A fire at the Hidden Valley Scout Camp in Gilmanton Monday morning drew emergency crews from the Concord area to help extinguish the blaze and cover empty stations.

Fire crews responded to a fire alarm at 11:07 a.m. and arrived at the scout camp near Lake Eileen to find one of the camp halls in flames.

“The building is very well constructed with lots of layers of wood and insulation,” said Gilmanton Fire Chief Joe Hempel. “It’s a very, very tight building, so it presented some challenges to extinguish.”

The building that caught fire is the Carter Lodge conference center, which is mainly used for training or meeting purposes.

“Fortunately, there were no injuries and we are deeply grateful for the rapid responses by camp personnel and local fire departments to quickly bring the fire under control and prevent damage to any surrounding areas,” Daniel Webster Council Scout Executive Jay Garee said in a statement. “The remainder of Hidden Valley and Camp Bell facilities will continue to be available for Scouting units to use and enjoy while we address the damage to Carter Lodge.”

The remote area made accessing the fire difficult, Hempel said. The second-alarm fire drew crews from Alton, New Durham, Chichester, Barnstead, Loudon, Pittsfield, Laconia and Gilford.

Fire crews remained on the scene after the fire was under control to look for hot spots and make sure it didn’t re-ignite.  

The Hidden Valley camp is part of the 3,500-acre Griswold Scout Reservation owned by the Daniel Webster Council surrounding Manning Lake. Hidden Valley was acquired by the Daniel Webster Council in 1970 and in 2000 it acquired additional land, which became Camp Bell.

Hidden Valley features nine year-round cabins and a year-round camp store. It also includes 12 established campsites, a dining hall built in 1997 that seats 620 people, and a campfire and ceremony amphitheater capable of seating 850 that was completed in 2016.