Some things to do on waking up in an Ohana cabin: 1) get a fire going in the old stone hearth; 2) take a nice hot shower while everyone else is still sleeping; 3) brew a pot of coffee or tea for the big folks, make some hot cocoa for the little ones; 4) step out on the porch with your steaming mug and listen to the birds sing while everyone else gets up; 5) think about the things you want to do today – Canoe? Hike? Bike? Play a game of tennis? Go off exploring local back roads and byways? Start a good book or finish one?

Of course you really don’t need to do any serious cooking at Ohana Family Camp—in the morning or any other time. Once everyone is dressed and ready it’s time to stroll over to the lodge for a hearty breakfast with lots of choices for all ages and tastes – oatmeal and cereals, eggs every which way, pancakes and waffles with or without blueberries but definitely doused in real Vermont maple syrup, bacon or sausage if you eat them, fruits & yogurts, toast, muffins & bagels. Don’t forget to pack trail lunches for the family from the daily buffet table in the Ohana kitchen.

Want to start off the day slowly? Read a newspaper in a rocker on the dining hall veranda. Take a walk along the neighborhood dirt road, through woods and fields, past ponds and old homesteads—maybe all the way down to the fishing dam at the end of the lake if you’re feeling ambitious. Toss off a round of horseshoes with the kids on the pitch behind the camp office. Or play a game of croquet on the wide lodge lawn. Learn more about Ohana...

Eventually almost everybody at Ohana ends up on the waterfront, because just about anything you can think of to do on a lake, you can do here. Swim (naturally!) – in the shallows for little ones, off the floating docks and rafts for bigger kids and grownups. Take a spin in a canoe, kayak or sailboat. Fish from a rowboat. Lounge on the grass leisurely watching the lakeside action. Ohana has all the recreational equipment and safety gear you need for many days of water play.

Not that there’s any shortage of activities to do on land around Ohana. Two tennis courts nestled in the woods host free play as well as lessons from camp staff. One court doubles for basketball, and there’s a separate court for volleyball, too. Archery instruction and target shooting help bows-people of all ages hone concentration and eye-hand coordination. You’ve probably heard the saying “close enough for horseshoes”—at Ohana you can play by the rules of the real game and find out what that actually means. There’s also a game room with ping pong and antique shuffleboard tables, and a cozy library in the lodge.

After a great dinner in the dining hall (or once each week, a camp cookout by the lake), an evening at Ohana might feature a natural history talk complete with live birds and forest animals; a contra dance with a live string band and expert caller; or lively singing, storytelling and s’mores around a campfire. Sunsets over Lake Fairlee and the westward hills are spectacular at Ohana. Watch them every summer night from a front row seat on the sweeping porch of the lodge.