Opening Ceremonies and Anticipation

07/28/2013

Session three of Adventure Village, and Adventure Trips, is officially off and running!

Our Adventure Village campers (otherwise known as AdVillans) arrived at the village on this drizzly day eager to meet their new friends and experience the unique and fun activities of Adventure Village.

AdVillans were shown to their tents and introduced to their tent-mates and counselors. Counselors facilitated name games and talked about camper expectations and Frost Valley core values. Just as the AdVillans grew more comfortable in their surroundings, they sauntered to the dining hall for opening day pizza and popsicles.

Directly after dinner our AdVill family began preparations for the opening ceremony. Accompanied by Frost Vally’s Chief Financial officer, campers took turns helping a partner with a blindfolded trust walk around Adventure Village. The village headed to the theater for the remainder of the AdVill opening ceremony. Campers learned the song “THREE BLIND JELLYFISH…. SITTING ON A ROCK!!”, Which inevitably ends in screaming laughter. Also, traditionally campers will eat warm raccoon poop (chocolate). Campers walked away from the ceremony with smiles and new friends. Spirits were high as they went to bed underneath a crystal clear starry sky.

Meanwhile, our adventure campers prepared for one of three trips: Catskills Habitat for Humanity; Boots and Boats and White Mountains Kayak and Climb. Once trips campers arrived, they spent the afternoon and evening doing their “gear shake down”, ensuring that each camper had everything they need to embark on their adventures bright and early tomorrow morning. Campers also spent time learning about each other with fun get-to-know-you team-building games.

Our trips campers and leaders had an efficient gear pack out and were all finished in time for opening campfire outside of the Trips Lean-to’s. Campers had their first taste of outdoor living skills while carrying fire wood and helping Maggie to build the fire. Maggie and Declan (Assistants to the Adventure Director) welcomed the campers, and encouraged them to embrace the life changing experiences they were about to have, while embodying the Frost Valley core values within their group experience. The foggy air was buzzing with excitement and anticipation for the adventures beginning in a matter of hours. Connections are already forming, a sure sign of fantastic experiences to come.

– See more at: https://frostvalley.org/category/teen-adventures-blog/page/2/#sthash.X3BW9SQd.dpuf

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Russell Frisch

Russell started his time at Frost Valley as a camper in Forest Village in 2005 and has been here ever since. He was a camper in Adventure Village, Farm Camp, and on Teen Adventure Trips before becoming an AiT and eventually a staff member in Adventure Village. He worked as the Village Coordinator for Adventure Village before working as the Assistant Adventure Director for two summers. He is very excited to be working as Adventure Director for the first time this year.