Today had a late schedule, so most of us didn’t wake up until 9:00.  The extra sleep was refreshing.   It was pouring when I finally convinced myself to get out of my tent.  I waited under Corey’s tent fly until the rain died down a little, and then I walked to the mess hall, where Robby had informed us that meals had been moved to, to get some breakfast.  However, it turned out that we were all out of oatmeal, so I ate Kix© instead. The powdered milk wasn’t as bad as I had been led to believe, and I ate my breakfast in peace.
After my repast, I ventured back to the campsite to relax a little and wait for everyone to get up.  However, it turned out that everybody was already gone.  I sat under Corey’s fly for about fifteen minutes, though, and waited for the girls to wake.  After Alan woke up and I heard some stirring in the girls’ tent, I got up and headed back toward the mess hall to help Mr. Hooker with his lake water tests. When I arrived, the tests had been started without me, for that’s where everyone had disappeared.  So I inconspicuously joined Corey and Jesse and we tested the Silica and CO2 levels in the water.  The tests generally went well, and we found that the lake water is hard one way and soft another, the CO2 and 02 readings are sustainable to life, and the water is (theoretically) safe to drink.  The girls slept through all of this and came to eat breakfast as we were cleaning up the lab equipment.  Ironically, once the girls were finishes with eating their breakfasts, it was time to eat lunch.  So, we all ate (again).
 Directly after lunch, we hiked to the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum.  The hike was about a mile and was enjoyed by all (even though.  At the Museum (where we had eaten lunch on the previous day) we tooled around in the gift shop while the adults got our act together.  We then headed into the interesting parts of the museum.  There, we watched a video about Benedict Arnold’s military feats on Lake Champlain.  He stalled the British fleet by creating a seasonal “arms race” in the summer and then attacking the British in the fall.  Arnold’s fleet lost miserably, being forced to abandon and burn their ships.  However, they did apparently buy the rest of the American army and navy some time.  At the very least, the Maritime staff succeeded in convincing us that Benedict
Arnold was more that the traitor that most believe him to be. The next exhibit that we went to was, by far, the coolest.  It was a replica of the sunken ship, the ‘Philadelphia.’  The staff person there told us about the living conditions of 24 men on a ship (a space smaller than my living room).  He told us about the use of cannons and how the entire complex process was done in about one minute.  He also displayed some tools of discipline and told us how they were used.  Ironically, while
everyone else was being appalled by the methods of punishment, all I could think was “That’s smart” and “Oh, that would work.”  Mr. Peterson also seemed to enjoy the ways of penalization, although his delight scared me a little bit. The last place we went to was the blacksmith shop.  The second we walked in there, the man started to tell us about metals and their molecular structure, the difference
between coolants, how many nails a good nailer could make in a day, etc.  Essentially, everything about the trade.  He also promised to make a nail for us.  I found it relatively interesting because I’ve always thought it would be cool to be a blacksmith in the early 1800’s, however most other people were thinking “Just shut up and make the nail already!”
 After the Museum, we walked back to camp.  There was no rain, this time, and the stroll turned out to be quite pleasant.   Upon arriving at camp, we fooled around (playing cards, writing in our journals and whatnot) until dinnertime.  After our meal, we killed some more time.  Finally, when the sun was ready to set, Mr. Peterson and Mr. Hooker told us to get our shoes on.  We then hiked to the point of the bay, where we could see the sunset better while Susan read her poem.  Unfortunately, the adults left a major factor out… the water level of Lake Champlain had risen 5 feet.  The “nice spot” was completely underwater!  All turned out well, though, and we found a pleasant enough spot.  Susan’s poem was entitled ‘Love.’  It was very good, even though it was more about friendship than love.  After hanging around on the quiet spot a little while longer, I headed back to camp.  A few people followed.
 When everyone was at the site, the team on duty built a fire (with my help) and we talked and bantered for a while.  Then, we went to bed, preparing ourselves for another big day.