News from Camp: August 6, 2017
We have had another great week at camp. This morning’s gymkhana was a real highlight—riders from Big Spring and High Trails competed in horseback games in the arena and everyone from both camps cheered them on. Saturday night’s dance with a Cowboys vs. Aliens theme was also a lot of fun.
Long trips at High Trails returned Thursday and Friday enthusiastic about their adventures and accomplishments. The four-day Elbert-Massive Backpack climbed Colorado’s two tallest mountains, 14,433’ Mt Elbert and 14,428’ Mt. Massive; and the 4-day Pikes Peak Backpack reached the 14, 115’ summit of one of our state’s most famous mountains. The four-day Oxford (14,153’)-Belford (14,197’) Backpack, reached both of its summits, and the five-day Colorado Trail Backpack hiked along the spectacular Continental Divide and summited 14,073’ Mt. Columbia along the way. The 5-day Harvard-Yale trip climbed 14,123’ Mt Harvard. The Kite Lake trip climbed 14,148’ Mt. Democrat on Wednesday and the two groups from the Alpine Valley 3-day trip reached the top of 14,036’ Mt. Sherman.
Backpack trips into the Mt. Silverheels and the Buffalo Peaks wilderness areas enjoyed spectacular scenery during their four days in the wilderness, and the Silverheels group also climbed 13,822’ Mt. Silverheels, while the Buffalo Peaks group reached the 13,332’ summit of West Buffalo Peak. The four- and five-day horse trips had great experiences exploring wilderness areas south and west of camp as well as some of the more remote parts of the ranch. The Pikes Picasso trip produced some impressive art while engaging in exciting hiking explorations, and the Canoe four-day paddled 18 miles around the perimeter of Eleven-Mile Reservoir. All of the girls were excited about the beauty of their campsites and the fun they had together.
Big Spring campers enjoyed many exciting overnights and all-days last week including climbs of Pikes Peak, Mt. Princeton, and Oxford-Belford. The boys also had fun on horseback overnights, rock climbing overnights, river overnights, fishing trips, a mountain bike overnight and several trips which camped out on the ranch.
The Sanborn Juniors have been enthusiastic and energetic about their activities this week. They have enjoyed horseback riding, swimming, crafts, hikes and nature programs at the Interbarn, as well as their first campout. Their group photos have been posted on Camp-in-Touch.
Next week, Big Spring will head out on three-, four-, and five-day backpacking trips, mountain climbs and horse-pack trips. High Trails has a variety of overnights and all-days planned including a trip to the resort town of Breckenridge on Thursday. Sanborn Junior campers are looking forward to another campout, more horseback riding, a hike to the Florissant Fossil Beds, and an all-day tubing trip on the South Platte River. The term is flying by and we plan to make the most of our last week together.
Our photographers will be posting last week’s photos on Camp-in-touch tonight and they will be available tomorrow morning.
