There is a camp along Sta-ha-he shores….
Camp Trexler is its name…
Well, Camp Trexler used to be its name. Trexler was a Lutheran Camp for boys in Harriman State Park in NY from the 1930’s until 1986. My husband worked there from 1977 until 1983 and I worked there the summer of 1982 right after we were married. We had so many good times there, that I started a group for alumni on FaceBook. When I started the group, we had three members. Myself, my husband and my brother-in-law. My brother-in-law’s first post was, “Now what?” My answer was, “we wait” and sure enough, just like in Field of Dreams…”If you build it, they will come”. We now have 85 members! We all have that Trexler connection and this past week we decided to hold a reunion.
Harriman State Park used to be home to many overnight camps and each summer (around the first Thursday of August) they would hold a canoe regatta on the shores of Lake Sebago. My first regatta was the summer of 1978. My mother drove me and a friend up to watch the races and I was fascinated! There are several heats involving kids and counselors from age 8 and up. Girls against girls and boys against boys, all competing for the coveted McManus trophy. Whoever had the most wins, took the trophy home. Camp Trexler won that trophy each year I attended the regatta from 1978 – 1984 – they had won before that, but I’m not quite sure how many times.
So imagine a group of about 12 forty-somethings reliving their youth watching the races! At one point one of the race coordinators approached our group and asked if Trexler would like to enter a 4-man canoe in the races…oh yea, of course they would! So after almost 25 years, Trexler was represented in the regatta! Jeff, David, Andy and Graham came in third place (out of four)…they didn’t swamp and no one had a heart attack so all in all it was a good showing!
Afterwards we gathered at Rhodes North Tavern for food and drink and more reminiscing…it was a pretty great night. We’re hoping to hold another reunion next year and I’m hoping that “the boys” bring their wives and families. Trexler wasn’t just about a bunch of teenagers going wild, it was about hiking, camping, friendships, and traditions. Trexler may be officially gone, but it lives on in our hearts and when we sang our evening hymn the other night, I felt a chill.
Now the day is over
Night is drawing ‘nigh
Shadows of the evening
Steal across the sky
Glory to the Father
Glory to the Son
and to thee blest Spirit
While all ages run…
Just wanted to update you all that the Camp Trexler page on Facebook is now 230Â members strong. Please join us there! (5/25/16)
76 Comments
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/group.php?gid=21875485014&ref=ts
or you can do a fb search for Camp Trexler
Thank you! I was able to get there with the link. I did try searching at first, but could not find it.
I went to Trexler for four years; my memory isn’t so great, I think it was around 78 to 81… The first year I went, my brother Bill worked in the mess hall (he was affectionately known as droopy drawers).
Anyway, looking forward to seeing if anyone I know has joined the FB group… thanks for the memories.
My brother went to Trexler in the late 60’s, I went in the early 70’s. My mother went to Mahetu in the 40’s and my sister went there in the early 7o’s. I was a white kid from Bklyn and my best friend was a black kid from Harlem named “Dorsey”. I have the fondest memories of those summers in Harriman, however I remember one tragic camp experience. One night, counslers from both camps went for a drive at night and were killed in a car crash. I remember a memorial service held around a campfire the next day. It was my first experience with death. I am now a 25yr veteran of the FDNY and have seen more tragedy than most, but that experience will never leave me. I have so many more wonderful memories of my summers at Treler, but was wondering if anyone remebers that tragic summer…
I was a camper @Trexler from 1943 to 1950 for 8 week’s each summer they were the best time’s of my childhood. since 1990 I have stopped there at least 7 time’s I have even taken two bottle’s of water from the lake home to Fl. last summer I went for a swim in
the “CRIB” & it brought back a lot of memory’s of the annual Lake Swim which I done 1 time…it took me 1 hour & 15 min.
1965 & 1966 ( my sister @ mahetu ) so many great memory’s – got my jr. lifeguard cirt. – 3 day hike to west point – raided mahetu @ nite with dead fish – floated a couple of trunks in the lake- got 4 awards in archery – still have a picture of my group tent
Kenny
I remember that night.
Our counsler was Larry if I am not mistaken. He may have been in the car and was certainly upset. I recently went through an old box that I had and found a camp group photo and an archery diploma. The diploma was signed by my campmates it was dated July 26th, 1974. Your signiture was in the upper left hand corner. Another notable was Paul Miller. How time flys. I remember camp trexler quite well, it made lasting positive impression on me. Although to this day that was the coldest lake I have every been in.
