Day five of freedom
My first time riding a horse!
Ms. Tanya gives me a boost onto my pal Sesame
Well hello there! It’s me, Coltrane. Welcome to the final day of Water and Horse Camp. I’m a little sad that this week of fun has come to an end, but during my wanderings, I saw and heard so many awesome things that I know I will remember long after this last day. To help me remember, I can always check out the Google Folder, full of even MORE pictures of this great week.
I can also re-watch this video as many times as I want!
One thing that I will always remember is the fun of animal chores. I’m so happy that all you campers were here to take good care of my animal buddies. I know they appreciate it too!
Breakfast time!
Saying a farewell for the week
And of course, how could I ever forget the garden? Today, campers did this really cool activity where they used coffee filters and cotton balls to filter dirty water and make it cleaner! They also talked about how hard it is to get soap out of the water, and how using biodegradable soap might be a good idea.
Looks like a pretty good system!
Very inventive peppers
Clean water = happy camper
By this time, it seemed like the campers had quite a bit of energy, so they decided it was time to go for a hike! It was a little wet, but that didn’t slow these peppers down one bit!
It’s raining, it’s pouring ?
Sometimes, hiking in the rain makes it MORE fun!
After a slightly rainy lunch, the sun came out just in time for wagon rides! I hopped on a ride, and I had a blast– not only was it fun riding around the farm, but the campers sang camp songs the whole time!
Wagon rides and good tunes
Blue skies for wagon rides
And then, the moment you’ve all been waiting for: testing the boats! I have to admit I was nervous, but after multiple rounds of testing, I’m thrilled to announce that the boats were a huge success! Almost all could not only float, but hold rocks as well!
Now that’s one strong boat
Watching the “USS Jerry”
And then, for the big camp finale, it was time for the giant water slide! Despite the fact that the water was just a bit chilly, campers had so much fun finding their inner penguin and gliding right down.
“I’ll race ya!”
What a way to wrap up the week!
There was even some soap on the slide for maximum slipperinessÂ
I also noticed that horse campers got to ride in the wagon as well! They also had a blast singing as they circled the property.
Say cheese!
Today was my lucky day! As you know, I have been watching the campers ride horses all week long and I really wanted to give it a try. I got a chance to visit Sesame and it was AMAZING! Now I know what all the hype was about this week!
Catching up with Sesame
I enjoyed splashing in puddles in the grass while it was raining this morning. The campers were practicing horse skills in the arena. They practiced good safety and did not ride with umbrellas or big ponchos, which may scare the horses.
He rode straight over the poles
She worked on turns
She crossed the bridge
Then I saw Sesame out for a hike. The campers took her around the farm on a lead rope.
They practiced leading Sesame
They enjoyed their hike!
After lunch, I saw campers learning about horse breeds. I learned that Arabian horses are a really old breed and have been around for a long time. I also overheard them talking about Big Max- the Percheron. They also learned about horse disciplines- events for both English and Western competitions.
Common horse breeds
They learned about horse disciplines too
This group practiced jumps
More jumps!
They cheered on their friends running a weaving pattern
She weaved around the cones
How high did the campers jump?
That looked like fun!
At the end of the day, I went out for one last visit with the horse campers. They pet me and took photos with me. I finished my day as a very happy turtle.
They love me! They really love me!
You can check out more pictures https://photos.app.goo.gl/ym64nnDy2jzg4Pzt7.
And of course, we had some tasty snacks in Garden Kitchen! Today we only had morning GK, but we had a great destination snack made by Ms. Leah. Hopefully you got some awesome recipes this week that you can make at home!
I love a good destination snack
Thumbs up on the kale chips
Kale chips & friendships
Kale chips: healthy AND deliciousÂ
YUM
I hope you enjoyed your time at Water or Horse Camp!
And that’s all she (or in this case, me) wrote. Thank you for making my time wandering the farm filled with interesting sights and sounds, and for allowing me to document all the amazing things going on at Tollgate. If this was your last week of camp, have a great rest of your summer! And for the rest of you, I can’t wait to hang out again. Until then!
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