Summertime Stories from Steens: Story 2
Welcome Back!
If you did not read "Summertime Stories from Steens: Story 1," please stop reading this blog entry, and read that one. I will not describe every single adventure from Steens because I would probably set a record in creating the longest blog post. However, I will cover some of the highlights.
Side Note: I will describe camp in topical order, not chronological order.
Set-Up Week was so much fun. I enjoyed being a part of the eight-man team that put the finishing touches on the camp.
I was terrified about being a counselor, though. I knew that Sailor was going to be an awesome co-counselor, but I wasn't sure that I would be able to do my job (no matter how easy it was).
Side Note: I am a professional worrier. It was not hard for me to worry about being a counselor at a running camp.
Once I started focusing on the young ladies that Sailor and I were in charge of, I slowly began to stop focusing on myself, and I wasn't as worried. Hmmmm.
Introducing the Campers
Sailor and I officially met the 18 girls that would be in our tent Sunday afternoon. Our tent was called the "Redband Retreat" and "Tent 10." We had memorized our campers' names over the weekend, now we had to put names to faces.
On Monday, Sailor and I went over our campers' names a few times. We would have to introduce all of the girls in our tent later in the morning, and we didn't want to embarrass the ladies in front of everyone by forgetting their names. Sailor was great at learning names and faces, and I was great at making faces while forgetting names (which I will omit for privacy ). We did some icebreakers (like going over favorite colors, hobbies, and animals), and I thought that would help me remember--but it didn't. However, the icebreakers revealed that our campers liked horses, skiing, and the color blue.
Late morning finally came, and I was nervous! Sailor and I knew our girls (and they were super funny), but I did not want to stand in front of everyone and say anything. When I get in front of people and talk, I feel like a deer in headlights. I blazed through half of the girls' names in about 15 seconds (which was not the plan....I completely forgot the plan), and then I finally decided to breathe. Sailor took it from there, and then we were done. The campers were really sweet. I'm sure that I messed up someone's name and school, but the girls just smiled and nodded.
After the introductions and lunch, there was more running to be done.
Acclimation Day and The Mountain Tour
Monday morning, all of the campers and counselors gathered together in the Corral, the general meeting place for activities, to stretch and run with Max King. The camp was set at about 7000 ft, so the campers had to get acclimated to the sharp rise in elevation by jogging in place and around camp.
We stretched for 10 minutes, then we jogged for one minute. After that, we stretched some more and jogged with our campers for five minutes. We wove through camp and some of the trails, then we returned to the Corral. We went through another stretch routine, then we jogged for 7 minutes. It was super fun. We jumped/stepped over logs, cheered for each other, and high-fived other campers.
We returned to the corral for a final stretching routine. Then, we were sent back out for the final acclimation jog. As we were jogging, I placed my foot at the wrong location and sprained my ankle. I was bringing in the rear, so no one stumbled behind me as I faltered. I proceeded to start walking/limping. It didn't hurt at the moment, but it was kind of hard to walk. Two of the girls came back to check on me, and after I assured them I was fine (I just couldn't jog at the moment), they caught up with the rest of the group.
I walked over to the medic shack and asked one of the trainers if they could take a look at my ankle. I knew it was not broken, but I wanted to know if I needed it taped or not. At that point there was no swelling, so I just went to the creek and iced my ankle. After that, I went to the Late Morning Introductions (see section titled "Introducing the Campers").
While lunch was going on, I went back to the medic tent because my foot started swelling and it started hurting some. I asked one of the trainers to tape it, and she did. It felt lots better.
At 2:00pm, all of the first-year campers went on a tour of the Steens Mountains. About half of us counselors went. We (about 100 of us) loaded onto the three school buses and drove out to Kiger Gorge and the Summit of Steens Mountains. Everything was really beautiful, and we were so far above sea level!
Once we finished sight-seeing, everyone had the option of running five miles to camp or three miles to camp. The buses would drop us off at the distance we chose. I felt pretty confident in my ankle wrapping, so I ran three miles. I was pretty happy, and I hoped that I would be able to participate in the next day's activities.
The Big Day
On Tuesday, all of the campers and counselors participated in a 28-mile hike called Big Day. The hike went down a canyon, through the canyon, and up the canyon on the other side. It takes the better part of one's waking hours, and it's really amazing. Everyone has to walk in a line, and for the first half of the hike, talking is not encouraged. You get to enjoy the sounds of nature and allow the mountain to speak to you. It's not often that one is allowed to take in the beauty of God's creation.
I was not able to complete the first half of Big Day because of my ankle, so I stayed camp and did some odd jobs until it was time to set up for the second half of Big Day. I was pretty bummed out because I couldn't the first part, but Mr. Harland (the director) explained to me that I was exactly where I needed to be.
