Ponderosa Jeeping Trip

On a day when there was no "action" in camp, we decided it was a good time for the guys to go jeeping.

You might ask how many people it takes to plan a jeeping trip.  Well, at left there are at least 5 working on the plans.  You can be sure that there was no plan to take the Chevy pictured, or any other Chevy for that matter!  Since it took us almost 2 hours to get to the first trail, we decided it was time for a break.


Near the beginning of the trail, we came upon this cave.  Of course everyone had to look inside.  Speaking of looking, with Paul Rawls in the group we had to look for at least one geocache.  You would think they were looking for Easter eggs.

We actually chose 3 trails in the mountains about 40 miles west of Denver.  Each trail had its own challenges but all spectacular scenery.  Two of the trails went over 12,000 feet and the third over 13,000 feet.  Below are several pictures of scenery along the way.

The first wildlife we saw were these mountain goats.  There were 5 grazing just below us as went along a shelf road.

As we reached the summit of the 2nd trail we found these goats in the middle of the trail.  They were really quite tame as they let us walk among them.

After almost 8 hours on the trail we just had to stop at Beau Jo's for some of that famous Colorado Mountain Pie.  If you remember from when Nancy and I went several weeks ago, the pies are sold by the pound.  Pictured is a 5 pounder when we consumed by 3 people when will remain anonynous.








We all had an enjoyable day.  Several were ready to take on another trail the next day.

Recent Ponderosa Happenings

With kids back in school things have slowed but there are still exciting happenings.  One of our volunteers from North Carolina by way of Boston decided to take a trip and explore the area around Royal Gorge.  About a half a mile from camp he hit a deer.  His travel plans were changed and is still waiting on the repair before he can leave for his next project which is in Alabama.

On the right is another Yogi.  One of our Ponderosa employees put up a trail camera right at the edge of camp.  One night this Yogi decided it was time to come to camp.  Note that he is so close that his face is glaring from the flash.

Anniversary Week

The week started out with another Yogi sighting.  "Yogi" is the code word for bear so that our campers won't be alarmed if they hear the staff talking over the walkie-talkies.  Carol Rawls, granddaughter Morgan, and Nancy had a few minutes to play Uno.  Unfortunately, we have been too busy to do much staff socialization, so we make every minute count!



Staff surprised us with an after dinner party to celebrate our 50th anniversary.




Pictures, cake and ice cream, cards and notes from friends, and a caricature by Mason Rawls made the evening very special.




We drove into Denver with our friends Larry and Barbara Smith to eat at Bubba Gumps.  Larry and Barbara are also celebrating their 50th anniversary this month.

Our daughter Chris, provided us with tickets to a mystery dinner theater in Colorado Springs called The Dinner Detective.  Can you believe Russ was actually a "suspect" in the murder?

We have much to be thankful for during our 50 years of marriage.  God has blessed us with a caring, loving family and we thank Him daily for our children, grandchildren, and great grandchild.  Above (L to R) are Kyle, Ashley and Bella Rae; Amy, Bobby and Tiffany; Stephanie, Chris, Bill and Alyssa; Serena (between Chris & Alyssa) and Rod; and Jenni.  One of Nancy's favorite Bible verses is Psalm 127:3-5:  Children are a blessing and a gift from the Lord.  The more you have have, the better off you will be, because they will take care of you in your old age!   More seriously, Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old, he will not depart from it.  Prov. 22:6  To this end, we pray.

OBU Night During Summit Week

During the summer we have 2 summit camps for Junior High and High School students from across Colorado.  One night during the week, Oklahoma Baptist University puts on a party after the evening service to encourage kids to come to OBU.  It is truly a party atmosphere.  There is a booth where the kids can receive info on OBU, a free t-shirt, free goodies at the snack bar and of course loud music. 

At left they are setting out shirts preparing for the crowd which soon came.

At night the crowds tend to come all at once so we have other staff that help us in the snack bar.  Here we have our Camp Director Marcus and Recreation Director Jake working the counter.  Behind the scene is Tiffany and Erica (soon to be shown dancing to the music) doing nachos and slushies, Nancy cooking pretzels and funnel cakes and Russ doing the register.

