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Wiatava Lodge #13
Arrowmen,
We are excited to invite you to join our lodge contingent at the 2024 National Order of the Arrow Conference at the University of Colorado Boulder! Please stay tuned for our expected travel dates. This is the largest event in the OA, with upwards of 8,000 attendees—from more than 200 contingents—expected from across the country.
We can’t wait to get back to NOAC and watch the nightly stadium shows, bring our lodge to victory in the sports and ceremony competitions, and meet Arrowmen nationwide, all while spending a week living in a college dorm—and yes, it will have air conditioning!
The conference itself is held from July 29-August 3, 2024, but we will also need time to travel to and from Boulder. We’ll share more details about our itinerary, costs, and how to register but for now, mark your calendars to attend the 2024 NOAC with our lodge contingent!
To hear more about what’s in store at next year’s NOAC, follow the conference social media pages on Instagram and Twitter @OANOAC and like the Facebook page, “NOAC,” and be some of the first to hear updates!
About us
Wiatava Lodge #13 was formed in 1973 to serve the Orange County Council in Southern California, but the history of our lodge begins long before that. Like many councils, the Orange County Council originally had its own honor camper society, known as the Tribe of Gorgonio. It was founded around 1927 at Camp RoKiLi, the council summer camp at Barton Flats in the San Bernardino Mountains.
Wiatava Lodge #13 was officially formed on January 1, 1973. The lodge chose local Indian traditions for both its name and totem. Wiatava is the Cupeño Indian name for Lost Valley, and means place of the oaks. Our totem is the cogstone, an ancient and mysterious artifact, found mostly in archaeological sites in and around Orange County.
Rather than keeping the number of either of our predecessors, Wiatava Lodge asked the national office for the lowest number available at the time, and thus became lodge 13.
The Ordeals
Spring Ordeals were held at both Lost Valley and Camp Ahwahnee in 1973, and the first lodge Pow Wow was held at Lost Valley that fall. The Pow Wow alternated between the two camps until 1978, when Camp Ahwahnee was closed. Since then, all our Pow Wows have been held at Lost Valley.
The district chapters have remained an important part of our lodge operation, though their names and boundaries continue to shift as the council membership changes.
Over the years, Wiatava has built a national reputation, usually sending one of the largest contingents to the National Order of the Arrow Conferences. Our lodge has also provided a National Chief of the Order of the Arrow – Evan Chaffee (2007) – and a National Vice Chief – Larry Brown (1979-80) – along with numerous section and regional officers.