Welcome August Campers
July 30, 2018 by Don Gentle
What a wonderful opening day. It was such a pleasure to meet so many wonderful boys and re-connect with some of the returning campers. There is always some healthy nervousness on opening day. I sure hope we helped with that as much as we could. One thing is for sure, if you’re feeling nervous you are pushing out of your comfort zones and that is where growth happens. I am so excited to share the wonder of what we do every day. My hope is to capture the moment and let you in on a little of what is happening at High Rocks. I’ll try to include you in on a lesson or two of why things work out the way they do and add some notes on why we do it. As with most writers, some days will be a little better than others and I am certain my proofing will lead something to be desired. My hope is that you will find the time and energy it takes to get these boys here to High Rocks is worth it and an important part of their development.
Now on to some details… After a well-needed lunch, we headed right into an afternoon of games and activity rotations. Of course, there are some needed details like swim tests and bike sizing. But why not make it fun by adding some cannonballs in the lake or a simple sprint across the field. That is exactly what we did! One of my favorites is the basic lake test. A simple set of skills required to get boys out in canoes on the lake. You size up some life jackets, learn a little bit about the boat and equipment, then you need to know what to do when your boat tips over. Guess what? We tip our boats over! It is a ton of fun! Just a small example of what our afternoon was all about. We will do more of the same tomorrow throughout the day.
Tonight we all gathered for some all-camp High Rocks relay games. It is a great way to release some energy, enjoy some goofy time together, and have a lot of fun. The boys stuck around mostly with there cabin groups so they could learn to work together while having a ton of fun.
Below are some additional details for our first-time families (and some reminders for our seasoned veterans).
Please remember NOT to send packages of any sort. Packages will not be delivered to campers (if there is a birthday, call us for instructions). If you need to send a forgotten item of clothing, medication, etc., call our office first & then send the item to the attention of our office staff. Our office staff will open the package & deliver the item.
Below is the link to the High Rocks Gallery. The page should open a new window that is just the gallery. You will notice that our website and picture gallery is very user-friendly on most any device, including mobile and tablet devices. To get all the details and features like face tag, image download, and navigation; please check out the notes and details here at Gallery Help and Highlights. This gallery is password protected. I sent out an email last night with details for your login. Please let me know if you need help getting into the gallery. It may make sense to save the link and login to your browser for quick access. I will try my best to get the blog up by 9:30 pm each night, but sometimes camp does get in the way, or our rural internet has been quite slow (or even slower). Don’t fret! We will get you the pictures as soon as we can!
Don’t forget to follow us on social media. We will make it worth your while by putting up a couple extra pictures and a special video from time to time during the day. Twitter: @CampHighRocks. Facebook: Camp High Rocks, and on Instagram: #camphighrocks. Feel free to throw up some of these great pictures to share on your feed. We like making High Rocks look good!
While I did not get to see everyone, it was a pleasure seeing so many returning faces as well as all the new families today. We’re looking forward to a great session. Be sure to visit often to check out pictures as the session progresses. We will typically put a few up in the afternoon, and then more in the evening. Once the blog is live for the day, then you will know all of the pictures have been uploaded for the day. Feel free to add any comments to the daily posts as well.
Everything we do is a direct effort to be sure your son has an incredibly fun, challenging, and vital experience here at camp. We are half the population compared to most all of our peers. High Rocks has an incredible staff ratio and WAY more property than other summer camps. Not all summer camps are equal. Again, we see it as an honor and a privilege to have your boys here at High Rocks. If anything did not go as planned today, please let us know. If you EVER have a question, please ask us! We want it to be an enjoyable experience for everyone!
Don and Elizabeth “Zoob” Gentle
Directors
Let me know if you have login problems. Just drop me an email tonight. I will keep an eye out until about 10 pm. -Don