It’s Labor Day and while we certainly don’t put our MTA travelers to any “real” work during our trips, we are happy to celebrate this day. But in this photo you’ll see our motor coach chief mechanic, Carson, giving his first assessment of what’s wrong with our coach when it broke down during last summer’s Virginia trip. Carson, and others, soon had us up and running with a replacement bus and we didn’t miss a thing.
 
Carson is coming back next summer on our New England adventure and he’ll be happy to know we’ve made arrangements for a coach for that trip. In fact, we were so spoiled with the chauffeur-driven coach that we’ve made arrangements for a motor for both of our trips in 2019.
 
CLICK this link to check out to learn more about our 2019 adventures. 

​We’re safely back home from an excellent week. We did a lot all close to home. Abingdon, Virginia proved to be a perfect selection for our base “camp” as we experienced an amazing selection of activities. This was our largest group of boys ever – 33 amazing kids all ready to participate in whatever would unfold each day. And as with all MTA programs, every day is different than the one before. We biked, kayaked, zip-lined, and hiked. We went to a drive-in movie, had a night of “burgers & bingo,” and had our own bowling tournament. We saw a production at the Barter Theatre and had a walking ghost tour. We’re not sure if we saw ay ghosts, but our guide sent us photos showing proof. We enjoyed the luxury of being driven around in our chartered motor coach, another MTA first.  And boys spent the entire week without an iPhone, iPad, iPod, or game system! 
 
I can say without hesitation that everyone had a great week. Thanks to my leaders: Howard Yarborough, Doug Williams, Don Silleman, Andy Lammers, and Andy Clack. Thanks to our bus driver, Don Teague. And thanks to all the wonderful people in Virginia and Tennessee who were so helpful in making this trip so wonderful and safe.
 
I’m already looking forward to 2019.
 
Mark

​So folks are asking? What do we plan for 2019. I love it when people plan ahead. We'll tease you with this photo, but just know we'll be spending two weeks in mid July 2019 somewhere great! We were last here in 2014.

Last night I was fortunate to be in the audience in Tryon at a concert by the Kruger Brothers. If you’ve never heard of them, or never heard them…you should check them out. http://krugerbrothers.com
 
The brothers are two Swiss-born musicians accompanied by an American guy and their music is is a blend of Americana roots music, a little bluegrass, folk, and even classical. Doc Watson was one of their inspirations and in fact the brothers settled in Wilkesboro, North Carolina to be near Doc and his musical influences.
 
And so how does this relate to how an MTA experience can turn boys into storytellers?
 
Well Jens and Uwe Kruger talked last night of their early musical experiences and how part of that was busking as young kids and teenagers on the streets in Western and Eastern Europe.
 
And that reminded me of a MindStretch Europe trip in 2009. We were exploring the streets and canals of Amsterdam and happened upon a string duo. It so happened that one of our adventurers was a 12-year-old who had recently started to learn the mandolin. As things would happen, Mark Gilbert was soon handed over the mandolin from one of the street musicians and the other European musician accompanied Mark for a number or two.
 
I’m guessing Mark no longer plays the mandolin, but I’m guessing he still remembers his entertaining me, his fellow travelers, and absolute strangers as he played on a canal bridge in Amsterdam.
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And that’s one more chapter in turning boys into storytellers.
 
We hope you’ll be interested in being part of your own story this coming summer.
 
Read about the opportunities available this summer.

​Switzerland – Turning Boys Into Storytellers
 
In just about nine months we’ll be trekking around Europe – our sixth trip across the Atlantic.
 
You can check out info right here: http://www.mindstretchadventures.com/europe-by-eurail-2018.html
 
So this little report is just to relate how one day can be so memorable…even in a trip of many days.
 
This is about an adventure we had one day during our 2015 trip and it was so grand we’re repeating this set of activities this coming June. While based in Bern, Switzerland a couple of years ago we took a day trip to the alpine village of Grindelwald, Switzerland. We reached this village in the Alps via a special scenic train. During our Europe trips prior to 2015 just getting to the village was our goal and it was absolutely perfect right there. Lots of shops, cafes, and incredible scenery and then that scenic train ride back to Bern.
 
