YMCA Hayo-Went-Ha Camps

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YMCA Hayo-Went-Ha Camps is an arm of the State YMCA of Michigan which administers a pair of camps in northwestern Michigan. Started in 1904 with the founding of YMCA Camp Hayo-Went-Ha for Boys, the organization provides year round outdoor activities. The primary focus of both camps is the summer program, which offers two to four-week, single gender camp experiences for children in 3rd through 11th grades. Other functions include outdoor education and challenge course retreats for local schools and cross-country skiing.

The arches on the veranda of the Boathouse, a building near the center of camping activity that houses waterfront activities, the camp store, a common area. The Boathouse, constructed in 1904, is the oldest standing building at the Hayo-Went-Ha and is a recognizable symbol of the camp.

[edit] YMCA Camp Hayo-Went-Ha for Boys

Camp Hayo-Went-Ha for Boys lies in Central Lake Township in Antrim County, Michigan along the northeastern shore of Torch Lake (Antrim County, Michigan), occupying 640 acres on a cape called Hayo-Went-Ha point. Founded in 1904 by the State YMCA of Michigan, the camp has operated continuously as a summer camp for boys between 4th and 11th grades.

[edit] YMCA Camp Hayo-Went-Ha for Girls

During the 1980s, attempts were made by the state YMCA to include girls in camping activities. In the early 1990s, a girls' camp was formed at nearby Bows Lake. This facility, however, proved to be insufficient for long term use. The state YMCA then acquired Camp Arbutus, a camp south of Traverse City, Michigan on Arbutus Lake, which became the new site of YMCA Camp Hayo-Went-Ha for Girls.