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Joe, the Assistant Director at Camp Blue Sky, offers valuable advice for first-time campers: “Come with a lot of positive mental attitude because it’s going to be a great summer.” He highlights the importance of bringing comfort items to camp to ease homesickness and maintain a positive mindset. For those worried about making new friends, especially shy campers or those arriving without familiar faces, Joe reassures them with tales of the camp’s welcoming atmosphere and engaging icebreaker activities that connect everyone from day one.
He provides a sneak peak into a typical day at camp, bustling with activities such as bouldering, kayaking, and themed evening programs suitable for all ages. He also discusses specially tailored backpacking trips that offer fun and appropriate challenges based on camper age.
Joe encourages future campers to embrace the summer with enthusiasm and an open mind, ready to dive into new adventures at Camp Blue Sky.
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Learn more about Camp Blue Sky:
https://avid4.com/mt-evans-camps
Avid4 Adventure website: www.avid4.com
Avid4 on Instagram: @avid4adventure
Avid4 Adventure on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@avid4adventure
Email the host: [email protected]
Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm
“I needed to practice at hearing other people better, and how they engage with the same landscapes that I love, on their terms,” says today’s guest Owen Yager. Learning about and working to represent other people’s stories is the common theme that unites the seemingly disparate elements of Owen’s story. Once he realized that people’s religion and traditions are the ultimate form of story, he went from an English major in undergrad to studying at Harvard Divinity School. As a land steward with Colorado Cattleman’s Land Trust, he works to help create conversations and collaborations between what have historically been oppositional relationships between the agriculture and conservation spaces, and between landowners and the rural citizens who have been traditionally sidelined.
All parties—from private landowners to guides to recreationalists—share the same hopes and goals for the land. Owen works to engage them all to ultimately form a shared vision for cultural and land management of the American West.
On today’s episode of the Avid Adventurer, Owen and host Dave Secunda discuss leading rock climbers Tommy Caldwell and Alex Honnold and whether they are the new Emerson and Thoreau, helping to translate the divine in nature to a new generation.
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You can find more information on the Colorado Cattlemen’s Agricultural Land Trust’s working landscape conservation work at ccalt.org, and Owen be reached at [email protected]
Avid4 Adventure website: www.avid4.com
Avid4 on Instagram: @avid4adventure
Avid4 Adventure on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@avid4adventure
Email the host: [email protected]
Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm
Advice to first-time campers? "Try everything," says Kendra, a seasoned adventurer at just 15 years old with over 15 camps under her belt. "Because even if it seems scary at the moment, 99% of the time it's actually really fun." Kicking off a series of advice for new campers, Kendra shares insights from her experiences at Avid Adventure’s quintessential sleep-away location, Camp Windy Peak in Bailey, Colorado. She describes a typical day in the Rocky Mountain camp packed with diverse activities, from relaxing yoga and baking to adrenaline-fueled rock climbing and whitewater rafting. She also expresses her fondness for evenings spent playing Dungeons and Dragons (D&D) at camp.
Her guidance for newcomers is both sincere and practical—seize every chance to make friends and try out new activities, even those that might initially seem intimidating. Kendra reflects on her own early reservations and the supportive camp community that helped her push past these fears.
Looking at the lasting effects of her camp experiences, Kendra acknowledges how they have boosted her social skills and aided her in setting personal goals. She emphasizes that the positive mindset cultivated at camp has been key to her personal development.
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Links
Learn more about Camp Windy Peak:
https://avid4.com/windy-peak-camps
Avid4 Adventure website: www.avid4.com
Avid4 on Instagram: @avid4adventure
Avid4 Adventure on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@avid4adventure
Email the host: [email protected]
Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm
“I get to do something for others and I get to do something for myself,” says Stephen Allen about the balance he strikes in his life as a housing case manager in Boulder, Colorado from 9-5 and rock climbing in his down time. His lifelong love of the outdoors is so infectious he has been dubbed by Avid 4 Adventure campers and their parents as the “Czar of Stoke”. On today’s episode of The Avid Adventurer, he tells host Dave Secunda how he earned his title, including a hilarious story of misunderstanding with one parent in particular. Just as important as getting campers excited for the outdoors is putting them at ease. Stephen explains how he builds trust with his campers by honoring their fear and hesitation.
There are a lot of similarities between outdoor sports and therapy, Stephen explains, and campers work on issues such as goal setting, stress management and others. He talks about the benefits of adventure therapy, and the importance of encouraging campers to learn to live with risk, recognize the benefits, and make the best choices for themselves.
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Links
Avid4 Adventure website: www.avid4.com
Avid4 on Instagram: @avid4adventure
Avid4 Adventure on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@avid4adventure
Email the host: [email protected]
Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm
“The world will only be as small as you let it, until you allow the world to be bigger than you know it,” says Eddie Mockus, licensed psychologist and founder of the Boulder Center for Family and Behavioral Health in Boulder, Colorado. He joins the Avid Adventurer podcast to delve into the power of our thoughts and the importance of managing anxiety while navigating and mitigating risks. Eddie shares how trusting our hearts and bodies as much as our intellect can lead to significant personal growth. He also recounts his own journey of leading with the heart and watching his clients embrace their vulnerabilities and find their rightful place in the world.