“Our House” CSNY
Trexler and my camp, Quidnunc, would hold dances or socials for each other .. This would be (as far as I rememeber) in the mid to late 60’s.. We still talk about them today..
I attended camp trexler around ’67 when i was about 7 years old. My sisters went to mahetu. I recall that after our parents left they told us that trexler was the German word for “work camp” to scare us I guess. It worked. We hiked to a lake with an island in the center and surrounded by blueberry bushes…yum. We slept that night by large rocks at the shore or of the lake but were terrified by the ghost stories. I think I cried for my mommy. I remember fishing using squeezed bread on a hook near the dam. I also remember a very long hike to a canoe race at another lake.
Mark,
I was in the car with Larry that night. All of us lifeguards were out for the night and on the way home we were the first ones on the accident scene. I was 17 and it was a life changer for me. And Kenny, I remember the memorial mass the next day too. The head of the camp, Garrett, gave a powerful talk.
After stumbling on this website I had to go back for a visit a couple of weeks ago. It’s all still there! Every building, cabin and platform. It’s just a day camp now and they have two “cribs” at the dock but no backboards for “animal ball”, to this day the toughest sport I ever played! I had to take a hike around old Stahahe, what great great memories. I only worked there two years (72-73?) but Trexler will always be a part of me.
I was the youngest camper in the summer of 1958. For eight weeks I was a six year old totally unsupervised savage who discovered pure animal freedom at Camp Trexler. How did this come to be? Easy, My Mom, Jean Lunde, worked as the camp nurse. This got me in under the age requirement ( seven ) and put me in a unique situation that I exploited to the fullest. Herby, my gentle giant counselor, thought my mom was keeping tabs on me and Mom thought I was in good hands with Herby.
I ran up a huge tab at the dispensary, charged an enormous amount at the crafts store, and did as I pleased for two glorious months. I lived in and around Stahahe. I walked across the algae slimed dam and back,
earned swimming and rowing and even canoe privileges, speared frogs and perch along the shore, and lived my Algonquin fantasy. We teased the huge snapping turtle, hicked for miles and camped out on mountain tops (Thunderbird?) ate army rations, wonderbread and drank “bug juice.”
I returned to my home a browned muscular almost-seven year old. the envy of my little peers and the recipient of my father’s wrath when he got the bill for my hedonistic summer vacation. This was 52 years ago and I still remember more details than I can write down here—of course at this age I have trouble remembering if I took my pills this morning. I will always have my cherished memories of youth and Trexler.
Mark Lunde
Thanks everyone for the info. I attended Trexler in 1981 and 1982. I was wondering what happened to it. I would loved to have been able to send my 10 year old there. I stll have my green Trexler tee shirt.
I went to Trexler in the early 80’s. 81 to 85 if I’m not mistaken. I was one of the 3 black kids in the camp. It was a great experience for a city kid from Harlem. I would have loved to send my son there but he had really bad asthma and the doctor was against it. I remember being friends with a kid named Chris Munoz and another kid named Brandon. Met a girl named Angela at the Ma he tu social. I think she admired my breakdancing skills. I was the only one doing it at the party lol. Trexler opened me up to a lot of new things that helped me through life. When did it close?
i’m in stitches about finding a Camp Trexler ‘thread’ at a quilting Web site… and i REALLY enjoyed reading such a recent post from ‘stretch’ McEvoy… once a year (for many years now) i return to S-11 and revisit the scene of so many terrific summertime adventures – and swim in the lake that remains one of my absolute favorite places to do so…
I attended Camp Trexler during the summers of 1964 and 1965. I was there for only two weeks at a time.
Is there anyone out there who also was there during that time ?
I have a group photograph from the summer of 1964 (black/white) and I am curious if there is anyone from that time who remembers it.
Robert
robert.pietsch1@verizon.net
In response to Richard rosenthal’s post about the name Trexler. In the 40’s to the early 50’s ther was a sign on the driveway by the mess hall that Read… TREXLER A GERMAN BOY’S WORK FOUNDATION
OK Larry, I’ll meet you there next time you go. Haven’t been called “stretch” in 40 years! mcevoy_al@hotmail.com
Looking for anyone who attended Camp Trexler during the summers of 1964 and 1965. Both youngsters and counselors. I have a black/white photograph taken of all of us during that summer.
