Spring Lake Camp

Spring Lake Camp was erected in 1951 by the Killington Section, though the project actually began years earlier. In the early 1930s the Blue Triangle camp was built next to the brook near Gov. Clement shelter. It served until the late 1940s when it was disassembled and moved to the then pasture above Spring Lake where it became Spring Lake camp.

The land in the open pasture on the northwest side of the pond is owned by Ralph Congdon of Wallingford, He has given his consent for the building of a camp near the top of the hill where the trail south enters the woods.

There is sufficient material at the abandoned Blue Triangle Camp to build a fair sized, closed camp at this location. All that needs to be done is tear down the old building, load selected parts on a truck. transport it to Spring Lake. float the lumber across, carry it up the hill a 1/4 mile and build the camp.

Work commenced in late 1949.

On Oct. 1, 1949, Harold Valiquette, Art Westcott, and Craigue Perkins put in a day at Spring Lake. When they finished for the day, the new camp boasted four walls and ridge pole.

On a cold windy Oct. 23rd, Harold Valiquette, Michael Jennings, and Craigue Perkins continued work. Eleanor Walker, Pearl Nichols, and Vera Perkins hiked in from the gorge and reached camp in time to cook dinner for the men. The construction continued through 1950. On May 28, 1950, 35 members and friends of the Killington, Worcester, and Burlington Sections spent the day at this camp in Shrewsbury.

On the ridge west of and overlooking the pond is the new Spring Lake Camp, built by the Killington Section in 1951 with bunks for 10-12, a unique home-made stove and cooking utensils. However, the shelter’s tenure would prove brief. Spring Lake Camp is no more! It has been taken down and moved to a new location about a half mile south. of its former location. It is the first time that a landowner has demanded the removal of a shelter because it proved to be a nuisance. Without warning or discussion, Mr. Congdon ordered the Section to remove the Camp by March 1, 1954.

Mr. Wayne Sarcka of Spring Lake Ranch was contacted, and he gave the Section permission to reestablish the camp on his land. The dismantled structure and its materials were then repurposed to build Sunnyside Camp at the new location south of Spring Lake.

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