Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Backpacking Adventure


One of my favorite jobs as counselor at Tekoa was the one week out of the summer that I got to be the counselor for Backpack Adventure week. I was fortunate enough to be counselor for this adventure camp at least 4 or 5 years in a row. Getting out in Pisgah National Forest was amazing. The sites you'd get to see that you wouldn't otherwise on a day hike. Of course, we had to contend with campers getting blisters, or getting the "Green Apple Quick Steps" from eating too much dried fruit, but I remember having a blast nonetheless. I hiked both with Helen Porter, Jack Porter's daughter, and with Joe Pyle as trail guides. I remember on one hike we picked up a stray dog that followed one camper around for the entire hiking trip. Another time all the campers and counselors played in the creek around Sam's Knob for what seemed like hours racing boats made out of sticks. My sister and I were co-buddies one hiking trip, which was fun. And there were always the running trail jokes that would perpetuate themselves to pass the time as we hiked. In the last picture below, I just happened to catch the "Pull my finger" gag after it was successfully executed by one of Brooks Ann's and my campers. Time seemed to take a different progression than the structured activities back at camp. It helped me learn to appreciate God's natural wonders more.