SALTASH MOUNTAIN

Farm & Wilderness is thrilled to welcome Adair Arbor as the new Director of Saltash Mountain Camp (SAM). Having worked at camps since she was nineteen years old, Adair can still recall the rush and reward of being a full summer counselor to middle school-aged girls in Vermont and New Hampshire. Her mentor, former Executive Director of F&W, Ridge Satterthwaite, taught her many valuable lessons about outdoor leadership, such as setting the pace for a hike based on the capabilities of the group, learning the names of trees and flowers around her to share with campers as you go, and teaching with songs whenever possible.

“Adair is knowledgeable about working with children, energetic, and idealistic about the potential of camp in childhood education,” said Ridge Satterhwaite. “I am thrilled Adair will carry forward the legacy of SAM as a co-ed hiking camp.” 

Adair is an accomplished musician and performer with extensive outdoor leadership and tripping experience.  SAM, with its mix of music, skits, and outdoor adventure, feels like coming home to Adair. She looks forward to sharing her enthusiasm for living close to nature and tripping because of what these experiences show us–about the wilderness, each other, and ourselves. Skits and music are another way we learn about each other and ourselves and make sense of the world around us. We can go deep, we can be silly, we can be together.  

“I'm so excited to have Adair join the Director Team,” said Polly Williams, F&W’s Director of Alumni Engagement. “Her skills are top notch and she really understands different developmental levels of children. I am so psyched to see her lead SAM along with support from her partner who is also very knowledgeable on camps.”

Adair cannot wait to meet all the campers, staff, and families; this summer, expecting that they will find joy and growth at the intersection between arts and outdoor adventure. She hopes they will leave feeling inspired by nature’s lessons while having fun along their journey.

Hear what Adair is most excited about in the Q&A with Adair below:

Why F&W?

When my husband and I decided nearly a year ago that it was time to start looking for our next camp community, we wanted to be very intentional about where we landed. The number one criteria we discussed was finding a community that aligned with our values, which, after some brainstorming and discussion, we narrowed down to community, equity, and sustainability. We wrote them down on a piece of paper and later at the top of our resumes. As we continued to dream together and decided that I would be the primary worker for our family while my husband cares for our baby, I found myself longing for work that utilized my outdoor education skillset, that incorporated artistic expression, and that, beyond providing a fun and safe summer experience for kids, also encouraged them to grow into responsible, empathetic, competent young citizens. 

When I discovered Farm & Wilderness, I was blown away—it checked every box. The mission and values spoke right to my heart, and the more I looked into its programming options, the more I thought, “Wow, I wish I had been a camper here when I was a kid!” I truly believe that camp changes kids and kids change the world, and this is exactly the kind of world-changing that I want to be a part of.

What is your vision for Saltash Mountain Camp (SAM Camp)? 

I think both performing and wilderness trips have enormous potential for transforming young lives. They are both excellent ways to find your growth edge, to push out of your comfort zone in a supported way, and to learn to rely on the community of people around you. My vision for SAM Camp is to provide a space for young people that is safe, playful, and encourages creative exploration. I love that it is an all-gender camp and a small community, and I hope it can be a source of lifelong friendships and memories for our campers.

What makes you excited about the F&W community?

I’ve had a unique opportunity to slowly sink into the community here over the last few months working part-time on the Development team. On a personal level, everyone here has been incredibly kind and welcoming to me and to my family. In the wider community, I have seen first-hand the passion, long-term connections, and shared values that make F&W truly special. When people leave notes with their donations, they say things like, “F&W changed my life!” “F&W made camp affordable for my kids when I never thought it could be,” or, “F&W is where I found my lifelong friends.” I am so excited to officially join this nearly-century-old circle of deep connections.

What are you most excited about for this summer?

Singing! Backpacking! Art projects! Seeing young people try things they would have thought themselves incapable of back in the “real world.” Ushering them into the world of outdoor adventure for the first time, pushing through their hesitation and discomfort, and discovering the most empowering and transformative experiences. Inside jokes. Outside toilets. Camp games. My first Fair! The list is pretty much endless—I think it’s going to be an amazing summer.

Campers returned from their long trips on Monday night and regaled us with tales of the trail. We heard about trail dinners cooked over an open fire, awesome swimming-hole stops, and some interesting through-hikers eager to share tips and tricks for living on trail. After sleeping in for an extra half-hour the next morning (the trail really tires you out!), campers jumped right into their final-week activities, the most impressive of which is perhaps the handcrafted gaga pit. The gaga pit was made by SAM campers and staff over the past week and was finished just this morning and unveiled in the “Gaga Gala” and ribbon-cutting ceremony.

The hot, sunny weather this week–which has almost made us forget all about the colder beginning of the session–was the inspiration for SAM’s end-of-session skit projects. In a typical summer, SAM camp performs an original skit in front of the rest of the Farm and Wilderness community to kick off our end-of-summer fair. Even though we won’t be able to celebrate the end of this special edition summer with a fair, SAM campers are still writing, directing, and starring in their very own skits. Each of our two pods is writing and preparing a skit to perform for the other pod on the last day of camp, as a way to kick-off our end-of-session banquet. Skit creation is a great opportunity for campers to collaborate on a creative project–whether you’re into writing, directing, singing, crafting set pieces, or designing costumes, everyone has a part in this pod-wide group project. On Tuesday, campers brainstormed the plots points for their skit, using the theme of “light” as a jumping-off point. Over the next few days, campers will work on various aspects of their skit by splitting up into smaller working groups within their pod. Although I can’t wait to see the final products on the last day of camp, the close of the summer is coming a little too soon!

Miles Crabtree

The second week of SAM Camp started with a round of activities, including fairy houses, Wilderness Adventurers (shelter building and wet-weather fire building), woodworking, candle making, gymnastics, Rube Goldberg machines, fashion design, quilt squares, comic writing, and of course games and swimming every day!

This year, we have 4 cabins divided into two pods and each pod gets to choose between 2 activities during each block. We generally get time together as a whole camp in the evenings, when we participate in an event we call Identity Night, or the Variety Show in which campers and staff get to show off their many talents to the group. This year’s Variety Show included a three-headed all-knowing person, many musical acts, jokes, stories, juggling, and a water drinking performance.