On the Cover! Nothing like old news, but the Christ Church Episcopal School magazine from last spring was buried beneath a ton of other old magazines around my house. These two are both "retired" MindStretch Travel Adventures campers. The magazine is from last year so both guys are now ninth graders.
Tripp (left) is a veteran of four MTA trips including Europe, Colorado Rockies, Wyoming - Montana, and North Carolina Mountains. And Benn has two under his belt -- West Virginia - Tennessee and the North Carolina Mountains.
We're excited that Tripp's little brother, Nate, will be joining us for his first adventure this coming summer on the North Carolina High Country trip.

Excuse me, but I don’t get the resemblance!
 
Ever since the movie, Up, hit the big screen…kids have said I look like that old man in the movie. I don’t get it! There’s no resemblance at all! But the boys in the Colorado Rockies got a big chuckle in July 2017 when we were at Snow Mountain Ranch. A family was walking up the steps to our lodge and some little boy (probably about 4) pointed at me and said something to the effect of, “Look mom, he’s the man in the movie!” Well, our MTA boys just about fell over with laughter—embarrassing that boy’s mom. I’m sure both the little guy and our slightly bigger guys understood exactly.
 
Just the same, Mr. Fredricksen (Ed Asner) was an admirable character that loved adventure. And he was a kind (slightly elderly) gentleman. I’m honored to have that comparison.
 
There are plenty of adventures ahead for your own “Russell.” Check out what we have lined up for 2019 by clicking here.
 
(Just so you know, I added twenty pounds and twenty years to the right-side photo on Photoshop.)

Just one of the great perks about a MTA experience is that boys get to choose what they want to eat. It gives them freedom to explore something new or stick with the familiar.
 
The above photo shows two brave campers in Paris this past summer having steak tartare (I think I have that name right).  You can see on their faces just how much they enjoyed their choice!
 
In the bottom photo, taken in Cripple Creek, Colorado just over a year ago shows these two same guys along with some of their buddies about to sample their first “Rocky Mountain Oysters.” You’ll need to Google that if you’re not quite sure what it is because I’m not about to tell you.
 
And as I often say, “That’s part of the adventure of a MTA trip.”
 
Click to learn more about our 2019 travels and start planning your own menu.

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

​Tomorrow is it – the 100th Anniversary of the National Park Service. I couldn’t let this pass without saying my heartfelt thanks to those incredibly thoughtful and forward-thinking people for realizing the importance of protecting our country’s beautiful natural treasures.
 
MTA boys and leaders have been humbled to visit, hike in, and explore several of these amazing places. This past summer we were in the Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks. In 2015 we were in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. In 2014 we were in Acadia National Park and in Shenandoah National Park. In 2017 we’ll be back in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in June and the Rocky Mountain National Park in July.
 
We love them all. Some of the others we’ve been to back in the early years of my travel program include Big Bend, Yosemite, Grand Canyon, Death Valley, Sequoia, Zion, Badlands, Great Sand Dunes, Guadalupe Mountains, and Kings Canyon all come to mind. We’ve also visited national seashores, monuments, historic sites, national forests, and parkways. We should also mention the state parks, forests, and dozens of other public lands we’ve explored over the decades.
 
It has been quite some ride and we’re fortunate to have all of these protected areas for the future. It was indeed “America’s Best Idea.”
 
So, Happy Birthday National Park Service!

With the 2016 trips full (both have been for months), we decided to go ahead and put together thoughts for our next two seasons. Many parents appreciate the opportunity to know our dates well in advance so that they can make plans for their sons' participation in a MTA experience.

Right now we only have trips, dates, and basic info ready for you to check out. We've chosen to return to some of our favorite destinations including the Virginia Mountains and the Colorado Rockies in 2017 and Europe and the North Carolina Mountains in 2018. Full details for the 2017 trips will be ready in just a few months. We already have over two dozen boys express "very" early interest.

Check out the info by clicking here.

I reported a few weeks ago that wildfires were threatening Colorado's Royal Gorge Bridge & Park. According to a post a couple of days ago, the entire park was lost except for the world-famous bridge, one of the theaters, and the mini-train.

The park has let a contract to begin demolition of the ruined buildings and hopes to have things cleaned up enough to open the bridge for one-way traffic within a couple of months.

They have hopes to rebuild the park and say it could be open in as little as a year once demolition and clean-up have ended. We hope so. It's a fun place and was a favorite on our last two Colorado Rockies trips in 2007 and 2011. I'm not sure when our next trip to Colorado might take place, but am thinking around 2016. (You know, that's not that far away!)

Click to read the Facebook posting about Royal Gorge Park.

I've been reading about the tragic wildfires in Colorado this past week and one of the areas hit was around the Royal Gorge Bridge Park in Canon City, Colorado. We were there in 2011 and enjoyed a day of walking across the bridge, "flying" the Skycoaster, taking the tram across the river (over 1,000 feet below), observing the animals, and more. 

The park has had several attractions burned from this fire. Word is, they will rebuild. We hope so. This historic park has been visited by millions and we would certainly include it on our activities list the next time we take a trip to the Colorado Rockies. I've read that all the animals were moved to safety.

You can read more about the Royal Gorge Park on their Facebook page.

This is a glimpse of the Skycoaster attraction at Royal Gorge with a couple of our guys taking a ride. You would have to see it, or experience it, to know what this thrill might be like. Personally, I haven't experienced it and doubt I ever will.