Healthy Escape From Temptation
Sun Herald
Sunday January 27, 2002
Camp Eden is smoke and alcohol free and it's still a lot of fun. Barbara Adams reports.
BALANCED precariously on a tightrope in the rainforest canopy, desperately clutching a thin rope and trying to ignore the ground 40m below, I asked myself what the hell I was doing.
It wasn't the first time I'd had such thoughts during my week at Camp Eden, in the Gold Coast hinterland.
They first pushed their way forward as I prepared to throw myself off a cliff, clad in a bondage-style safety harness attached to a flying fox.
They flared again when I leaned bum-first over another cliff in my first abseiling descent and again as I shakily rose to my feet atop a 22m power pole.
``What the hell?" also struggled to the fore every time I sat in front of another plate of fat-free, salt-free, sugar-free, meat-free cuisine.
But each night as I lay in bed, feeling every muscle in my aching body, I knew what I was putting myself through was the best medicine I could give the over-tired, over-stressed, overweight office worker I had become.
By the end of the week, I felt like a new woman, full of energy and fitter and stronger than I had been in years.
I was ready to plunge back into the real world with a new attitude and a new regime of exercise, healthy eating and good posture.
My reaction to Camp Eden was typical.
For the past 17 years, the camp has been de-stressing and detoxing people and teaching the importance of relaxation, nutrition and exercise.
The Queensland health retreat has attracted more than 20,000 guests from all over Australia and from all walks of life, including a fair swathe of celebrities and corporate high-flyers.
There are three week-long programs the self-explanatory Time Out, the physically challenging Recharge, and Balance, a program that includes self-development forums, as well as physical activities.
Each day at Camp Eden begins at dawn with tai chi and a brisk morning walk (or run for the truly insane), accompanied by the calls of whipbirds and kookaburras echoing around the valley.
The walk is followed by breakfast, the first of a series of delicious, gourmet vegetarian meals that satisfy even the most dedicated carnivore.
After brekkie, everyone heads down to the gym where those in the Balance program closet themselves away for mysterious group ``forums," while those in the Recharge program throw themselves into physical challenges, such as bushwalking and abseiling.
After lunch, the real fun begins.
Camp Eden's tariff includes five pampering treatments, usually two massages, a facial, a Zen massage (of the head, hands and feet) and a body scrub.
Additional treatments can also be booked, along with acupuncture, naturopathy and counselling sessions.
Between these important afternoon ``treatments", guests can participate in a range of classes, from yoga and meditation, and fun group sports. Camp Eden's 300ha of rainforest a smoke, drug and alcohol-free zone presents a different challenge to each guest.
Many of my fellow Edenites suffered ``detox" headaches in the first few days of their stay as they weaned themselves from their particular vice, whether it was caffeine, chocolate, tobacco, alcohol, radio, television or newspapers.
There were also a few injuries mainly twisted ankles and strained muscles.
By midweek everyone had a clear idea of what forbidden food, drink or drug they would reach for once outside the gates of Camp Eden.
But by the end of the week, most were trying to work out how to incorporate Camp Eden's healthy living credo into their own post-camp lives.
As for me and my fellow Rechargers, we swanned back into the world with renewed confidence.
After all, if you've conquered the fear that gripped you when there was 40m of air between your feet and the ground, there's not much in life that can stop you.
Or that's how you feel after Camp Eden, at least.
THE LOWDOWN
* The time: Camp Eden programs begin each Sunday.
* The cost: Six nights at Camp Eden costs about $1,700 quad-share, $1,900 twin and $2,500 single accommodation, including limousine transfer from Coolangatta Airport.
* Other programs: Camp Eden also runs three-day programs, as well as yoga retreats, teenage adventure camps and advanced self-development courses.
© 2002 Sun Herald