Robert – there is a Camp Trexler facebook page where there is an assortment of campers and staff from waaaaay back till the ’80s. You can try this llink to get there: https://www.facebook.com/groups/21875485014/
I went to Trexler each summer from 1959 through 1967. These nine summers added up to more than a year at Trexler. I cherish those summers and the memories. I’ve visited Stahahe, Harriman, Red Apple many times over these years.
My parents found Trexler after taking my older brother to Camp Pequot, also on Lake Stahahe, in 1957. As a nine-year old camper in 1959 I was a little uncertain about being left at camp. I took the swimming test, and then told my parents “you can leave now.” Years later my son would tell me to leave after I brought him to camp in Oregon. Campers could go weeks with seeing parents.
I was a Counselor in Training (CIT) in 1964, 1965 and counselor in 1966, 1967. I instructed swimming and canoeing in 1967. We most definitely did not win the 1967 regatta. (But MaHeTu may have. MaHeTu kicked butt at regattas. They probably thought about sports, while we thought about them.) We went back to camp slowly after that regatta, humming the Ode to Billy Joe.
It was a privilege to be invited to join the staff. We campers yearned to be invited, to enjoy all the privileges of staff. Trexler liked to hire its campers, to preserve tradition. The CIT program turned us into quasi counselors at 14, and still charged us (reduced) campers fees. As counselors we worked two jobs- a cabin or tent at night, and a day job like Arts and Crafts, Kitchen, or Pioneering. We worked for practically nothing and loved it. Trexler ran on low-cost dedicated college or college-bound staff who were steeped in its traditions.
One most daring adventure was a two-day (team-building?) canoe trip for CITs in 1964. We paddled from Bear Mountain (Stoney Point?) down the Hudson River against strong headwind across Haverstraw bay and camped. Day two we paddled past Manhattan, past the Battery. The last part was the most treacherous-crossing several miles of Upper Bay in larger swells to Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, where we met Jon (John?) Lund, (then assistant camp director) loaded the canoes, and headed back to S-11. Jon was known for his quick, and skillful, driving. Was that canoe trip ever repeated? I have never seen canoes traversing New York harbor. I can’t imagine how we looked that day paddling across the harbor.
Canoeing is still part of my life, thanks to Trexler. We trained for all sorts of canoe emergencies but I never needed the skills at Trexler. But a few years ago the training came in handy during a canoe trip that I led on the Willamette River. A few people got into trouble in fast water and snags. In a few minutes I surprised myself by all that I had remembered. No one hurt, no gear lost. Thanks Trexler.
Another CIT adventure took us to Camp Tremper in the Catskills. Camp Director Lee Miller, who started the CIT program, was big on sending CITs to other camps for cultural exchanges. On the way back we stopped in the then obscure town of Woodstock. Lee also like to challenge CITs with survival hikes, waking us at 2:00 am and taking us to the woods with only one chosen item. How would we do? Lee went off to be a minister in Jamestown, NY. Jon Lund, who had been at Trexler since the beginning of time, became director in 1966 and 1967.
As counselors, our adventures included finding ways to drink on our nights off in Monroe (Tony’s) with other counselors, and perhaps missing the ride back, and walking 10+ miles back to camp with buddies at 1:00 am. (Almost no one had a car.) We could take a shortcut from Red Apple over the telegraph trail but usually at night we would walk the whole way around the lake by road. What’s a few more miles with your intoxicated buddies? No matter how late, the day started at 6:45 with reveille. My tent (Tent 6?) in Junior Village backed right to the lake. After 5 hours of sleep, I might drop from the back of the tent platform, stumble a few feet, and drop briefly in the cold lake. Probably against the rules.
It’s remarkable how much responsibility we young counselors had. Another counselor and I, both 16, would lead campers on three-day hikes on poorly-marked trails. Many counselors were under 18. The camp director in 1967, Jon Lund, was the oldest staff member at 25, aside from the cook (Lou Ramey?). We were wild teenagers on nights off, and very responsible counselors by day. At “the waterfront” we were especially diligent. Buddy system- know where your buddy is at all times. We knew no one could drown or the camp could collapse and our nirvana would end.
Wasn’t Trexler named after Samuel Trexler?
