Last Sunday and Upper Senior Challenge
July 21, 2019 by Don Gentle
This Sunday morning could have been the most leisure morning yet. It was a quiet morning as we let the boys slowly roll up to breakfast almost anytime they wanted. We enjoyed some of those scratch-made cinnamon rolls from Nate and a few cartoons while the boys enjoyed breakfast in their jammies. I even saw a couple of bathrobes out there! By 10 AM we all headed back for cabin clean-up, and then down to the lake for our morning service. Will Johnson and a couple of the staff shared the story of the Lorax and some good thoughts about making the most out of our world.
We wrapped up the morning with a number of choice activities. The only requirement is that the boys had to take in the beauty of the day by being outside. Many of the guys felt like the lake was their primary destination to beat the heat. Many boys took the quiet morning to relax by the lake or in the shade either just hanging out, reading a book, or playing a few rounds of disc golf. I even saw several groups take in some classic board games like Risk, Catan, and Monopoly.
This afternoon brought about an all-camp activity for the majority of camp called Rainbow tag. The boys were challenged with finding about 8 different colors that were out there in camp represented by a hiding counselor with paint. Other counselors were the “erasers.” If you were caught by one of these folk, all of your collected colors were erased. The boys had a blast and nearly ran the whole time. We wrapped up around 5 pm with some lemonade and animal crackers before heading back to our cabins for showers.
The main event, however, was the annual “Upper Senior Challenge!” It is always a highly anticipated event for our oldest age group of campers. The event is similar to an adventure race and it is put together very much like ‘The Amazing Race.” Teams have to move from place to place performing tasks and challenges. Each clue takes them to another part of camp where they have to read and communicate the challenge appropriately to the other team members. Most all of the challenges are activities some of the guys have been doing for years at camp. Teams are divided up by cabin groups and only the oldest “upper-senior” group competes. Activities included a lot of running, shooting sports, mountain biking, climbing, canoeing, the rope swing, swimming, fire building, along with some slightly different events that include sculpture, and dining hall clean-up with motion songs attached. It was truly a challenge for these boys. They all had a great time and cheered on each other throughout the event. It is one of my favorite Sunday events in camp. I really enjoy seeing these boys, some of who have been here since they were seven, show their mastery and skills they have learned through their years of camp at High Rocks.
Tonight we enjoyed our weekly cookout on the lawn with hamburgers, hotdogs, and all the necessary toppings. It was a wonderful time on the lawn watching all of the guys hang out and enjoy the company.
It sure was great to have everyone up at campfire. The band led some slower songs that set the mood as Will Johnson told us an epic tale of Rom that was continued from Sumner last week. As we share our weekly thought from a counselor and all sang taps, I enjoyed watching the boys head into the night quietly down the hill. It sure was a great week!
Have a great night,
Don