Welcome to BillytheBrownBat.com – your source for all the giddy gossip generated by generations of gals at Chippewa Trail Camp for Girls, the finest camp in Michigan.

 But don’t let me do all the talking! Sign up, log in and start tattling on your camp buddies. Share a story from when you were at camp, or some embarrassing indiscretion from recently. As you know, I’m a bat, and I’m all ears!

 Biography of Billy the Brown Bat

 William Hornblower Brown Bat is rather cagey about his age. Suffice to say he’s old enough to know better, but young enough to enjoy what life has to offer.

 As a teenager, William decided to forgo formality and legally changed his name to Billy. However, he also added ‘the’ to his last name, creating a slight rift among the rest of the Brown Bat clan that exists to this day.

 Billy took up residence at the top of the Chippewa Trail Camp belltower in 1927 and began reporting on the activities of all the campers at that time. His small size, flights of derring-do and incredible hearing ability made him the perfect reporter of all things embarrassing. If you snuck candy into your cabin, Billy knew about it. If you wore your bathing suit backwards, Billy was right there to see you do it. But more than that, he told people about it! The industrious little bat would write his weekly update letter, then secretly give it to a camper or staff member for delivery.  Every Friday night at camp, a highlight of the Log program was the Editor in Chief asking the audience, ‘Has anyone heard from Billy?’ 

 Even though Chippewa Trail Camp closed its gates after the summer of 1984, Billy decided to stay at the bell tower and keep a watchful eye on the property. In the fall of 2004, the first of several Chippewa Trail Camp Reunions was held and the ‘letter from Billy’ made a triumphant return. You can find that letter elsewhere on this site. Since that time, Billy’s been keeping up on the goings on a Chippewa and is proud to launch his first website.

 While he enjoys traveling, stamp collecting and an occasional pilates class, his first love will always be Chippewa Trail Camp for Girls and his perch atop the bell tower.