As campers at both Kahdalea and Chosatonga settle into their cabins after our full day of activities, the sky is painted with glorious colors as the sun sends its last rays onto the clouds. Our Tribal Leaders and Line Heads at both camps are visiting our campers and staff in their cabins, hearing laughter and stories from today’s adventures. Today was a great day, the energy is high, and the weather was fantastic.
Today was a great day! After the morning bell rang, our campers had their first opportunity to share in the communal chores. Cabins are graded daily, with special attention given to cleanliness in our living spaces. A reward of ice cream is given to cabin with a streak of A’s 🙂
After leaving the cabin, our campers attend Morning Watch. Morning Watch is a moment of reflection and prayer lead each morning by one of our staff members before breakfast. Our entire camp community attends and campers and staff are encouraged to bring a journal or some spiritual reading as well. Then, they’re off to breakfast!
Today, our campers experienced their first morning meal at Kahdalea and Chosatonga: a vibrant, energetic environment full of songs, exciting activity and adventure announcements, and the fullness of bustling camp life on offer. After the meal, we enter into one of our favorite parts of each day – morning music! While musical traditions differ at each camp, both of our dining halls enjoy traditional camp songs or folk songs from the great American songbook. This is a special time of bonding and fun before we launch into the day where many of our campers enjoy the same songs (along with some new classics 🙂 their parents enjoyed when they were campers in the dining halls.
Throughout the day today, our chosmen and kahdaladies knocked out their ground schools and had their first tastes of our activity rotations. Ground schools are introductory classes where our campers see what each of our major adventure activities have on offer and meet the staff of these activities. Counselors from mountain biking, paddling, rock climbing, and wilderness staffs share a vision of the adventures that lie ahead and communicate some basic skills for their activities. Campers then have the option to pursue these activities and try trips in each discipline. Tomorrow, our campers will also experience our in camp activities and spend time familiarizing themselves with the plurality of options available on a daily basis at camp.
We’ve had a great day. I’m impressed with the smiles and energy we’re seeing around the camps and in our cabin lines. I can tell this will be an incredible session.
Tomorrow, our Kahdalea Junior Counselors leave for their JC Retreat in some remote river gorge. Our JC boys are already out on their three day wilderness retreat which Jeffrey Trufant started with them this morning. Our campers are off to great things. We’ll be posting here throughout the session, so feel free to check in to see what is happening around camp!
Peace,
Adam Trufant