Morning Wake-Up!

As you can imagine, most of these mini men were likely up well before the bell as they ambitiously waited for the sun to come up and the day to begin. Once they settle into the expedition of camp, the long eventful days create less of the early wake-up. Starting with morning wake-up at 7:45 am, the boys worked hard on their first cabin cleaning of the session.  It is small tasks like these that teach self-reliance and teamwork without the boys even realizing it.

The first few cabin clean-up events require quite a bit of management. I’m not sure what it is, but the young guys go straight for the broom. I mean, straight out of bed, passed the exploded trunk and the cards all over the floor from last night. The broom must be the very first tool of the day. It has to be! Once the counselor realizes what has happened there is a quick halt and almost a rewind of the entire event. There is usually a quick “hold on buddy” as he stops the camper standing there in his underwear super-proud of the few grains of sand (and some Uno cards) that he has collected. “We have a few more things to do first, but then I’ll let you sweep. I promise.” The details of taking care of yourself and your own items first are key to the success of the entire event. Slowly the boys begin getting dressed, making beds, and reloading the trunk that has vomited all over the floor overnight. Still, the broom is a constant distraction as the boys try to start sweeping. Even with just a shirt now and no pants, the broom is grabbed once more by a different member of the cabin hoping to be able to wield the weapon of choice in cabin clean-up. Again, a small redirect, and things are back on track. Finally, the boys are mostly ready while the counselor reminds them of the chore wheel they all agreed to the night before. As each job is explained the boys begin to get to work on all the chores and the cabin looks delightful once again. Now with just a few minutes before the breakfast bell, we just have to get our shoes on! Just a small window into the life of a cabin counselor.

Our mini II guys had a full day of fun at High Rocks today! After breakfast, the mini guys experienced their first, morning assembly. Enjoying some fun songs including singing twist and shout while doing all the motions, the boys were ready for their activities. They all had a great morning heading into lunch, Flattop even had an opportunity at the camp store before lunch.

Speaking of awesomeness. I wanted to take a moment to highlight our climbing leadership staff.  We have some exceptional leaders in our program. Two of our staff have been working with us for several years.  Our lead, Andy Glas first started working with us almost ten years ago.  He has since earned his master’s degree and has spent many years gaining experience and committing to a career in outdoor education.  After earning his master’s in education, he now spends the better part of the year as an outdoor leadership instructor at North Greenville College.  Along with certifications from AMGA and NOLS, Andy is also an EMT and instructs wilderness medicine classes for NOLS. He is a great asset to us.

Our newest rockstar is another American Mountain Guides Instructor, Bay Bennett. Bay spent his cam life growing up at Ridgecrest and enjoying the mountains.  Bay spends most of his offseason time enjoying the outdoors and rock climbing.  Whether it’s a great game for downtime or a cool climbing anchor, I enjoy his ability to lead and inspire people of all ages. He is such a great addition to our program and we are so excited to have him as part of our team.

But wait there’s more… Chris Dorrity, who has worked with us even longer, has an amazing climbing resume that takes him across the globe. He is an incredible instructor and loved by all the campers.  Chris has spent most of his life in and around the world of rock climbing.  He recently penned the second edition of a local bouldering guide for an area called Rumbling Bald. Chris also helped us develop some of our own climbing routes here at the High Rocks climbing site. Chris has always loved being at High Rocks.  He is looking forward to having his son, Mark, attend High Rocks in the future.  What a great team.

We are so thankful for all of our team here at High Rocks and our climbing leadership staff certainly make us look good, but mostly we just feel blessed to have them here for your children.

Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, bacon, grits, toast, cut fruit, and assorted cereals

Lunch: Greek Day! Grilled chicken, house-made tzatziki sauce, lettuce, tomatoes, onion, warm pita, house-made hummus, chips, and greek salad.

Dinner: beef tips, rice, with or without mushroom sauce, peas, carrots, tossed salad.

Mini parents. I sent off an email about the first week’s details along with a few other key bits of information to get you started. I will send you another email next week to let you know what activities the boys have picked after we broaden our mini cohorts into age groups. Please let me know if I can help.

Below is a quick highlight video from last week. It sure has been a great day!

All the best,

Don

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