I remember Green, Greiner, Grotheer, Bruce Kirmsee, the Smith brothers, Bill Mayer, Nick, John Whittle, Herman Stuger, Froggy Kowalski, Andy Lindgren, Paul Leisem (played organ for church), Woodi, Nurse Alex, Chiravelli, Bob Shinot, Walt Ludwig, Rich Howell… How easily these names come to mind 45 years later. What characters we all were. Jon Lund -how he would entertain us all with announcements after meals. What a blast. How are you guys? I went to camp with some of you year after year. It would be great to hear from you. Send questions, be in touch. Any reunions? I get to Harriman most every summer.
Will Werner
Portland Oregon
willthetall@aol.com
So I cannot tell what actually happened to the camp? Current Satellite photos show a swiming dock there. I attended in the late 1960’s.
@ Mark: I was by there yesterday (following the regatta). It basically appears to be abandoned (as do most of the camps on the road). There were a few signs of life at one of the camps (it was H.E.S. when I was a camper in the late ’70s/early ’80s), and Eureka (right next door to Trexler) is clearly still in use. As for Trexler, the buildings all appear to be where I remember them, just run-down and no longer in use.
I went from 82-87, if memory serves. 86 was the last year it was Trexler, in 87 it came under new management or something and changed its name to Laughing Waters, although most all of the kids and counselors were the same. The new head counselor, though, had no history with the camp and didn’t know our traditions. He’d shush us when we did chants in the mess hall! Not coincidentally, it was the first time in many years that we lost the Regatta.
I believe it closed after one year — rising insurance costs meant we couldn’t do activities like rappelling or rock climbing or archery any more. Just having a swimming dock was a big liability.
Sure like browzing your web. I spent many summers at Camp Pequot. my first at six in
1941 or seven 1942. Camp Trexler was our
friendly adversary…….
Re: The Ma-He-Tu car crash in ’74
It was kitchen girl who was killed, and I was hired to take her place for the rest of the summer. My brother Harry Croyder was one of the Trexler couselors who came upon the accident scene.
i just googled trexler and found the fb page and subsequently your site. man oh man…my brother and i were there in 79 and 80. my first year there was so darn awesome. so many friends. i remember tom and pete(?) yelling ANIMAL BALL! COLOR WAR! I remember “Rock and Roll”…that questionable but awesome “nature activity” of dislodging boulders on the Long Trail. Sunnies in Blender (again, the Nature program needed tweaking). I remember Mike Church, great counselor…funny, kind,.. ah summer camp
I just stumbled across this site. My father was the camp director for two years in the early 1960s. I attended only one summer in the mid 60’s. Both my sisters were regular attendees for many summer encampments at Ma-he-tu. I have fond memories of the summer I was at Trexler, I met some great guys and had some fantastic experiences. I remember one evening when we were camping out and the ghost story of the “Boston Mine Monster” one of the counselors climbed up on some rocks and held a blinking red light beacon which we had been told was the blinking eyes of the monster. I also remember the bonfire at the end of the encampment. I was sad to see that the camp closed in the 80s although glad to see that Ma-he-tu is still open.
There is a camp along Sta-ha-he Shores
Camp Trexler Is it’s name
There are a dozen other camps like this
But none are quite the same…..
Hey Ma-He-Tu girl, I remember Harry. Larry Grotheer, I remember you I believe when you just became a counselor. Do you have an older brother Alan? I remember Al McEvoy, too. I went to Trexler from ’68-’74. I think my counselor at the time was Henry Florshutz (sp?). I did the Regatta every year and have been to Stahahe recently kayaking. It looks pretty much the same, though vacant. The dam area was very peaceful with turtles everywhere. I try to get back there from time to time. Good crazy memories, some really sad. Ma-He-Tu seems to be still going strong. Be well, all.
I was a camper from 1968-1975, assistant cook to Bob Hicks in1976, and counselor in 1977. Garett Church was camp director. I could tell Trexler stories for days! Trexler was such a big part of my childhood and teenage years. I’d love to hear from any Trexlerite who remembers me.
Darin – my husband, Tom Teichmann says to say hello and “Freebird” 😉 Trexler has a facebook page if you’re on FB with lots of Alumni.
Thanks Lisa. I’m sorry but I can’t seem to picture Tom. I will check out FB. We’ve got to do a reunion!
