Weekly Update: July 6, 2025

by Ariella Rogge on July 07

There has been no full photo upload tonight. Please expect more photos in the morning. It is not because we don’t have photos–we have hundreds and hundreds–it is because the upload platform Campanion utilizes is dealing with “degraded upload issue.” We literally have no idea what that means, but our photographers have been agonizing and troubleshooting for the last six hours (and driven to several different locations) to try and get some photos to upload–and have had limited to no success. We thank you for your patience and understanding…

…because it has been a phenomenal week.

The Big Spring long trips were beyond successful: not only did the boys summit all of the peaks they set out to climb, they completed challenging backpacking treks, rode horses (like true Knights) through storms and over miles of trail, and circumnavigated an entire reservoir by canoe. At High Trails, the adventures also continued with Cabinside All Days that included trips to the river, to Pancake Rocks, to 11 Mile Reservoir, the high ropes course, rock climbing, the fossil beds and so much more. Plus it was a week of celebration that began with the iconic JC Dinner–Teen Beach Movie themed, crowned a new Miss Sanborn (Miss Lost & Found), saw a great deal of singing and dancing talent at High Trails, included a 4th of July summit of America’s mountain (Pikes Peak), continued on with fireworks (small ones) on Friday night and ended with our Gymkhana, a rider’s showcase of horsemanship and skill. We had a storm roll in that ended our final Vespers for Big Spring a little early (but the boys’ loved making snowballs out of the hailstones) and High Trails will have their final Vespers led by the Junior Counselors at dawn on Monday.

This group of campers have absolutely made the most of their time here, taking advantage of opportunities and experiences that provide moments of triumph, perspective and humility. Campers who don’t normally ride horses took advantage of final rides over the weekend; the last Saturday Specials saw campers successfully climbing routes they hadn’t tried before and feeling just a little more comfortable (and a lot faster) on the mountain bike trails; and campers who weren’t excited about climbing on the high ropes course found themselves supported and motivated to try something new because of the friends who were belaying and cheering them on.

And, now, we have to start thinking about saying goodbye.

As we are on the eve of our last full day together, the excitement of the week is tinged with a touch of melancholy. Today, we will spend some of the day packing and cleaning, some of the day writing plane letters, and tonight we will attempt to recount the last four weeks of friendship, adventure, growth and fun at our Closing Campfires before we all sit under the stars and the bright waxing moon and wish it wasn’t over.

But that is part of the magic of camp. Though we can capture the peak moments in photos (we promise, they are coming) it is the memories of the moments of stillness, ease, comfort and (sometimes) quiet togetherness that we will miss the most. It is the storytelling, the “watch this” episodes, the ever-changing Gagaball or 9-Square champions, the zany costumes, the staff who try to revive moths and ducks and fish at the behest of 10 year olds, the duo (or trio) saddle-carrying-shuttle into the barn, the time in the hammocks, the passing of the potatoes, the chants in the lodges and the ripples of laughter, shouts and giggles that are omnipresent throughout the days (and often into the evenings) of every moment of the last four weeks.

Your kids are unique, exceptional and phenomenally strong. They are resilient, powerful and braver than they often realize. They are leaders, followers and all of them will continue to craft their own paths through the world. And they will continue to make this world a better place because they are part of it.

Thank you for sharing them with us. We will miss them tremendously…until we can see them again next year. Thank you again.

Sincerely, Ariella, Will, Krista, Carly, Quin, Callie, Tully, Sarah, Josiah, Jenny and Taylor The Sanborn Western Camps Team

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Ariella Rogge
About Ariella Rogge

Ariella started her career at Sanborn when she was twelve. After five years of camper and five years of Sanborn staff experience, she continued her work with kids in the high school classroom. Ariella and her family returned to Sanborn in 2001 to take on the Program Director role which she held til 2012. She and Elizabeth Marable became co-directors of High Trails in 2013 and then Ariella became the High Trails Director in 2020. In the fall of 2022 she became the Director of Sanborn Western Camps, overseeing the director teams of both Big Spring and High Trails. She lists mountain golf, Gymkhana, climbing mountains and making Pad Thai in the backcountry as some of her favorite activities at camp. Ariella received a B.A. in English from Colorado College and is a certified secondary English educator,an ACCT Level 2 Ropes Course Technician, an ARC lifeguard and NREMT and WEMT. She lives in Florissant in the summer and in Green Mountain Falls during the school year so she can stay involved with the busy lives of her husband, Matt, and two sons, Lairden and Karsten.