Winter Camp Future Society / Reference / Legends / Winter Camp Legends
Winter Camp Legends
Railway Excursion
| Origin | Winter Camp I (1977) |
| The Story | At Winter Camp I, the railroad track near Walker's Farm had only recently been removed. There were still railroad ties stacked up for removal. Winter Camp didn't have much of a schedule and the Ceremonial Committee didn't have much of a budget. The decision was made to go look and see if the railroad had left anything useful behind. There were a few large metal boxes along the track which probably housed electric equipment at some point. The hike was held under cover of darkness since technically it was trespassing to wander along the tracks. Campers proceeded along Dryden road and headed north towards Sutton once they found the railroad crossing. They had perhaps encountered one abandoned box when they saw light behind them driving on the rail bed. Not sure what to do but worried they were about to be charged with trespassing, they all left the tracks and went to the bottom of the hill. There was a small ditch there and the area was overgrown. Everyone laid down in the ditch and was very still. Eventually the truck drove past them with a flood light stabbing into the area where they were hiding. Luckily, none of them was spotted and the truck drove on. A few minutes later the campers caught their breath, overcame their fear, and left. |
| Veracity | This story is 100% true. Sometimes it is embellished to mention the searchers having guns or the sight of the floodlights on the tall grass where the campers hid. The guns may have been there, but they weren't brandished or anything like that. The truth is probably that the campers were bored and the hike seemed better with the possibility of salvaging gear for the committee. |
| Trigger | This is kind of a Winter Camp horror story, suitable for campfires and to explain how dumb the folks at Winter Camp I were. Sometimes it's told to point out how hard it is to spot people who are hiding from a moving vehicle. |
| Positive Message | We used to be poor. |