I attended Camp Trexler for two weeks in 1967, when I was 7 years old, and again in 1968. Many of the posts on this site brought back many memories, such as taking the stale bread left outside of the mess hall to use for fishing by the dam, the softball games against the other camps in the area (when I took a bad fall, skinned my knee, and ended up pitching for the rest of the game because I couldn’t run), playing capture the flag in the big field, not wanting to leave the cabin at night to use the bathroom for fear of the “Digit Monster†(a great story told us by the counselors), the Sunday Service held in the outdoor theatre by the lakefront, and, of course, the chocolate pudding that came from a can that we used to have for desert. To this day, I tell my wife that it was the best chocolate pudding that I ever had. I also remember the “CRIB,†the lake swims, trying to build a raft that ended up not floating very well, and the fire building competitions.
I fondly remember the hike up to the lake with the island in it, and the blueberry bushes all around. I remember several things from that night, including the campfire we built and all the pine branches we put on it to keep the mosquitoes at bay, the hard driving rain that came down upon us later that night, the counselors trying to shelter us in an old building foundation that was nearby, and eventually hiking back to camp in the rain, using our flashlights to find the blazes on the trees. The next day we all went through a pile of gear that the counselors retrieved from the campsite, as we left most of it up there when we hiked back in the dark the night before. I lost part of my mess kit that night. Perhaps this overall experience was a precursor for things to come, as my family ended up doing a substantial amount of camping as our children grew up in here in NH, and I ended up doing a great deal of backpacking in all seasons and in all kinds of weather in the White Mountains with our two older sons.
Does anyone know where Camp Trexler was physically located – on which shore and what end of Lake Sthahe? I still go by the area from time to time, and it would be great to drive by the old place, presuming that it is still there in one form or another.
If anyone was there during any of those two summers and feels so inclined, feel free to reach out to me at my email address at executiveleader@hotmail.com.
I remember Trexler, BUG Juice with real bugs at least till they put screens on the mess hall. Cabin 9 with Walter as our counselor, The nature cabin up on that small rock bluff down near the dam. Running behind the DDT trucks that went thru the camp on the paved road. That may explain my warped mind LOL Feeling along and homesick that one year. till the rest of the tent got there. Sunday Morning services at the lake in the cool late summer air. The Large Fire at the end of each session. Wish I could trun back time and live that all over again.
Rob asked in his comment ” are you a turtle?”
My reply is You bet your sweet ass I am
I still have the Group photos Anyone else?
Hello, my Trexler brethren! It has been 4 years since I have visited this site. I was extremely touched by the posts from Al McEvoy, Marc Benson and Ma-he-tu Girl, regarding “the accident”. I still carry the sadness of that day, some 40yrs later…
After rediscovering this blog, my brain has been throwing random memories at me! Was color wars a team obstacle course? I remember a rope swing being part of it… I remember sing God Bless America in the mess hall, also a weird little song about the Titanic, “sisters and aunts, little children lost their pants, down to the bottom of the sea”!! A mythical giant snapping turtle, called “Godzilla”, that everyone claimed to have seen, but never caught. Also a hike to the “Red Apple”, where I bought a Mad magazine and a slim jim! Indian caves!? Red cross, swimming tests? So many great memories…
Also remember “mail call”. Like in the army, if you didn’t get a letter from home, it was a sad day…
Amazing to see a post from “Willie” Werner, who was in Tent 6 (which later became the waterfront tent) with me in 1961! George Ellis was director that year, and Joe Adams was the Program Director. Maybe Will remembers that Tom Lopez was our counselor.
I went to Trexler in the early 1950’s for 7 or 8 years. What great times. I too learned to swim in the crib. I earned my life savers badge there too. There is only one counselor name I can remember, Roger Haworth (he pronounced it ‘haw worth’). He was a musician and played on the record Mack the Knife by Bobby Darren.
Oh my god I just stumbled upon the website – I was at the camp trelxer from 1963 to 1969 – Kevin Gompers – you and I were in the same Cabin 9 with Walter Ludwig! I fondly remember Willy Werner – you were great in that you always gave me extra “french” toast and were easy on us when we had kitchen duty. I loved chasing racoons at night, canoe Josting, canoe portages, hikes to tom jones and finger board shelter, staff week and the banquet at the end of the summer
Hallo,
I was googling ‘trexler’ .
I am eddy from Belgium.
In 1976 I was councelor in
camp trexler, it was in cabin 9
And cabin 2b. In this cabin
Paul sudton was the other
councelor. There was also a
councelor from Germany his
name was harald mayor.
