Opening Day!

It sure was a wonderful morning to welcome in all our July campers! We are so excited for all our Mini I boys who have just joined the High Rocks family!  I know many of you are here for the first time. What a great session to step into for your first year! The four-week boys will be a big part of your son’s experience and they will certainly help show them the way. While the Mini I guys will move about in their own way during the evening program, they will be part of the same experience that the four-week boys are also experiencing.  My hope is that these minis will also be month-long campers someday. 

As the arrivals trickled down to just a few remaining campers who were flying, it was time to get up to lunch. The first meal was a solid staple of chicken fingers, fruit, and several salad bar items. A good simple meal to keep it safe on opening day.

Just as I had hoped and experienced many times in the past, these boys picked up right where they left off just 48 weeks ago.  It was like camp just let out yesterday.  All the joys, wonders, and friendships were re-kindled just like a campfire.  As I grow older in this world of High Rocks it has become one of my favorite experiences.  Boys are funny, though.  While many of these guys have come back year after year, you can still tell there is a nervous and excitable moment for them every opening day. Many, but not all, are not completely in touch with these feelings.  I hear it all the time how worm out these boys are by lunchtime.  I must remind them that opening day morning is always a big deal and whether they realize it or not, they have burned a lot of nervous energy by lunch.  The beauty is that the nervousness fades and the fun begins.  The activities begin, the cool cards go out the door, and a new summer at High Rocks has begun! 

We quickly busied ourselves with some activity rotations to find out what opportunities lurk out there in High Rocks land. We also use the opportunity to learn some basic skills and check-offs. By the time dinner came around we were ready to feast! Dinner is another opening day favorite with pasta, scratch-made meat, marinara, pesto, and Alfredo sauce paired with garlic bread and scratch-made chocolate chip cookies. Add a salad bar full of all sorts of wonderful veggies, greens, and cheeses and you have one solid opening day.

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.

Below tonight’s blog is the link to the High Rocks Gallery. You will notice that our website and picture gallery is very user-friendly on almost any device, including mobile and tablet devices.  This gallery is password protected. If you are new to the gallery, you should have received an automated email today with details for your login.  If you are returning, use the email address that received the opening day email.  Your password is the same as last year. If you cannot remember, just use the “forgot password” link to retrieve a new one. We are a little light on images today. Expect around 200+ most days.

It may make sense to save the link and log in 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. Don’t fret! We will get you the pictures as soon as we can! We are likely to push up some pictures throughout the day, but they will continue to go up until the blog is live.  Once the blog is up, it typically means that pictures are up for the day.

Don’t forget to follow us on social media.  We will make it worth your while by putting up a couple of extra pictures and a special video from time to time during the day. Facebook:  Camp High Rocks, and on Instagram. Feel free to throw up some of these great pictures to share on your feed.  We like making High Rocks look good!

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!

Here comes the best time yet!

Don Gentle

Today’s Pictures 

Let me know if you are having any gallery trouble tonight. I will be watching until about 10 pm or so. Just hit me up [email protected].