​There’s no hiding that this winter is different. As the pandemic rages on, where are you finding peace? Where are you finding renewal? It is our sincere hope that Alta Mons can be one of those places for you. From our serene hiking trails to our cozy houses to our beautiful starry skies, we want to be your place of refuge.

So, this winter, chose Alta Mons. Make the great outdoors your playground. Hike, play, run, picnic, and walk on these 850 acres of sacred and beautiful land. Our public restrooms are open 9 AM to 5 PM and are sanitized frequently. Here are some tips and ideas to get you started:

-Make sure to bring a variety of layers! Shawsville can be about 10 degrees colder than Roanoke on a typical day. A good layering system includes a base layer (form fitting, non-cotton; think long underwear), a mid-layer (fleece pullover, down jacket, hiking pants, etc.) and an outer layer (thick, wind proof jacket and pants) The key to cold weather dressing is to create a personal layer of air that you carry around with you. Trapping this air close to your body will help keep you warm!

-Don’t forget the details: hats, gloves, scarves! It’s a myth that you lose 40% of your heat through your head. You just lose heat from anywhere that isn’t covered, which may or may not include your head. Neck gaiters and mittens are great too!

-A good pack: Make sure to carry a good backpack with you. This way, you can shed layers as you warm up. You want to avoid sweating in the winter, as this ultimately makes you colder. Backpacks are also great for carrying snacks!

-Food and Hot Drinks: Pack them! Bring your thermos filled with steaming soup, coffee, hot chocolate, or whatever hot food fuels you in the winter! Snacks are key to staying warm and happy!

-If it’s snowed recently: Come prepared to have fun in the snow! Bring your sled, snow boots, and enjoy a winter wonderland! If you plan to hike to the falls, mini-crampons or spikes can be helpful for icy conditions.

-Keep moving: Exercise is a principal way to help you stay warm in the winter. If you are just looking to talk but want to stay outside, go for a walk. When you cool down after stopping for a bit, start moving again. This is key for little ones. Encourage children to run and play to help them stay warm.
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-Finally, if you don’t want to leave, you don’t have to! Alta Mons has cozy homes that are available for you to spend the night and wake rested and renewed. Our houses are equipped with full kitchens, bathrooms, fire pits, and gorgeous views! It doesn’t have to be a day trip—make it a weekend getaway! 

This fall has been one of the most beautiful fall seasons in recent years. From hiking to picnicking, to RV and Tent Camping, to staying overnight in one of our houses, Alta Mons has been a place for individuals to find rest, renewal, and reflection during this difficult year. As winter looms, please know that we are still open for day use recreation. Bring your own basketball and shoot some hoops at the courts, have a family picnic on a sunny day, or come for a classic hike to Stiles Falls. Alta Mons is open each day from dawn to dusk for public use. Our Camp Post bathrooms are open each day from 9 AM to 5 PM for your convenience. If you're looking to plan a visit, here are some tips to help you make the most of your day at Alta Mons:

-Plan on no cell phone service. While service has expanded in recent years and coverage is getting better, it's still not great. Plan to be away from your phone. We have 2 emergency landline phones located on the property for your use. One at the front of camp (The Camp Post porch) and the other near the back of camp (The Pearman House porch). 

-Dress in layers! Alta Mons can be up to 10 degrees cooler than areas in Roanoke and the New River Valley. Bring several layers including a rain jacket/wind shell, warm insulating layer, and hat/gloves. 

-Pack the snacks! There's nothing worse than being hungry. While there are a couple local restaurants (some with limited hours) it never hurts to have food on hand. After a hike to the falls, there's nothing like sitting down at one of our public use picnic tables and having a bite to eat. 

-Prepare a Picnic! If you're looking to have more than just some snacks, that's great! Feel free to bring a full picnic spread-- tablecloth, plates, utensils, etc. We have 6 picnic tables available for free to our day use guests. We also provide bleach spray and paper towels at the hiker sign-in board to sanitize the tables between uses.

-Do something different! Remember, hiking to the falls is not the only thing to do at Alta Mons! Fly a kite, go on a leaf hunt, walk around the Wetlands, visit the Intersection, bring a canvas and paint the scenery, and much more! Winter is also a great time to hike the Christmas Tree Mountain Trail because you can see much more of camp with no leaves on the trees. Just make sure to stick to the trail and follow the orange blazes closely-- it can be confusing at some points. The hike also features 3 geocaches that you can visit along the way!