I did spent a great time at the
camp. Thank you all.
eddy
Trying to remember what year I went to Camp Trexler. Mid-late 70’s. I remember carving a peice of log all summer into a head. At the end of the Summer, they stacked all of the carved heads into a Totem Pole.
I hated the plants in the lake brushing against my feet. The older guys told us that there was a HUGE Snapping Turtle in the lake that could take your toes off.
My sister went to another camp nearby called Camp Wequanapek.
Facebook group is closed but I submitted a request.
Just drove through Harriman State Park today and saw Camp that could have been Trexler. 90% sure it was.
What is the Camp’s Name that resides there now?
I just finished reading all these incredible posts…wow!
Not sure if anyone remembers us, but my mom was the nurse, Mrs. Ziff and my sisters and I stayed at Camp Trexler for a couple of years in the early 70’s. I vaguely remember in no particular order…
The Digit Monster – more details would be appreciated!, Godzilla and the other snapping turtles lurking under the dock -which taught me to swim fast, real fast. The Natures counselor that was so kind and walked my turtle (and me) around the basketball courts. The raids – and the fish hook stuck in one boy’s head (I think his name was Rudy). And sadly the car accident. For some reason the name Diane keeps popping in my head. And the name Harry Croyder too.
Thank you for the memories!
Sharon
Just found web for camp trexler great memories and pics. I to remember Roger Hayworth and director Richard Doremis. I also had a friend Raymond ostermier.swimming instructor l think his name was Dave can’t rember last. I worked there as a dish washer I think 1958 good times. anyone interested love to hear.
Wow! Exciting finding this Trexler site and reading posts from so many names/people I spent so many summer.
In answer to Will Werner, yes the conoe trip down the Hudson was done again with the girls from Camp Ma-He-Tu. Both trips were great fun. Somewhere I have pictures of those trips I’ll have to find and post.
Went to camp trexler late 50’s though the 60’s. Taught archery in the late 60’s. I remember the dances we had with the girls camp across the lake. Anyone remember the wolf canoe which was the only one that had a sail. Those were great times.
camper from 1949 thru 1953, staff from 1954 thru 1961. Names: John Shuttleworth, Ralph Bacharach, Pastor Heineken, Bob Dodd, Joey Adams, Danny and Joe Toleno , Bob Weibolt, Bob? Runberg, Herbie Hagenau, Jim Matson Walt Brunner, Roger Haworth, Davy Woodward,Dick Doremous, Paul Kirmsee, just some and spelt wrong I still remember herbie playing call to quarters every night and a lot more.
WOW. I just found this website. I have such great memories. I was there in 1969 when we landed on the moon! We all assembled in the rec room to watch it on TV I was only 10 & went back to my tent & fell asleep. I had such a great time there. I remember Nick in charge of the water. I went there 4 times during my youth. I can’t remember the camp director when i was a super senior in 1976 but he was great. He made a Frankenstein mask for me. I had so many good times there. I was a “Super senior” the year of the accident when a few of the counselors died in a car accident. It was sad. I know the camp was sold, but I hope the new owners are giving their campers the experience I had.
If you”re on facebook please search for Camp Trexler and join us! Lots of pictures and memories!
I was there about 1944,1945. Great to hear that it is still there. many happy memories.
Love to hear from anyone who was here at the same time I was
I was at camp from I believe 65 -67. Started when I was eight years old and was in cabin three with Brian Smith as my counselor. Spent the next two summers in cabin nine in the intermediate villain and the last year in tent 12 & 16. Started with two week sessions the first two years then a month the third year and six weeks the last year
As I was reading Will Werner’s post many of the names he listed came back. I had to get my allergy shots for while at camp and nurse Alex would take me in her MG convertible into town to the doctors to get them.
I remember Bob green teaching us to rappel. The Indian danceces we would do at the closing camp fire. The Wednesday night cook outs when Lou the cook had his night off. How the last year or so we had to have them on the “desert” because of the drought the park would not allow camp fires in the woods. Hiking the telegraph trail over to the red apple rest. Learning to swim in the lake and avoid getting “spooned” during free swim. How once a week we either had to take a shower or go for a soap swim in the crib which was why we had to bring ivory soap since it floated.
