Rob Reeves and his family began camping at Pinewood Lodge in the 1970s. They lived in Connecticut and “weren’t particularly outdoorsy people, but [they] enjoyed being active and decided to take their 17 foot trailer to a campground in Plymouth, MA for a two week stay”. They loved it. Within the next few years, Rob’s family stayed 2 weeks, then four, and then entire summers as seasonal campers. His mother worked in the store and scooped ice cream and he had a summer job at Pinewood, too – cleaning restrooms and restocking the bar after Lodge functions.

Rob has fond memories of his time at Pinewood. He spoke fondly of the friends he made during that time and reminisced about what the campground looked like. I told him not much had changed, really – just updated facilities. If he walked the path to the horseshoe pits I’m sure it would all come flooding back to him. Pinewood has a way of doing that to you.

The Reeves family left Pinewood in the mid-80’s. Rob and his wife Joanne raised a family and moved away for work. His brother, Rick, was a seasonal camper for a while and stayed through the 90s.

Rob now resides in North Carolina with his wife. He hasn’t had the opportunity to visit us in many years, but says he’d like to. When I asked him why Pinewood had such a big impact on his life he said, “Pinewood is a place where you can meet people from all different areas, all walks of life. That’s rare. People come to Pinewood for the same reason – to camp and enjoy the beautiful space – but you don’t know who’s an investment banker or who has only a few dollars to their name. When we were there we were all the same”. He went on to say that “[Pinewood] helped me even in my professional career. Because of my experience there I was able to meet and create relationships with lots of different people… and I was confident in doing so.”

Thank you, Mr. Reeves, for sharing your story with us. We’d love to see you the next time you’re in our neck of the “woods“.