We are missing the wonderful times we had up on the hill in Haiyaha this summer. Reminiscing on the beautiful view from the porch of Totem Tepee, the cold mountain air, and the spirit of Cheley flowing abundantly, we are grateful for such a successful summer. Each and every camper made memories to last a lifetime, experienced new and challenging adventures, made new friends, and learned valuable lessons.
Our fantastic outcamping counselor, Pierce O’Reilly-Spears, took our campers into the woods and showed them the beauty of camping, creating their own little communities on each trip. They cooked with and for each other, talked and played games together in their tents, and adventured through the woods, building shelters and exploring the forest. Together, the campers learned the value of community and a connection to the natural world around them. Congrats to Jackson Allen, Mac Roberts, and Joey Struse for earning their Outcamping patch this summer!
Logan Yeager and Joe Hutchison, our hiking counselors, had a busy summer with our campers summiting alpine peaks, traversing ridges, and hiking through forests and boulder fields in Rocky Mountain National Park and the Indian Peaks Wilderness. Our hikers conquered majestic mountains and explored the backcountry with a never-ending sense of adventure and wonder. We would love to recognize the hard work of our Hiking patch recipients: Charlie Ehlert, John Myers, and Mac Roberts.
Our backpacking counselors, Ryan McCoy and Cooper Pierce had a wild summer out in the backcountry with our campers, exploring the wonders of Rocky Mountain National Park and the Indian Peaks Wilderness. They spent days out on the trail, summiting mountains, exploring the forest, and camping together. The backpackers built strong communities on each of their trips and learned the importance of teamwork and cooperation. We would like to recognize our Backpacking patch recipients: Evan Varones, Andreas Vigil, William Dobson, and Evan Arthurs.
Our mountain biking and sports counselors, Hugh Toomey and Thomas diZerega lead our campers on fast-paced mountain bike rides through the Rocky Mountains. They took on routes such as Devil’s Backbone, Hermit Park, and Pierson Forest. The campers learned how to keep pushing through tough hills and technical rides, and took on the Cheley Challenge head first at the end of every ride. They also enjoyed their 2- and 3-day overnight rides to Pierson Forest and Meadow Outpost, and had a blast camping together after tough rides. We would like to recognize the campers that earned their Mountain Biking patch this year: Griffin Bostock, Benjamin Edwards, West Merrill, Ryan Toomey, Patrick Barnat, and Jack Mittelholzer.
We had a wonderful year of crafts on the hill thanks to our crafts counselor, Carson Slaughter, who brought his expertise in metalworking to the program. Our campers were busy this summer making intricate chainmail jewelry that they loved showing off around the unit. The crafters also ventured into the woodshop and created absolutely incredible projects with the help of our woodshop director, John Wilson. Our wranglers, Matthew Olsen and Morgan Perrée had a fantastic summer with our campers full of trail rides, ring rides, and overnight horseback trips. The campers learned how to be responsible for tacking and mounting horses, woke up early to muck stalls, and built relationships with these magnificent animals. The campers had adventures on their 3 and 4-day overnights, venturing far from camp with their mighty steeds and spending ample time in the great outdoors. We would like to recognize our Riding patch recipients: Noah Posin and Leo Robison.
This summer, our shared riflery counselor with Ski Hi, William Schnieders, lead our campers through a rigorous riflery program that taught them how to be proficient riflemen in prone, kneeling, and standing positions. The campers had a blast learning the proper form for each of these positions, and enjoyed dialing in their aim in order to hit the bullseye! Each night on the hill ended with incredible campfires led by Jake Morey. From Spa Night to singing and games, there was never a dull moment.
Our CILTs this summer brought us leadership, guidance, and a deep well of knowledge and experience of Cheley. Our first term CILTs were Andrew Sullivan and Calvin Wilson. Our second term CILTs were Jonah Craine, Jorge Harris, William Sessions, Reed Gorman, and Fletcher Ratliff.
The campers ended their terms recognizing those in Haiyaha who best lived up to the Code of Living that they developed as a unit. These campers exemplified the Code through their upstanding actions and attitudes, and their commitment to Haiyaha and its community of young men. These campers, who were chosen by their peers, were awarded the Gold Key as a symbol of upstanding citizenship and character. First Term: Carson Hone, Mac Roberts, Joey Struse, and Andrew Sullivan. Second Term: Jorge Harris, Reed Gorman, Patrick Barnat, and William Sessions.
Happy Trails,
Chase Manhart, Director
Michael Gaessler, Asst. Director
