Shippensburg Adventure Game Camp
Nearly thirty years ago, there was a summer camp for D&D. Yes that’s right, a summer camp where instead of basket weaving and archery, you played Dungeons & Dragons. I went all five years it ran, three years as a camper and two as a councilor. And yes, it was awesome.
There is about zero information about the Shippensburg D&D camp on the internet, so I agreed to do an interview for posterity’s sake. You can read my write-up for yourself, but be warned, it is an epic tale of 80’s gaming nostalgia:
My Shippensburg Adventure Game Camp Interview
One other camp attendee has already replied to the post. Could there be more? There were about three hundred gamers who went to the camp. They have to be out there somewhere…
Thanks for starting this all up.
There are still D&D camps to this day. I gamed with a guy in Toronto who had gone to D&D camp as a kid.
Great interview!
Is it too late for me to go to D&D camp?
Fantastic recollection, Ben! I was one of those 300 who was there too. (Though I did not then, nor do I now, look like the actors in “300″.) I attended D&D camp from ‘82 through ‘85 four years total. I believe I was a camper the first two years, a CIT the third year, and a counselor the last. (My memory is rather fuzzy on the details.) I’ve been looking for more evidence of this camp on the web for several years. As soon as I figure out how to comment on your main interview site, I’ll add some of my thoughts and the three group photos I have framed on my wall from each year. (No, they’re not really on the wall – but I do still have them.) Thanks again!
@ Todd — Welcome fellow camper! Yeah, the internet was sorely lacking any proof that the Shippensburg camp ever existed, which is one of the reasons I agreed to do the interview when MJ asked.
I think user comments on the original interview were turned off automatically a few weeks after it was posted, but you’re welcome (and encouraged) to add your reflections here. I’d love to hear it, and I think getting more first-hand accounts of Shippensburg is really interesting.
Hey Ben,
I have a couple DnD questions for you, about the camp, if you don’t mind. I read the interview, and it’s such a great idea. If you have time, would you email me at norgalis@gmail.com please? Thanks again for your help. If a phone call would be easier, then let me know.
Warm Regards,
Max