[fatlazyless]

Summer of 1964: I have a memory of the Uncle Sam slowing down, and gliding up to the Camp Alton outer dock with docking precision, in the mid-morning, on a very regular basis. The inner dock area was home to green, canvas over wood, C.A. designated, Camp Alton canoes. Whenever the Uncle Sam arrived or departed, all the canoes tied bow and stern within the inner dock, would all do a little shimmy together, like they were saluting or greeting or waving good bye to the Uncle Sam .....it always happened....as the canoes were generally not in use too much at mid-morning .... say 10:30-am.

The Camp Alton docks are basically still there, and were located directly below the 'Rocks', an outdoor assembly sitting structure of small granite boulders embedded into the hillside, amphi-theatre style, where the entire camp of 275 would assemble, morning and evening, to salute the Flag with Flag raising and lowering ceremony accompanied by a different bugler, every day. So, if the young bugler was not too confident with his pre-breakfast performance, his bugle warm-ups could be heard after lunch getting ready for his second play at the pre-dinner Flag ceremony.

The Uncle Sam was a very happening boat .... the bow area benches would almost always be crowded with passengers .... out to see the lake ..... and it was loaded with camper packages from home ... delivered to campers ....that got inspected by Camp Alton mail security, looking for contraband candy in the packages and all candy was confiscated ..... no 5-cent Milky Ways or 5-cent M & M's for you, buddy ..... boo-hoo!