It’s Wednesday morning and the week is flying by! From silly songs to Morning Watch to crafts to nature to fishing and beyond, camp is amazing. This morning your counselors announce that your unit is going creek hiking. You find your water shoes under your bunk, change into your bathing suit, and off you go!

As your unit enters the creek and starts walking, you realize that this could be a bigger endeavor than you originally planned for (much like walking up the Unit 8 hill—which you have now mastered…sort of…) The rocks are sometimes slick, the creek bottom is uneven, and overall, it’s a slow-moving process. Just as you’re beginning to lose interest, one of the kids in your unit spots a Great Blue Heron! Woah! As the loudness of your unit startles it and the beautiful bird takes flight right before your eyes, you think “Wow! This really is cool!” and it gives you the boost you need to keep going.

As your unit continues up the creek, you begin to see all sorts of new things. Cool looking plants, moss, rocks, and critters. Your mind begins to wander and think about your next steps. Do the kids in my unit really like me? Do my counselors think I’m cool? What role will I have in this week’s skit? Will people think I’m funny? These are just some of the questions that pop into your head as you make progress up the creek.

Gradually, the rocks in the creek get bigger and creek hiking turns into creek low ropes. Someone in your units says “That one rock is slippery and wobbles, step on the one slightly to your left,” and then “Grab my hand and then put your foot on that little ledge and I’ll help you up.” You start helping people too, and soon everyone is helping everyone else up and over some massive boulders. Wow. This is fun! Who knew that shy girl had such good tips on slippery rocks? And who knew the loud kid could provide such a steady hand to everyone as they make the big step from rock to rock?

As your creek hike comes to an end, you look around you and think “Wow, we’re a team. We can do things together. This feels good. And it feels like God’s here too. In the creek, in the birds, in the trees, and in the sky.”

When we leave the comfort of home, pack up our bags with butterflies in our tummies, and step into a new environment, something magical happens. We grow. We learn. We understand. We see differently. We explore.

For many campers, camp is a new and unfamiliar environment. For even the most seasoned camper there are always new things to do and explore. Even though it is hard and scary to step out and do something new and be with new people, this is how we grow. If we never did anything different, we would never be different. Camp offers children the opportunity to explore themselves, their environment, and their relationship with God during their time at camp.

Camp is a place to try new things and hear different perspectives. What other place would you eat a crawdad out of the creek or perform a goofy rap at skit night?

Exploring is like trying on a new pair of shoes. You put them on and they may feel uncomfortable and clunky at first. Maybe you take them off and put on another pair. Then you start walking around. And if they really fit you, they feel good, you feel good. And people tend to notice. They might even comment on how confident you look in those new shoes. Those people help you see yourself and help you see that that new thing is you.

When we keep exploring, we become more comfortable with those new situations. The next time we are caught in a thunderstorm, we are prepared. The next time we get into an argument with a friend, we know what not to say because it went really bad last time. Our comfort zone gets bigger and those situations aren’t as bad as they used to be. Not only that, but when new situations come up, we have an idea of what we might do because it looks a bit like it did when you figured out how to get back into your car after being locked out.

We are always learning and growing. Camp offers an environment intentionally built and structured so that kids can explore themselves, their relationships with others, and their faith. What does it mean to be a Christian? Who is Jesus? Does He love me? These are just some of the questions that we try to explore with campers during a week at camp.
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This week for your Camp @ Home challenge, we challenge you to get out and explore! Step into an environment where you can see the world differently and maybe even see yourself differently. Go on a hike. Look in the nooks and crannies of your backyard. Check out every street sign in your neighborhood. Explore a familiar place from a different perspective and see what you find! Share your exploration with us by sending us a picture or video of you and/or your family exploring! Share it with us by using #AltaMonsCampatHome and emailing it to program@altamons.org. 

​Camp is going great so far, but there is this one thing you don’t understand. It happens each night at dinner and you’re not even sure how to describe it. It’s tons of fun and the older campers and staff go wild, but what are they even saying? Or screaming? Doesn’t matter too much—after the commotion is over, dessert arrives! As the years go on, you come to realize they are singing about Goldie Locks and the 3 Bears. In fact, it’s kind of a rap. It’s pretty cool, bush gosh it’s hard to get all of those words down. Thankfully your counselors help you practice at the hogans and the other units even scream “DING!” for you. Eventually you become a camp counselor. Rivaling only “Hey Burrito” in popularity, this song is your anthem. You shout it loud and proud and at the top of your lungs. You know the words by heart and you sing it in your sleep. You’re careful not to wear a ring while doing the hand motions though—you remember the story where Meredith told you that Bert Ramsey broke his wedding ring while singing this song in 2011. So, just like high ropes, no rings for this one!
 
