Hankins Tales: The Night Owl of Camp Powhatan

(Originally posted to social media on August 12, 2023)

I remember many years ago when I was the Nature Director at Powhatan. There were a lot of nights when I could not sleep, I drank a lot of coffee in those days. So I would get dressed and simply start walking the camp in the dark. I did not use a flashlight because I did not want to lose my night vision.

Most of the time I would walk the camp road. If the moon was full I would follow some of the more vague trails back up the Creek. There were not as many bears on the camp in those days but there were a lot of Rattlesnakes. Most of the time a Rattler is not going to start rattling right away. However they will often draw up into a striking position and fill themselves with air. It is a very distinctive sound. You can also hear the rasp of keeled scales moving across each other. Back in those days my hearing was almost legendary and I did not miss much on those long walks.

It was more common to bump up a deer along that road as they grazed on blackberries along the edges. If you have never had a buck snort at you at close range then you will not relate to this post. There were always the background noises of thousands of Whipporwills and tree frogs and the wind hitting the tops of the trees. Up in the camp itself there were always noises coming out of the campsites. Humans are a very noisy species. If a rare car came along I would simply drift back into the trees and let it pass. I am sure that there are a number of people who believe in Bigfoot because they saw me vanish into the woods. “Yep, I saw one, 1969 and it was big and ugly”

I would pause at the various bridges and enjoy the view of the moon reflecting in the moving water. Each bridge was unique and the water that passed underneath sang a refrain that was suited to that terrain. You had to be careful walking the bridges because there were gaps in unexpected places. If you were not careful you would break a leg.

Occasionally you would hear a barred owl scream out with that almost monkey-like noise they make. Bobcats and foxes could also be heard if you knew what to listen for. By the time I had walked all the way down to the first bridge I was more than ready to head back. Off to the left I could just make out the mass of the Tower that so many kids still remember. Even today I could walk that road with my eyes closed. Every turn and bump was memorized. My hearing is not what it used to be but that is ok. The memory sustains me. Back in the tipi I slept like a baby. Hearing the whisper of the Screech owls and the summer cicadas.

With permission of the author, these stories by noted scouter and storyteller John Hankins are featured here at Natahwop.Org. He shares these as part of the history and lore of Camp Powhatan, Camp Ottari, and the High Knoll Trail, where he spent many years of his youth. John has an incomperable first-hand knowledge of this scout reservation, as he blazed most of the original trails for High Knoll, and has hiked the rest of them several times over.

John Hankins grew up in Troop 50 (Woodlawn United Methodist Church) in Roanoke, VA. He attended Camp Powhatan as a young scout, then worked at Philmont Ranch as a ranger. He returned to the reservation to serve on camp staff from 1968 to 1978. He was a legendary naturalist who could interpret the outdoors unlike any other. As a teacher, John often relied on the element of excitement to get his point across. His weekly lectures at the nature lodge, for example, introduced scouts to either a live rattlesnake or copperhead – usually dangling on a stick within a few feet of the front row.

John and several others first envisioned the now-legendary High Knoll trail system. They took it to council leadership for prospective funding, where the idea gained several key advocates (but no funding). John recalls how – in those days – they couldn’t pay the staff with money, so they gave them patches. The High Knoll Trail would go on to become one of the best outdoor programs in the country.

John applied in 1979 for the open job of Camp Ranger, but the council said he needed more experience in that post. With his rejection letter in hand, he was immediately hired by Camp Chickohominy, and then by Camp Brady Saunders where he served for 33 years as Camp Ranger. John moved with his wife, Cheri, to West Virginia where they enjoyed the spoils of retirement: grandchildren, travel, and the great outdoors. As of 2024, they are living on the outskirts of Richmond where they can be closer to family.

(“Hankins Tales” are shared here by permission of the author. Each story is copyrighted by John Hankins, and may not be reproduced in any form without his express written permission.)

The Natahwop

Hankins Tales: The Night Owl of Camp Powhatan

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