So, from 9:00am-12:15pm, I hung out with two of the trainers and some of the younger kids at the halfway point of the hiking trail. After that, I joined the other campers, counselors, and medical team in completing the second half of the journey.
After about a mile or two of walking, the campers were separated into four groups. The objective of each group is to get out of the canyon, but not at the same time. Group One runs most of the way out of the canyon, and Group Four walks out of the canyon. I was one of the three counselors that hung out in Group Four. We called ourselves the "Tea Party" and we were super chill. None of the campers started in Group Four, but after about 5-10 minutes of walking, campers slowly started joining us. We had a great time. No one slacked off, and we counselors periodically got the opportunity to cheer the campers on to completion.
After we climbed out of the canyon and jogged/walked a portion of the way to camp, one of the school buses picked us up and drove us the rest of the way. We ate lasagna and had some of the best sleep of our lives.
Cross Canyon
The next day (Wednesday) was a great day filled with running, food, friendship, and more time with our campers. I loved all of the girls in our tent, and we got to laugh together a lot. Unfortunately, I must skip Wednesday because Thursday was Cross Canyon day.
Cross Canyon is the coolest event ever. It is an uncharted 5k through a canyon. To get to the start, each tent had to run/walk four miles up to the trail leading to the start. Then, we walked three more miles to the start. Tent 10 led the way to the trail. We sang songs as we ran and walked, and when the run got tough, the campers would run alongside each other and encourage one another.
We got to the starting line in good time, and Tent 10 was the last girls' tent to start because we drew from a hat for positions the night before. Each tent started one minute after the other. As we ran/walked/hiked through the canyon, the girls' had to memorize a quote that was given to them at the start. Sailor and I were not allowed to tell the girls how to get to the finish line. They had to work together to chart a path, and we all had to finish at the same time--no matter what happened.
The race covered a lot of different terrains. We climbed up a snow bank, we frolicked through a meadow, we ran through a desert-like location, we sloshed through two creeks, we slid down what
seemed like a cliff, and we climbed through a forest that was on a hill (it was literally an uphill battle). It was crazy! The girls were super tough and they made some good judgement calls when they weren't sure where to go. We finished second and were only two minutes the team that won.
Cross Canyon was my favorite part of camp, and Thursday was my favorite day. We even had a really special dinner called Basque Dinner that night, and everyone got to dress nice really nice or really goofy! I dressed up as a cowgirl!
Well, I have decided to end this entry here. It seems like a good place to stop.
I love Steens Mountain Running Camp. It is my happy place, and I thank God that I got the opportunity to interact with such an amazing group of campers, counselors, and staff.
Thank you for reading my blog! Comment below on your favorite type of camp!
Photo Credit:
Jantzer, Kevin. "Steens Mountain High Altitude Running Camp." Steens Mountain High Altitude Running Camp, Kevin Jantzer, July 2019, photos.steens.camp/2019-Session-1.
If you did not read "Summertime Stories from Steens: Story 1," please stop reading this blog entry, and read that one. I will not describe every single adventure from Steens because I would probably set a record in creating the longest blog post. However, I will cover some of the highlights.
Side Note: I will describe camp in topical order, not chronological order.
Set-Up Week was so much fun. I enjoyed being a part of the eight-man team that put the finishing touches on the camp.
I was terrified about being a counselor, though. I knew that Sailor was going to be an awesome co-counselor, but I wasn't sure that I would be able to do my job (no matter how easy it was).
Side Note: I am a professional worrier. It was not hard for me to worry about being a counselor at a running camp.
Once I started focusing on the young ladies that Sailor and I were in charge of, I slowly began to stop focusing on myself, and I wasn't as worried. Hmmmm.
Introducing the Campers
 |
| Part of Tent 10 on The Mountain Tour. I love my ladies! |
On Monday, Sailor and I went over our campers' names a few times. We would have to introduce all of the girls in our tent later in the morning, and we didn't want to embarrass the ladies in front of everyone by forgetting their names. Sailor was great at learning names and faces, and I was great at making faces while forgetting names (which I will omit for privacy ). We did some icebreakers (like going over favorite colors, hobbies, and animals), and I thought that would help me remember--but it didn't. However, the icebreakers revealed that our campers liked horses, skiing, and the color blue.
Late morning finally came, and I was nervous! Sailor and I knew our girls (and they were super funny), but I did not want to stand in front of everyone and say anything. When I get in front of people and talk, I feel like a deer in headlights. I blazed through half of the girls' names in about 15 seconds (which was not the plan....I completely forgot the plan), and then I finally decided to breathe. Sailor took it from there, and then we were done. The campers were really sweet. I'm sure that I messed up someone's name and school, but the girls just smiled and nodded.
After the introductions and lunch, there was more running to be done.
