July 25, 2014 at 4:26 p.m.
Christmas in July: West Bay Camping Resort patrons celebrate the holiday spirit in the summer
Christmas in July: West Bay Camping Resort patrons celebrate the holiday spirit in the summer
There were Christmas lights, snowmen and even Christmas candy. I was a regular Yuletide affair.
A group of long-time campers come together every year to bring the holiday spirit to the Northwoods in the middle of July.
Linda Krebsbach, manager of West Bay Camping Resort, said it's turned into a real tradition.
"We just decided that it would be a fun weekend so we decided to have Christmas in July," she said. "It started out with a potluck and in the beginning we even had a deejay that would come out and play. As it went on, it relaxed a little. One of the families that came up here had a son that would come up and play music for us, and that happened for awhile. That was really fun."
It's the guests that really make the party, and the guest list is full of names very familiar to West Bay. Many of the campers have made the Northwoods campground their summertime home for many years.
Linda Petig, dressed in an elaborate Mrs. Claus costume, said she and her husband Leon started coming to West Bay years ago.
"We had four children and we bought a tent," she said. "That's how we started out. We heard about this place through some friends. The biggest thing was the swimming pool. That was a big sell for us. Christmas got tied in with a family reunion. This is our first Christmas out here. They'll have a parade of lights and they'll have a judging contest. They'll also have a white elephant exchange and we'll have a potluck dinner. Maybe we'll even sing Christmas Carols."
Sue Koehoorn is part of a big group from Waupun. She said they are hooked on West Bay and the now annual Christmas celebration just makes everything more fun.
"One of our group found West Bay and we started coming here," she said. "We love it. The pool is great. The lake and the fishing are wonderful. Christmas in July is a great little get-together. The white elephant gift exchange is always fun and so is the potluck. Everyone brings a dish to pass. There's always lots of good Christmas candy. It's all very good."
Around this time every year, they all get in the spirit.
Bob Cosgrove said his group spends most of its time enjoying the outdoors, but when the Christmas celebration begins, they give it their full attention.
"This is our ninth year in this campground," he said. "It has everything we need. We like the forest. We can get together and the lake is good for fishing. It's not a super long drive for us from Waupun. We can make it up fairly easily and we always have a lot of fun. Linda does a great job of promoting the Christmas in July. It's very original. We love the white elephant gift portion. We laugh and joke around the whole time. We really love it."
The real mainstay is the Vesche family though. Chris Vesche said he started visiting West Bay with his parents when he was much younger, and the whole family has made it a tradition ever since.
"Our family has been coming since 1972," he said. "My folks discovered this place when it used to be part of Holiday Acres. They found a flier at the Milwaukee Sports Show and they bought a camper. They had never been to Rhinelander, but they thought it looked like a neat place. They liked it so much that they've been coming up year after year."
At the end of the day, it's really about the people though. They've all got some of their own traditions, whether it be heading to the Windmill for ice cream or taking in one of the area flea markets. Vesche said he and his brother like to stimulate the local economy by making an afternoon beer run every day.
Whatever it is, they all agree, it's a group full of good people. That's what makes Christmas in July so much fun.
"I enjoy it, otherwise I wouldn't do it," Krebsbach said. "I've been the manager here since 1989. It's something I look forward to, and I look forward to all the people coming. Even if we didn't do Christmas, I'd still look forward to all the people coming and want them here."
Andy Hildebrand may be reached at [email protected].
Comments:
You must login to comment.