What do three bears and a ding have in common? If you have been a camper and/or staff member in the past twenty years you'll know the answer.
 
Campers spend years listening carefully and trying to figure out the words to the Dessert Song. It becomes a point of pride for returning campers to be able to sing all the words and get to teach their new friends.
 
What may seem like a ruckus is a soft spot in the hearts of our campers and staff. Just ask them how they felt when we decided to be healthy and stopped serving dessert at lunch a few years ago. The Dessert Song isn't just a Dining Hall tradition. Units who stay at the hogans sing the song together after eating dinner at their shelter. The last line ends with “BYE-BYE-BYE-BYE-BYE-BYE-BYE HUH!” Campers strain their ears trying to hear their neighbors yell “DING” in response.
 
The Dessert Song is about being silly. It’s about letting go of your inhibitions and letting yourself be free with your new and old camp friends. It’s about including everyone as they learn the words and celebrating when they finally get the hard part right. We do silly things like this at camp to help us remember that we are all children of God. We are all learning, growing, and discovering new things about ourselves, each other, and our faith all of the time. When we let ourselves be silly and get wrapped up in a song about three bears, it helps us grow closer with our friends and counselors. As we open up throughout the week, we share our best parts, our funny parts, and the parts of ourselves that we’re still working on. Together we lift each other up and help each other remember that we are all loved by God.
 
This week for your Camp @ Home challenge, we challenge you to sing this song with your family and make sure to have someone DING! at the end. To show us how much fun and silliness you had, send us a picture or video of you and/or your family singing! Share it with us by using #AltaMonsCampatHome and emailing it to program@altamons.org. 
 
In the name of fun and shared experience, we are finally disclosing one of the greatest camp mysteries, the words to the Dessert Song. If you’re unsure of the beat—don’t worry! We have several example videos coming your way!
 
The Dessert Song/Three Bears Song:
 
*Bang/clap beat, start on a bang
 
Once upon a time in a nursery rhyme there were three bears
cha cha cha
 
They went a walkin’ in the woods and a talkin’
And along came a little girl with long flowin’ golden curls
Her name was Goldie Locks, up on the door she knocked
 
She didn't care, that no one was there
She walked right in
Home came those three bears
 
Someone's been eatin my porridge, said the Papa Bear, said the Papa Bear
Someone's been eatin my porridge, said the Mama Bear, said the Mama Bear
Hey Papa he-bear, said the little wee bear, someone has broken my chair, HUH!
 
Goldie Locks she woke up, she broke up, the party
She beat it outta there, she beat it outta there
 
Bye bye bye bye bye, said the Papa Bear, said the Papa Bear
Bye bye bye bye bye, said the Mama Bear, said the Mama Bear
Hey Papa he-bear, said the wee bear, bye bye bye bye bye bye bye, HUH!
 
DING***

After a long and exciting time at the Roanoke River one afternoon, you and your unit start walking up the hill to start a new activity. You hear your new friend asking your counselors for hints as to what your next activity will be, and laugh as your counselor tells you all that “it’s a surprise!” (despite pulling out a key attached to a rubber fish, and holding a bag of bread). When your unit reaches the Dining Hall, a couple of campers rush in and grab a red playground ball, and as your unit refills their water bottles and rests their feet, a game begins right on the front porch: Four Square!


You rush to get in line behind a strip of duct tape. One of your new friends stations himself on the bench, declaring himself a referee. 

Four Square rounds happen in short bursts that last around ten seconds, so you’ll be sure to get several rounds in before your group has to move on. You step up to the first square. 

The girl in the king square serves the ball. The ball bounces once in square two. The boy beside you hits it to the far corner of your square. You dive and hit it underhand back to the king. Eventually the ball hits your sneakers, and you go to the back of the line, determined to give it another go. A couple rounds in, the ball rolls down the hill beside the Dining Hall, and the girl who just moved up to square two takes off running to get it before it rolls into the creek!

You’re about to step up the the square again. But your counselor, in their goofy socks and fanny pack, announces that “it’s time to go fishing!”, and that Four Square will be waiting for you before dinner. Your unit, thrilled to fish and canoe, rushes to deliver the ball back to its perch in the Dining Hall again. How a three minute game of Four Square became so exciting is a mystery, but it’s a game with no real beginning or ending, so you’re not worried about how you did. 

