Today was a truly wonderful day of the Cobblers program, full of unexpected turns the whole way. We opened the morning with some gratitude, some stretching, and a good old-fashioned game of Duck-Duck-Goose! Then we headed out to the field for some games. As we were hiking across the field, we noticed that the snow had a few different layers—a fluffy white surface layer, a harder crunchy middle layer, and a base of ice. Thinking quickly, the Grey Foxes sought the lowest part of the field where water might pool and found a huge frozen puddle, more like the size of a small pond. They cleared off the freshly fallen snow and got to slipping around on the ice and challenging each other to slide the farthest and the fastest.
Meanwhile, the Bobcats set their backpacks down in a circle, forming the boundaries for Skink Tag. In Skink Tag, everyone has a bandana “tail” in their waistband. The goal is to pull everyone else’s tail out to eliminate them from the game. Those who are out kneel in one place, snagging the tails of players who come too close.
Both groups settled down for snack, stories, and chatting with friends. Then the Grey Foxes headed to camp, and the Bobcats took over the skating rink. They cleared a second and third sliding lane, and took turns shooting across the ice on their stomachs, knees, sleds, and feet. Eventually, we slung out backpacks on and headed to camp. When we got there, we spent some time building a fire, raking, and organizing our campsite before lunch. During lunch, we shared many riddles, ranging from some well-known goofy ones to the challenging “Black Magic” riddle.
Then we all ran off for some free time! Some folks hung around the fire chatting, others pushed each other down a small sledding hill, while still others played on a rope swing or organized a snowball fight. After free time, we came back together for a story about a girl on a sit spot and a nesting Tufted Titmouse, and then we went for our own sit spots. At the wolf howl, everyone returned for an honoring and nature name ceremony. During this time, each student had a chance to sit on our stump of honor, share their nature name (or receive one!), and be honored by the group. With honoring done, we broke into the celebration marshmallows and hot chocolate!
At their camp, the Grey Foxes had spotted a herd of deer—including a huge buck! Half the group went for a silent stalking adventure, trying to trail and sneak up on the herd again, while the other half of the group stayed back at camp to work on their winter fire-making skills. When everyone reconvened, they had lunch and played a wilderness trivia game. The showdown was epic, with both teams tying, and splitting the prize … hot chocolate and marshmallows! The Grey Foxes wrapped up their day with a sit spot and an honoring circle.
We wrapped up our day with more ice sliding back in the field, and a heartwarming closing circle.
—Alana, Raven, Mary, Josh, and the counselors, February 19, 2021