Rivers & Rocks

entering grades 9 – 12

Nothing is virtual about this camp, it is a real-world adventure in all its stunning and gritty glory, far from wi-fi and cell signals, and a prime opportunity to evaluate outlooks and priorities for the high-school aged camper.

The terrain will be rugged, the adventure will be real, and more likely than not, it’ll be a little wet! In 2023, we are going to do a little bit of everything. We will backpack through a wild place, explore the local landscape, visit some awesome swimming holes, and partner with the US Forest Service on a trail-based service project earning service hours for our work on the trails.

We will end the expedition at Seneca Rocks. Here, we’ll learn to belay, climb, and rappel in a supportive environment while making time to discuss comfort zones and personal goal setting. In this way, we can use this experience as a tool for successfully facing personal challenges and fears. 

This camp will work to more deeply develop campers’ basic adventure and wilderness survival skills as well as fostering relationships with each other, and awareness of group dynamics. Our mindfulness and reflection exercises will help each camper identify their strengths, weaknesses, and preferences and the supportive environment will help them develop confidence in the value and importance of their unique offerings.

Stewardship Flashback

In 2022, the Rivers and Rocks program saw firsthand the kind of effort it takes to maintain remote wilderness areas as they headed deep into the Otter Creek. They spent several days working alongside the USFS using two person crosscut saws and loppers as they worked hard to fight back the thick stands of mountain laurel and rhododendron that have taken over large swaths of the trail.