Whale
The Whale is the longest of all of the long distance swims. It consists of swimming all the way around the lake, an uncertain distance between four and six miles. Only senior campers and sometimes CITs ever get to swim their Whale. The first three Whales were swum by Jean Hard, Pete Rounds, and Pat Brewster. There is a plaque in the lodge dedicated to them.
Swimming a Whale
A camper must be well prepared to swim his Whale. To be able to swim his whale senior camper year he must have swum his Seal the previous year. Otherwise he probably cannot do his Whale, but there are some exceptions. Whales are almost always swum near the end of the summer so the campers swimming them will have the maximum amount of time to get in shape. Some campers will do extra swimming called "Whale training" to be even more prepared.
People do their Whale usually starting early in the morning before everyone gets up. The person swimming his Whale never knows exactly what day he will be woken up so it is a surprise. After he is woken up, he swimmer covers himself with Crisco to stay warm during the swim. A Whale can take anywhere from two to four hours.
The Achievement
When a Whale is close to being finished, the bell will ring and the whole camp will go down to the water to cheer the swimmer on. At the next meal the Whale will receive two standing Birch Rock cheers. He will also become part of the Whale club. The club consists of every person who has ever swam his Whale who is present at camp at that time. At the end of the summer the new Whales will all receive their Whale badges. Their names will also be put up on the plaques under the Whales section along with their times.
Noteworthy Whales
There have been a few whales through the years that deserve special mention.
- Jean Hard swam one of the first Whale's ever and the only woman to ever swim her whale.
- Andrew B swam the fastest Whale ever, taking him only two hours and one minute.
- Will W. swam possibly the hardest Whale ever. The wind was against him almost the entire way and he swam through white caps. He did manage to finish with the longest Whale time ever, more than four hours. On the Whale plaques for that year there are waves carved next to his name to make note of his harsh swimming conditions.
