Traditions

Three Mile Island—Yesterday and Today

In August of 1900, thirty adventurous souls from the Appalachian Mountain Club took advantage of a donation of land by the Eastman family, of Concord, New Hampshire, and set up camp on Three Mile Island, at the northern end of Lake Winnipesaukee.

As this is written, precisely 100 years later, Three Mile Island Camp seems untouched by time, a place apart from the modern world. And as longtime campers know, and new members of the Three Mile family quickly learn, that is exactly what it is.

Rosewell Bigelow Lawrence, who wrote an account of that first visit, would have no trouble recognizing the place. Three Mile remains a haven, insulated from the frenzied demands of day-to-day life, where the only obligation is to set one's own pace in an environment that is in close harmony with nature. At Three Mile Island, campers of all generations swim, canoe, sail, walk the island's tranquil paths or hike in nearby mountains—or simply sit on a porch, chatting or reading or engaging in quiet meditation.