The times after dinner when we would sing “Lord George know my father”. And then someone would stand up and a line would start with all the campers taking hold of the shoulder of the person in front of them and we would end up down at the water front and we would all jump in clothes and all
The time Willie lead the canoe portage and made it two nights with the first night camping at Lake Tiariotti and then the next day hike to the top of west mountain.
So many found memories of those years. I still have some of the old black and white group pictures
I went on to work at the summer camp that Long Island Lutheran held. Worked that job for twelve years. Then when I was teaching at a Lutheran school in the inner city of Cleveland I ended up working at a camp that a group of innercity churches ran. Was the water front director for two years and then became the director. Many of the experiences I had at trexler were in ways put into the camp I directed, especially how we closed camp each night by signing “Now the Day is Over”.
So said o hear the camp has closed. It was a great place. Now that I am retired from the teaching ministry after 38 years I work as a charter bus diver out of Huntsville Al. Some of the groups I take a young people going to church camps. All I can say is the facilities they have are far different then what we had.
I visited Camp Trexler this afternoon, 40 years (almost to the day) after last setting foot on this grounds. My brother Jim & I were campers for second encampment in the summers of 1975 & 1976. My mom was the camp nurse both years. The property is empty and unkempt, but the buildings are still there. One thing that’s missing is the large bell outside Garrett Church’s cabin, which was rung throughout each day to mark when to wake up, eat, change sessions, etc. my 20 year old daughter was with me, and she got a kick out of seeing me walk back in time to when I was 10 & 11 years old. What a day!
Went to camp between 1943 to 1945. Many great memories. I remember one of my counselors Ralph Die & Jack Weegan. Is there anyone out there that goes back that far, I would love to here from you
Wow! Amazing to find all these comments from old Trexlerites and Ma-he-tu-ians. I was a camper for three years from 76-78. Was 7 my first year and remember missing home terribly, but my mother was good about send care packages. I remember Nick and Hulk at the waterfront and Garrett was the Camp Director. I was in the junior cabins 1,2 then 3. I remember an amazing canoe trip down the Delaware my third year. I was nine and felt like we were discovering America on that 3(?) day trip. I remember the line at the canteen and the mail call. Sailing the sunfish and walking along the dam. That tire swing! Sneaking over to the abandoned camp across the lake and of course the socials with Ma-he-tu where the older kids would get spiffed up for the dance that night. Most of the other kids names now elude me, but the memories are strong still. Always wonder what has become of the buildings and property.
I was a counselor in 1952, fresh out of high school. I took care of the nature hut, with a blacksnake as stellar attraction. I also blew bugle calls in morning, flag raising, lunch and taps.
Tony Messina, my future father-in-law, was the camp chaplain.
I also introduced singing at lunch, at first met with some skepticism.
I went to Trexler for the summer around ‘84 or ‘85. For a kid from Queens, it was a great experience to escape the ‘concrete jungle’ and be one with nature. I remember the 30 mile hike from West Point, basketball on the upper courts, going crawfish hunting, the TT trail, and of course the dances with the Ma-He-Tu girls. Great memories!
I was a camper at Trexler during the 50’s. Don’t know how my mom came to find that place but I have fond memories that I revisit frequently now that I have attained the ripe old age of 72.
Fond rememberences of Camp Trexler!
By the time I came to Trexler I was an accomplished swimmer so I had no fears about the swimming test. BUT I was a salt water swimmer and I sank like a rock when I hit the fresh water. Spent my time in the crib and passed the next swimming test!!!!
In what would be my 3rd year camping, had a visitor at home before I left for camp. It turned out he was to be my 5th grade teacher the following September. Lo and behold he was also going to be a counselor at a place called Camp Trexler. Was a great summer but a tough September trying to remember to call him Mr. Koehler rather than Don. Did anyone have Don’t Koeller for councillor during their stay?
The one councillor that I remember to this day was ‘Doc’. That’s it, just Doc! He wore a red jacket…..I believe Boy Scout issue and a military type drill instructor hat. He wasn’t by counselor but he seemed very intimidating from afar. He taught woodsman skills, hiking and related subjects. The standout occurrence was the cross-park hike. We went from Trexler, across Harriman State park to Bear Mountain. I believe it was a 3 or 4 day trek. Not like the usual overnighters.
