News from Camp Highlander

A little bit of rain doesn’t put a damper on fun here at Camp Highlander, we love when it rains! Sure, it can be a bit annoying when you’re on the zip line and right as you finish it starts to pour, but that doesn’t mean the fun is over. Once it starts raining, campers move to their rainy day locations, and continue with their classes. Say for instance it starts raining during mountain biking, the instructor takes the class back to their rainy day location, and they learn about how to maintain their bicycles, or if it rains during tennis, they move to a safer location and learn about proper tennis techniques. So, whoever said the fun stops when it rains didn’t go to Camp Highlander because the fun never stops here!

Ahoy there matey! The pirates have come to Highlander! This afternoon, campers and staff enjoyed a little bit of pirate mischief and plunder as everyone gathered to see the Gillespie gym transformed into the great pirate city of Port Royal. Everyone enjoyed pirate themed games, food and attire as they swindled their way to collect the most coins and find the hidden treasure. It was cabin 1 that solved the clues and found the treasure first, but there was great fun to be had by everyone. We danced and sang our way until the dinner bell, when it was time for all of us to leave our pirate fantasyland.

Cabin 17 took on the horses today during their daily activities. During their 3rd period, they went down to the stables and had the opportunity to learn more about the beautiful animals, and even ride them. First, the girls dressed in the appropriate attire, then it was time to be introduced to their horses. Each cabin member got to pick a horse, then they learned how to properly brush and clean them as well. Finally, it was time to ride! The girls saddled up and rode like pros! They went around the arena walking, steering, and handling their horses. The girls had so much fun, and they can’t wait to do it again!

It was a cool morning, but things started to heat up as soon as Cabin 22 hit the volleyball court! Volleyball, lead by instructor KK, is one of the most popular activities at Camp Highlander, and it’s easy to see why. Cabin 22 proved that they had the skills when they began their exercises. They already knew all of the proper techniques when hitting and serving the volleyball, they also knew all of the terms such as: set, bump, and spike. After introductions and instructions, the boys were ready to play! They did a few exercises, then it was time for a counselors vs campers voleeyball game. The counselors had a good start, but it was the campers who came out victorious. Cabin 22 had an awesome time and cannot wait for a re-match!

There is nothing better on a hot summer day than a tubing trip down Mills River. Cabin 25 had their first tubing trip and it was amazing! The boys grabbed their tubes and were so excited to take on Mills River. The weather was perfect and the water was calm enough for a relaxing trek downstream. It took the cabin an hour to travel the river down to their desitination, and they had some hurdles to get through such as rocks and trees, but they made it and had a blast doing it as well! They definitely can’t wait for the next tubing trip!

It was a rainy morning here at Camp Highlander, but a little bit of rain won’t put a damper on fun! The campers went out with fun on the brain and postive attitudes which made for a really exciting morning. Most of the outdoor sports like Basketball and Volleyball were moved into the gym, where the classes had a stiff knock-out basketball competitions between cabins. Some of the cabins enjoyed learning new and exciting stories from Native American Culture as well. A little bit of rain didn’t stop Mountain Biking class either—just because they couldn’t go out and ride, didn’t mean the class couldn’t learn a thing or two about how to keep and maintain their bicycle. Nothing, not even rain, can stop Camp Highlander campers from having the best summer of their lives!

During the camper’s daily activities, I had the opportunity to catch Cabin 11 in action while they were at woodworking. The girls of Cabin 11 were so excited to join their instructor, Richard, at their favorite activity. Girls and woodworking don’t sound like they would go with one another, but at Camp Highlander, it is definitely a girl-friendly activity. Many of the girls made signs for their cabin with their names on it, and some of the girls of Cabin 11 got even more creative when they made their own ping pong paddles. Do not let Cabin 11 fool you, they were pros at the woodworking post and they made amazing creations to prove it!

It is Session B’s Camper Choice Day which means campers get to pick and choose which activities they would like to enjoy. One of the activities featured today was weight lifting! Getting in shape is always important, but to maintain it is even more, so that is where the weight lifting class comes in. Campers come to tone-up or shape-up, and get an excellent work out at the same time. Today, the campers chose different size weights to work on their upper body: the arms, chest, and shoulders. Then, they used the floor for exercises that worked their core and legs. It was an intense work-out, but all of the campers enjoyed it, and even felt a little stronger afterwards as well!

We are so happy to announce that cabins 12 & 34 have been named honor cabins for week one of Session B. Also receiving acknowledgement tonight were our honor campers: Alex Moses, Kendall Smith, Hannah Bridges, Sonny Picazio, Mia Schatz and Matthew Manning. Congratulations to all!!!

One of the newest and most fun camper choice activities is Zumba! Zumba is taught by Camp Highlander’s very own Melissa Fitzgerald, and it is an intense Latin form of aerobics. It fuses hypnotic latin rhythms and easy to follow moves to create a dynamic fitness program that will blow you away, and the campers love it! Not only is it fun, but it is also extremely good exercise as well. This morning’s Zumba class lasted an hour and every participant had a huge smile and sweat pouring off. Melissa mixes fun with energy and it is definitely a class no one should miss!

Nothing says fun like a game of basketball with Cabin 22! Today the boys learned a thing or two about the game from their amazing instructor Jared who taught them how to mimic the skills of basketball greats like Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant. Cabin 22 brought their A-game and wowed everyone with their amazing shooting, passing, and layup skills. The boys even got to play a one-on-one game with one another to completely master the court. The boys dominated and truly looked like they were on their way to the pros!