Ports
I learned this game from my friend Jen (Eco) Langley. It has become another popular after-dark game at Camp Woolsey. This game is especially well-suited for large groups of players.
Materials: 6-10 leaders equipped with flashlights and Port Cards (name of port on one side, short Morse code pattern representing that port's name on the other side); 2-3 leaders (roamers) equipped with flashlights; each pair of girls will need a list of the ports and their corresponding codes, and a pencil.
To Play: The girls are the captains of ships trying to get their goods into each of the different Ports. In order to do this, they need to explore the playing area in pairs, armed only with their list of available Ports and their Morse code patterns. They are on the lookout for each of the leaders who are playing the Ports. These leaders can be hidden anywhere within the playing area (think creatively - have some which are easy to find, but have others climb trees or snuggle under bushes). Each of the Ports will periodically flash their Port's Morse code pattern using their flashlight.
When a pair of girls thinks they've found a Port, they need to identify the Port by the pattern of flashes, and call out the Port's name. If they are correct, they can then approach the Port and have that leader sign off on their card. If they are incorrect, they must go off and try to find another Port before returning to the one they mis-identified.
While all this is going on, the girls also need to be on the lookout for the 2-3 leaders who are wandering around at random with flashlights. These leaders are Pirates and will try to steal the girls' Port lists! If a Pirate manages to tag a pair of girls in their flashlight beam, the pair must hand over one of their identified Ports and codes to the Pirates. The Pirates may NOT approach a Port directly; they can only steal the coordinates from a pair of girls.
The game is over when either all the girls have found all the Ports, or all the Pirates have stolen a complete Port list from the girls.
Some suggested Port names and codes (remember - in Morse code, a "dot" is a short flash, and a "dash" is a long flash):
| Toronto | dot dot dash dot |
| Halifax | dash dot dot dash |
| Vancouver | dash dash dot dot dot |
| St. John's | dot dot dash dot dot dash |
| Montreal | dash dot dash dash dot |
| Quebec | dot dash dot dash dot dash |