My last memory was post Trexler. Several times in high school. I lived in NYC and when the call of the wild got into me, I’d ‘ruck up’, grab the bus from the City up to Tuxedo on NJ rate 17 to the Red Apple Rest where my hike started. I would follow one of the many trails across Harriman to Bear Mountain where I would catch the ferry down to NYC and home. I got many strange looks walking the city streets with all my gear to catch the subway home. Senior year in HS was to Bear Mountain. Yeah, yeah you guessed it! I hiked my park for the last time, caught up with the Senior trip and bussed home with classmates.
Good times each camping year, each hike and now, each memory.
The mountains are still part of my life.,….,I live in the shadow of Pikes Peak in Colorado. Now I get to see my mountains everyday, anytime I want.
Wow!
I attended Trexler 19070-79 and have great memories of the smell of german bread coming from the mess hall; Joe C. and Nick Fletcher competing in ‘the deep section’; great counseling from Tom Boatswain; the Church family; and finally reaching the Red Apple!
What a great time in my life!
This was a fun find. My granddaughter Grace is currently a counselor at Clydehurst Christian Ranch in McLeod MT. and she sent us a letter which sparked my memories at Camp Trexler I have an old photo of our cabin with all the kids and 2 counselor from 1947? 1948? I made a copy of the 8/10 photo to send her with comments about how I can remember all the boys but not their names. I was there for 2 weeks for 2 years. As a kid from Bay Ridge Brooklyn living in an apartment house this was an wonderful experience.
Got so excited seeing this site. Went to Trexler from 65-72, when I ended up as a C.I.T . Didn’t come back as counselor because pay was much to low. Mark Stenius and I built the famous turtle pit for Godzilla, which a group of us finally caught at the dam/ fishing area. John Ludwig was the best camp director. Did canoe portage an ramapo river, many long hikes in a unique well marked trail system every two weeks. I stayed the whole summer every year, so I went through the cycle of every two weeks losing or gaining friends. Many times I would sneak off to the Red Apple to get bagels and cream cheese. Was the assistant director of nature building, along with director Mark Stenius. Canteen was a cool thing! Endless stories. Definitely thought me valuable lessons for life. Would love to hear from anyone who remembers me. ( twenty dollar Mitch might ring a memory.) e mail me please. Let’s have fun
You’re more than welcome to join the Camp Trexler Facebook group — follow this link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/camptrexler
I was a camper 1947 – 1952 and a counselor in 1953. My only regret in not making the Lake Swim (it was not available to the best of my knowledge) when I was on the waterfront staff. Great memories that last forever
It is Thanksgiving week during the middle of the 2020 Corona Virus Pandemic. With time on my hands I Googled Camp Trexler and lo and behold… I attended for 2 summers in the late 50’s and actually drove back in one day sometime in the late seventies. Bunch of memories: The dock and swimming area, with the crib for those who could not yet swim. Earning a Red Cross Sr Swimmer badge. Taking out a rowboat, but you weren’t allowed too near the dam. Making your own award feathers with a different feather plume depending on the craft. Watching movies in the rec hall. Short hikes to the small nature museum run by the State Park, and buying a state park trail map. Putting small bread dough balls on small hooks trying to catch fish. Overnight hikes to Lake Sebago, while camping by the shelter at the top of the hill. Having some money along so that you could buy a soda or snack. Learning how to build your fire and being given 2 stick matches to ignite it. I preferred trench fires. I didn’t continue since I was a Boy Scout and spent the following years at Ten Mile River Scout camp.
You’re more than welcome to join the Camp Trexler Facebook group — follow this link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/camptrexler
I was at Camp Trexler two summers in the late 1960s. I remember meeting Valerie Coster of Camp Ma-he-tu from Key Gardens, New York at the social first year. She wrote me a letter within months of meeting me and we agreed to meet again the following year. But the period I attended that summer did not coincide and someone in my family misplaced or discarded the letter and her address and remembers nothing of it. Was unable to contact her again. I want to keep communicating but can’t.
You’re more than welcome to join the Camp Trexler Facebook group — follow this link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/camptrexler
Attended Trexler in the early to mid 50s – my brother Herb was a counselor. I would love to hear back from anyone from that era.
You’re more than welcome to join the Camp Trexler Facebook group — follow this link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/camptrexler
How do I post a comment on camp Trexler posts. I attended the camp in the early 70’s and reading the comments I am reliving some incredible memories. Thanks
You can reply here like you did, or you can join the Camp Trexler Facebook group – https://www.facebook.com/groups/camptrexler
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Hi – What is the URL for the Camp Trexler alumni group on FaceBook?