At camp, play is all around us. From Monday night big games to lazy afternoons at the intersection to speedy rounds of Prince of Paris around the campfire, we believe that play helps restore our minds and bodies and open us up to what God is trying to tell us. Play lets our hearts run wild, gets our lungs pumping, and helps us see the beauty that is around us. This is intentional—we want campers to experience joy, laughter, and to live life fully as they grow closer with their counselors and fellow campers. As campers play, they learn more about who they are and who they want to be. They get to try out new roles and open their imaginations to new possibilities. Playing helps us see the good in the world and the God in the world. 
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This week for your Camp @ Home challenge, we challenge you to PLAY! Have a board game night, host a comedy show in your living room, or maybe even set up an at home Four Square court! To show us how much fun you had, send us a picture or video of you and/or your family playing! Share it with us by using #AltaMonsCampatHome and emailing it to program@altamons.org. 

Make sure to send them in by Saturday, so we can play along too! If you need some ideas to get you started, here are the details on some popular camp games-- including Four Square!

FOUR SQUARE 
A standard Four Square court is 10 feet square. We have one made with duct tape at the Dining Hall and a new one made with spray paint at the basketball courts. You can also use chalk for paved surfaces! Scroll to the bottom of this post to see a photo of our court. 

At Alta Mons, the Four Square ball is a standard playground ball. It is possible to play the game with lighter alternatives, like rubber inflatable balls, for an extra challenge, but Four Square is typically played with a playground ball. 

It’s easiest to play Four Square on a flat, level surface. It is possible to play on a slanted surface, but that will make some squares easier to play than others, so be sure to put the king square on the downhill side. It is very difficult to play on grass. If you have a paved patio, large sidewalk, or other flat surface outside, ask an adult if you can create a Four Square court there to play on. 

NEVER make your Four Square court in a road, and avoid making it close to a road or busy parking lot; there is a chance that the ball could roll into a road. Always play with an adult present for this reason! If you have a home church that isn’t as busy as it used to be, call them and ask if you could make a Four Square court with chalk or tape in an empty section of their lot. If you know of a park with a tennis, volleyball, or basketball court, these places may also have flat surfaces for Four Square. It’s best to use chalk on these surfaces, because it is the least permanent option. 

If you must play Four Square inside, consider making the squares smaller, and use a softer and lighter ball. Move all furniture out of the way and remove fragile things from the room, including monitors or picture frames. Always play underhand only while inside to avoid using too much force. It is better to play outside if you have any option to do so. 
The Rules to Four Square:
1.     Inside lines are out, outside lines are in.
2.     The King serves and must serve to the person directly across from them.
3.     You cannot pass back to the King on the serve.
4.     If you hit the ball outside the court, you’re out.
5.     One bounce per square.
6.     When the King serves at least one of their feet must be behind the line in the King square.
7.     All hits must be underhanded.
8.     Underhanded is defined as your fingers must be pointing down.
9.     Don’t argue with a counselor about being out—if kids argue, they’re out.
10.   If you are standing in your square and the ball hits you, you are out.
11.   If you are standing in your square and you catch the ball, you are out.
12.   Older campers should be nice and polite towards younger elementary / mini campers!

FRISBEE
This one is usually pretty easy to start: if you have a frisbee, make a big circle and show off your throwing and catching skill! You can make up your own rules or challenges, too. Just avoid situations where you would be throwing directly at cars or windows, and try not to get the frisbee stuck on the roof (which happens at Camp Alta Mons very often). Do not play frisbee inside. 

FIFTEENSIES (and other hide & seek variations)

Fifteensies is a fun hide & seek game for larger groups. Select a space that is safe to run through yet has good hiding spots, then pick someone to be “it”. they will count to 15 while everyone else hides. When the person who’s “it” opens their eyes, they will look to see if they can spot anyone. “It” may take 1 step and can turn in any direction. If someone is seen then they are out.

“It” then counts to 15 again. This time everyone must run, tag “it”, then hide again. This process continues with “it” counting to a lower number each time (15, 14, 13, 12, and so on), until there’s only one person left hiding. That person is the next “it”. 

This game is best played in a wide open space with obstacles, like a park, or one large open room of a house (which would call for starting with a smaller number than 15). 

If you must play inside, try Sardines in a Can for a very fun hide and seek alternative. One person hides while the rest count. When done counting, the search party splits up. The first person to find the hidden person must hide with them, and the next person as well, until all but the last person seeking are shoved into their hiding spot like, well, sardines in a can. The first person to find the hidden person is the next to hide.