

At this point you could continue around the lake on what is known as the Red Trail. It crosses the dam across Sprague Brook and follows the shoreline back to the Parade Grounds. This is a very pretty part of the camp, for it offers some great views of the lake and interesting rock formations not far from the shore. During our 1998 visit some beavers were busy chewing through just about every tree at the waterline, adding to the already impressive lodge they had constructed. Click here for more information on Onteora's extensive trail system, or for now, just continue your tour.

Turning around and heading back to the crossroads brings us to the Long Island Trading Post. Situated on a slight hill overlooking the lake, the Trading Post was the home of the camp's post office, which did a steady business in letters and postcards to and from home. You could buy scouting supplies, uniforms, knives (a very popular item!) and candy. The motif was very unpolished, with bare wooden counters and metal racks on the walls, but it did a pretty good business anyway. Then again, there wasn't a lot of competition in the neighborhood. Ever wonder why it was called the "Long Island Trading Post" and not just "Trading Post"? Bob Oldmixon supplied the answer: "My Dad worked in camp doing all kinds of things for Ken Heim. Making signs with his new router was particularly enjoyable to him. Ken told him we needed a sign for the new Trading Post. He had a long board and thought it would be wasted lumber to just write Trading Post on it so he routed out Long Island Trading Post, since we were all from Long Island."

Behind the Trading Post was the Power Line Trail, a fairly steep and very rocky climb up to the water tower. This tower marked the intersection of the Chiefs and Tribes camp, and thus the trail was a great way to get to the middle of the camp. Great, that is, as long as you were 16 and not carrying a pack. Adult leaders always seemed to prefer the long and more level way around. Having the "benefit" of age I can now understand why. What I can't understand is why no one ever got around to doing something about all of those stupid rocks. The trail was closed for several years due to severe erosion problems but has recently been restored.

That's pretty much it for the lake area. Continue your tour by selecting the Chiefs Camp, or jump ahead to Tribes Camp or Buckskin Camp! You can also head back to the main Onteora page.