Acclimation Day and The Mountain Tour
Monday morning, all of the campers and counselors gathered together in the Corral, the general meeting place for activities, to stretch and run with Max King. The camp was set at about 7000 ft, so the campers had to get acclimated to the sharp rise in elevation by jogging in place and around camp.
We stretched for 10 minutes, then we jogged for one minute. After that, we stretched some more and jogged with our campers for five minutes. We wove through camp and some of the trails, then we returned to the Corral. We went through another stretch routine, then we jogged for 7 minutes. It was super fun. We jumped/stepped over logs, cheered for each other, and high-fived other campers.
 |
| Bringing up the rear on Acclimation Day! |
I walked over to the medic shack and asked one of the trainers if they could take a look at my ankle. I knew it was not broken, but I wanted to know if I needed it taped or not. At that point there was no swelling, so I just went to the creek and iced my ankle. After that, I went to the Late Morning Introductions (see section titled "Introducing the Campers").
While lunch was going on, I went back to the medic tent because my foot started swelling and it started hurting some. I asked one of the trainers to tape it, and she did. It felt lots better.
At 2:00pm, all of the first-year campers went on a tour of the Steens Mountains. About half of us counselors went. We (about 100 of us) loaded onto the three school buses and drove out to Kiger Gorge and the Summit of Steens Mountains. Everything was really beautiful, and we were so far above sea level!
Once we finished sight-seeing, everyone had the option of running five miles to camp or three miles to camp. The buses would drop us off at the distance we chose. I felt pretty confident in my ankle wrapping, so I ran three miles. I was pretty happy, and I hoped that I would be able to participate in the next day's activities.
The Big Day
On Tuesday, all of the campers and counselors participated in a 28-mile hike called Big Day. The hike went down a canyon, through the canyon, and up the canyon on the other side. It takes the better part of one's waking hours, and it's really amazing. Everyone has to walk in a line, and for the first half of the hike, talking is not encouraged. You get to enjoy the sounds of nature and allow the mountain to speak to you. It's not often that one is allowed to take in the beauty of God's creation.
I was not able to complete the first half of Big Day because of my ankle, so I stayed camp and did some odd jobs until it was time to set up for the second half of Big Day. I was pretty bummed out because I couldn't the first part, but Mr. Harland (the director) explained to me that I was exactly where I needed to be.
So, from 9:00am-12:15pm, I hung out with two of the trainers and some of the younger kids at the halfway point of the hiking trail. After that, I joined the other campers, counselors, and medical team in completing the second half of the journey.
After about a mile or two of walking, the campers were separated into four groups. The objective of each group is to get out of the canyon, but not at the same time. Group One runs most of the way out of the canyon, and Group Four walks out of the canyon. I was one of the three counselors that hung out in Group Four. We called ourselves the "Tea Party" and we were super chill. None of the campers started in Group Four, but after about 5-10 minutes of walking, campers slowly started joining us. We had a great time. No one slacked off, and we counselors periodically got the opportunity to cheer the campers on to completion.
After we climbed out of the canyon and jogged/walked a portion of the way to camp, one of the school buses picked us up and drove us the rest of the way. We ate lasagna and had some of the best sleep of our lives.
Cross Canyon
The next day (Wednesday) was a great day filled with running, food, friendship, and more time with our campers. I loved all of the girls in our tent, and we got to laugh together a lot. Unfortunately, I must skip Wednesday because Thursday was Cross Canyon day.
 |
| Tent 10 running up the road. |
We got to the starting line in good time, and Tent 10 was the last girls' tent to start because we drew from a hat for positions the night before. Each tent started one minute after the other. As we ran/walked/hiked through the canyon, the girls' had to memorize a quote that was given to them at the start. Sailor and I were not allowed to tell the girls how to get to the finish line. They had to work together to chart a path, and we all had to finish at the same time--no matter what happened.
The race covered a lot of different terrains. We climbed up a snow bank, we frolicked through a meadow, we ran through a desert-like location, we sloshed through two creeks, we slid down what
seemed like a cliff, and we climbed through a forest that was on a hill (it was literally an uphill battle). It was crazy! The girls were super tough and they made some good judgement calls when they weren't sure where to go. We finished second and were only two minutes the team that won.
Cross Canyon was my favorite part of camp, and Thursday was my favorite day. We even had a really special dinner called Basque Dinner that night, and everyone got to dress nice really nice or really goofy! I dressed up as a cowgirl!
 |
| Sailor, Cindy, and I on Basque Night |
I love Steens Mountain Running Camp. It is my happy place, and I thank God that I got the opportunity to interact with such an amazing group of campers, counselors, and staff.
Thank you for reading my blog! Comment below on your favorite type of camp!
Photo Credit:
Jantzer, Kevin. "Steens Mountain High Altitude Running Camp." Steens Mountain High Altitude Running Camp, Kevin Jantzer, July 2019, photos.steens.camp/2019-Session-1.
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