But we expanded that day during our 2015 and added something entirely new and the boys and leaders this coming summer will get their opportunity to do the same. From Grindelwald we took a gondola several stations up the mountain where the views and the weather changed. It was gorgeous and it was cold. We had lunch up there in the elements and this was just the start of our day. From the station at “First” we started our descent back to the village. So if the gondola ride up wasn’t fun enough, it gets better on the way down. Boys took a zip-line down the first leg of the journey. From there they had a short hike to the next station, and from there they took scooters the rest of the way. Boys had the option of skipping an activity if they weren’t comfortable with the “high adventure” part of this day, but of course most were 100% on board.
 
It was an all-day day trip from Bern and we loved it. And, I can’t wait to be back. In fact, three boys will be comig back on the 2018 version for their second Europe experience. There “could” still be a spot or two if you know something who needs some amazing storytelling adventures in his life.
 
And that’s how boys become storytellers on a MindStretch Travel Adventures trip.
 

MTA – Turning Boys into Storytellers
 
With this post, we’re starting to feature memorable moments in MTA history. Some will be from trips just finished and others could be from trips long since relegated to the history books but still remembered by MTA boys and leaders.
 
So with this new feature, I’m starting with an amazing feat accomplished by a group of boys this past July while out in the Colorado Rockies. This trip was our sixth or seventh out to this area and we’ve always admired the beauty of Pike’s Peak. And for the past few trips we’ve always seen this cleared path going straight up and partway to the top of that mountain. But that’s as far as we’ve gotten. This year leader Don Silleman did some research and found out it was now a foot trail called the Manitou Incline. He also found out it is one of the hardest uphill climbs anywhere and especially around in these parts of the Rockies.
 
The trail, while just at a mile long, goes what seems to be straight up. The facts are scary enough but thinking of hiking up it should scare off most would-be hikers. The trail gains over 2,000 feet in less than one mile with an average grade of 45% (about a 24 degree angle) and in some places the grade is as steep as 68% or nearly a 34 degree angle). The trail is the remains of a former narrow gauge funicular railway.
 
Don offered the challenge to the kids. He explained the difficulties, what they would need to pack, and explained they would have to be up by 5:30 in order to get onto the first shuttle. A bunch of boys seemed excited about the opportunity and the challenge including a few that we personally didn’t feel would be able to make the trip. Mr. Y even showed a couple of videos to some boys just so they knew what they would be faced with. We figured by the time they got to bed most would either forget about it or decide to sleep in the next morning.
 
What a shock when 15 boys excited, if not sleepily, made their way outside the motel that fateful morning to try the first-ever Manitou Incline attempt by MTA campers. And they made it. All of them! What an accomplishment that I’ll never forget and I wasn’t even on the trip. I’m sure this is a story these boys will be telling the rest of their lives.
 
Find out about this year’s opportunities at: www.MindStretchAdventures.com and become your own storyteller.

Home!
 
What an adventure we had in the Colorado Rockies. For the second year boys didn’t have their electronics with them and for five days they didn’t even have TVs. It was refreshing. One night we had three bats in the commons room of our lodge at Snow Mountain Ranch. The entertainment of watching and helping the maintenance staff trap the bats caused one boy to say, “This is better than TV.”
 
We did tons of activities during our two weeks. A few of the highlights included taking in a professional baseball game, touring places such as the Colorado Wolf & Wildlife Center, the US Olympic Training Center, the Air Force Academy, a goldmine (1,000 feet below the surface of the earth), hiking the Manitou Incline (just about the steepest hike one could imagine and 15 of our boys chose to conquer it), taking the cog railroad to the top of Pike’s Peak. Boys tackled a high ropes adventure course, a climbing tower, and a zip-line. Many boys went on a horseback trail ride, some went fishing, some went canoeing, some tried out archery…and the list continues.
 
It was a wonderful trip that will give these boys a lifetime of memories.
 
If you missed the activities, you can check out our daily blog and photo albums at:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mindstretch/albums