Outside the snack bar the party continues and inside, the snack bar has its own dancers Tiffany and Erica.  In the olden days OBU alumni could neither define nor spell "dance".

Trip to Mount Evans

When everyone at Ponderosa found out we were going to Mount Evans thay said we had to eat at Beau Jo's in Idaho Springs and have one of their famous Colorado Mountain Pies (pizza).  Pizza is sold by the pound.  Your choices include 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 pound pies.  The pizza below is a 5 pounder.  Although the crust on the bottom is normal, the crust on the edge is about as big around as a half dollar.  The crust which can be white or wheat is sweet and is eaten with honey.  Best pizza we have ever had.

 

The inside is decorateed in mining stuff.  The picture on the right shows a shaft from the Phoenix mine.




Mount Evans is a few hundred feet higher than Pikes Peak but one thing that makes it unique is that the road to the summit is the highest paved highway in the United States.  At right is one of the lakes you pass on the way to the top.

We were told that one frequently sees big horn sheep at the top.  As you can see on the left, they appear to be people.  On the top is also an observatory.  This one was also the highest elevation.

Busy Days at Ponderosa

Ever so often we must update you on our great-grandchild Bella.  She will soon be 3 months old.  Here she is in one of her 4th of July outfits (Yes, she actually had two outfits!).  Tiffany is our youngest grandchild and Bella's aunt,  We just heard this week that she prayed to accept Jesus Christ as her Savior.  What exciting news!  We feel like we are doing the Lord's will by volunteering at Pondersa, but it's these milestone events that we miss back home.

Last week we had almost 300 kids here for day camp.  One of the churches in the area does a day camp at Ponderosa instead of a VBS.  The kids move from station to station during the day.  Some stations are activities like this tug of war on the left and bungee jumping on the right.  There were also other stations all over camp that were biblical characters dressed in costume telling various Bible stories.  Thank the Lord for these wonderful leaders who spend weeks preparing for this week and then accompany the kids to camp.

Each year one of the churches from Loveland, CO take over Ponderosa.   One of the optional activities is to participate in a cake decorating contest.  Chef Don provides the cakes and the kids do the decorating.  Here are just some of the entries.  They are incredible.  Tasted good too!

Kids love the snack bar so they don't mind waiting in line at times.  L-o-n-g lines!  One of the new things we are selling this year are pickles!  They have been a big hit.  Believe it or not but we are also selling pick-l-sycles made with frozen pickle juice.  We got the idea from one of the staff where they were sold at Little League games.

Not every kid that comes to camp is a "big kid". The parents of this young one were leaders for one of the churches that sent kids to camp.  He was having a hard time staying awake watching his brothers play ball.  I guess they will soon have a baseball team.  He is the 5th boy in his family, all under the age of 7 or 8 and his mother is expecting again.


Some times we make poor choices.  A mother who attended camp with her child decided Ponderosa would be a good place to give a driving lesson. This picture was taken behind the cafeteria.  It is a small area with a one-way road with parking for 6 or 7 cars.  As you can see, the result was running into the cafeteria and having extensive damage to her car.  Awkward!!!


This is our nurse intern Megan and the chef's daughter,
Emily, who stopped by the snack bar after going on a night-time hike in the rain.





Here Nancy is helping some young campers at the drink bar.  The coffee/latte/cappucino/hot chocolate/expresso machine was a big hit.  Again, not always a good choice, but after all, when we get away from home and go to camp, almost anything goes!




This big boy was seen near the prayer chapel one afternoon.  He looks to me like he is confessing something!  He and a cinnamon bear are seen every few days around camp. 

In past years, we have had squirrels, assorted birds, and deer visit our camp site.  This year we have turkey(s).  The first one that came, that Nancy named Bertha, makes a visit to our campsite regularly.  Evidently she likes what she finds because she is now bringing several of her buddies.  Abby is not quite so quick to challenge them as she is the squirrels!

At the right is Mason, our Director's son who was one of three Boy Scouts selected to welcome home troops and provide them with their first taste of Mickey D's in several months.