The Boys Only Blog

Many boys wait 11 months to see their camp friends again, but this Spring, Birmingham camper Trey Lockett got a big surprise.  When his mother asked him how he wanted to celebrate his birthday, he said he’d really like to have dinner with some camp friends from Birmingham, Montgomery, and Greenville.

He was just wishing out loud, not expecting it to really happen, but his mother ran with it.  She secretly contacted his friends and arranged a surprise birthday dinner in Montgomery.  After his sister’s soccer game in Alabaster, Trey’s dad met them by the interstate with Russell Galloway in tow.  Russell distracted Trey all the way to Montgomery, so that he didn’t even realize they weren’t headed back to Birmingham.  They drove up to Chili’s, and Fox Carlson, Duncan Blackwell, John Coleman Poole, and George Sellers were waiting inside.

From left to right: John Coleman Poole (Greenville, AL), George Sellers (Montgomery, AL), Fox Carlson (Montgomery, AL), Duncan Blackwell (Montgomery, AL), Trey Lockett (Birmingham, AL), and Russell Galloway (Birmingham, AL)

Trey was surprised, and the boys were so excited to catch up, eat a meal together, and swap camp stories.  These campers have grown up together at Alpine, and when you see them talking, it is hard to believe that they only see each other for one month every year.  We can’t wait to see Trey, Russell, Fox, Duncan, John Coleman, and George coming back through the front gate for First Term.  Thanks for sending in pictures!

It’s a beautiful sunshine day on the Mountain.  Project Adventure (ropes course) and Horseback staff arrive on Sunday for Training.  Camp is here!  What’s new at Alpine this, you may be wondering? 

We’re putting two new washers courts at the Ping Pong pavilion.  We’re adding at least one Washers court to the Ridge, as well as a new foosball table and hopefully a ping pong table.  On the Mountain we’re hoping to add a couple Ping pong tables to the porches of Mountain Hollow.  We hope to have a giant sandbox in Hunter Hollow for creating mazes and tunnels and sandcastles.

Tree’s been working on a lot of new games.  Ramp ball’s a human size version of Rollerball like you might play at Chuck e Cheese or the local fair.  The Trappers (finishing 4th grade) this year are going to the Georgia Aquarium and the World of Coke for Trip Day!  This is going to be an incredible trip.  Boys finishing 3rd grade in Junior Camp get to have a tour of the Mayfield Ice Cream dairy in Athens, TN – which of course can only end with one thing – world famous Moosetracks!!  Then they are headed to Chattanooga for a huge surprise that only they will experience on Trip Day.  Here’s your hint: it’s coming out new and it’s the opposite of down. 

Peter Hurt’s going to be heading up Horseback staff this summer - he’s a lifelong Alpine camper and counselor who’s been the Head Wrangler at a dude ranch in Colorado for the last two years (in other words, a real cowboy!).  He’s bought several calves and plans to let some of the older boys who take Horseback be real cowboys.  They will get to round up the steer on horseback. 

No doubt there’ll be many other new activities and games this summer, many invented while hanging out on a cabin porch with friends.  That’s the beauty of camp – no matter what you’re playing, new or old, complicated or simple, you get to do it all with camp friends and counselors in God’s beautiful creation.  We’ll see you soon – can’t wait!

Weldon Pless (far left) with Rob Langley, David Steele, Chris Kerr and Clarke Norton

Here is an essay written by Weldon Pless.  Weldon has been at Alpine every summer since he was in the first grade (only missing one summer).  This year, after he graduates from Ole Miss we are excited that he will join our full time staff.  I think you will enjoy Weldon’s reflections on camp!  

Whenever I buy new music, I buy records. And that’s not just slang for CDs. I’m talking about black, vinyl, old-timey records. The ones you put on and sit back to listen to the entire thing without stopping. To me, Alpine is a bit like those records.

Records are sort of a step back in time. You can’t skip around to your favorite tracks or put all the freshest songs on a playlist. You can’t stick in your headphones and walk around town listening to records, or even play them in your car. But there are some really good things about it too. Listening to records allows you to really listen to the music. Once I take the time to put one on, I sit there and I listen to the whole thing, and I let myself enjoy it. I listen closer to songs I might have skipped if I was listening on my iPod. Stepping back in time to listen to my music actually lets me listen better. It slows me down and holds my attention. 

The same is true of Alpine. Every summer I come back to ride horses instead of driving cars, to watch sunsets instead of watching television, and to sing songs instead of listening to the radio. It’s a step back in time, but it frees me up to really enjoy the summer. 

Sometimes during the school year I don’t give myself a chance to slow down. I never stop long enough to notice the things around me like the sounds and smells of nature that are so prominent at camp. When it rains during the school year, I put on a movie or surf the internet. When it rains at camp, I listen to it.

I also have deeper conversations with friends at camp than I usually do in my life outside. At camp there is time to really talk. Whether it’s while walking to an activity period, playing ping pong, or eating a meal, deep conversations at camp seem to rise up organically. I think it’s because we’re given a schedule and an order in our days, and it frees up our minds to dwell on other things. Alpine lets us take a step back and enjoy living, and it’s one of the biggest reasons I come back every summer.