For our campout on Strong Island, we used 8 single kayaks and 4 tandem kayaks. We headed out from the town landing at Strong Island Road at 2pm Saturday. The conditions were sunny with wind about 10 mph. The paddle was about a quarter mile over to the beach on the north side of the island.
After bringing our kayaks ashore, we explored the island including walking the trails across the island and going along the beach on the east side. We decided on camping on the beach on the northeast. So we walked back to our kayaks and then paddled over to our camping area and setup our tents above the high-water line.
Chatham Conservation Foundation gave us special permission for this campout. In appreciation, we did trash pickup on our walks, and we were glad to find only a little trash. We also did a tree density survey on the island.
After setting up camp, scouts had time for fun on the beach and swimming. For dinner, we made burritos on a gas stove. We collected fallen dead wood for a campfire and made smores while watching the sunset. After sunset, the scouts played manhunt and watched the fire which we had setup below the high-water line so that the tide would wash away the fire debris. High tide came up and over our fire around 10pm. The top logs of the fire kept burning as the bottom of the fire was underwater. Also, we saw a very bright and long shooting star.
We got up early and saw a beautiful sunrise. After a quick breakfast of pastries, we packed up and headed out. We did this early start because the weather forecast increasing winds. The wind was about 15 mpg on our way back which was strong enough.
It was a great trip. We enjoyed camping right on the beach and having the island to ourselves and experiencing the peace and quiet of only hearing bird songs and the beautiful landscape that felt like we were walking inside a painting.