In a city like Boulder, often dubbed "the epicenter of the Instagram outdoors," the pressures of conforming to a certain aesthetic or level of athleticism can make some feel out of place. Eddie discusses how he assists young people and their families in realizing that there's no single correct way to enjoy the outdoors and that it's accessible to everyone. This environment also offers valuable lessons in listening, distinguishing between perceived and actual risks, and maintaining competence even in discomfort.
Eddie stresses that the answers lie within us; we simply need to slow down and listen. In today's episode, he also introduces new therapeutic techniques that go beyond Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), teaching us how to accept negative thoughts and act despite them.
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Links
Connect with Eddie Mockus:
www.boulderfamilyhealth.com
Avid4 Adventure website: www.avid4.com
Avid4 on Instagram: @avid4adventure
Avid4 Adventure on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@avid4adventure
Email the host: [email protected]
Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm
“Being outdoors, I think, ‘Man, this world was created in such a way to glorify God.” The outdoors has taught Hannah Green some invaluable lessons and skills. Growing up a shy kid, hesitant to join in activities for fear of not measuring up, working at Avid 4 Adventures was one of many instances in which pushing past her fears led to some of her greatest life experiences. Hannah joins host Dave Secunda to discuss her calling to minister in the outdoors setting, where, among the diversity of people in the industry, a shared love of the natural world creates common spiritual ground.
Hannah’s story illustrates that choosing faith over fear leads on to great adventures. She explains how she talks herself through her scariest moments, how she’s learned to listen seriously to her gut instinct but also to laugh at herself. Everyone worries that they’re not good enough, but the best way to learn anything new is just by trying.
Patience, endurance, and community are as vital to the outdoors as they are to everyday life. On today’s episode of The Avid Adventurer, she’ll explain how she’s now instilling these values in others.
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Links
Avid4 Adventure website: www.avid4.com
Avid4 on Instagram: @avid4adventure
Avid4 Adventure on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@avid4adventure
Email the host: [email protected]
Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm
“To think, if we had never gone to Avid, then we probably wouldn’t be the same people,” says 12-year-old Kaylin, who joins the Avid Adventurer podcast with her 15-year-old sister Kendra to discuss the personal transformations they’ve each undergone since first enrolling as campers at Avid 4 Adventures. Though neither had any interest in the outdoors originally, they were motivated to attend camp after experiencing a major family loss. On today’s episode, they tell host Dave Secunda what they learned about overcoming obstacles, and how they’ve become more patient, outgoing, judicious and responsible people in their everyday lives.
Positive thinking is more than just chanting feel-good slogans, Kendra explains, it’s about adopting a growth mindset. Kaylin describes the experiment she tried during volleyball practice at school and what it taught her about the power of positive self-talk, and what repelling down the side of a mountain taught her about overcoming fear. They discuss their future career plans, both of which were inspired by their time with Avid and why Kaylin is so passionate about the principles of the Leave No Trace policy.
Learn where the girls are headed next and given their new sense of self-reliance and independence, why their mother feels at peace in sending them there. Hear Kendra explain how backpacking changes your brain chemistry and Kaylin’s crazy experience during a flash flood in Wyoming!
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Links
Avid4 Adventure website: www.avid4.com
Avid4 on Instagram: @avid4adventure
Avid4 Adventure on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@avid4adventure
Email the host: [email protected]
Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm
Lucy Kohara's first camping experience with Avid4 Adventure in 2018 completely transformed her life, influencing her interests and shaping who she has become. A few years after her initial experience, she came back as a counselor. This summer, she's excited to take on the role of a support specialist, merging her love for the outdoors with her psychology studies in college. In the latest episode of The Avid Adventurer, Lucille shares unforgettable camp memories with host Dave Secunda, from her time as both a camper and a counselor. She recalls a moment so perfect, she describes it as heavenly.
As a camp leader, she quickly became a popular and trusted confidante, encouraging campers to express themselves and their identities freely, helping them through homesickness and never giving up on them even when they resisted. She insists, though, that as much as they may learn from her, she learns just as much from them.
Campers and fellow counselors, they’re all just friends—even family. Learn why disconnecting from social media is key to their connecting with each other, both during their sessions at Camp Blue Sky and beyond. Hear Lucille share anecdotes about some of her standout campers and the lessons they’ve taught her.
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Connect with Lucille Kohara:
Instagram: lucy.kohara
Connect with Avid4 Adventure:
Avid4 Adventure website: www.avid4.com
Avid4 on Instagram: @avid4adventure
Avid4 Adventure on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@avid4adventure
Email the host: [email protected]
Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm
“I would consider playing live music similar to what climbers feel when doing stuff like free soloing. It’s a performance,” says Joe Lievano, who joins the Avid Adventurer podcast from Pueblo, Mexico to talk about these dual passions. As it turns out, scaling rocks and drumming in a rock band have more in common than one might think. With both, he says, you’re not competing with anyone but yourself, trying to be better with each try, yet you also find a profound connection and sense of community with those around you. In Mexico, he explains, neither music nor rock climbing are particularly popular or well-received. He explains how he brought his mother around to the idea of his pursuing both, and gives advice for parents who are equally nervous to enroll their kids in outdoor sports.
Joe wasn’t always an outdoor enthusiast. Though he discovered rock climbing at the age of 15, he took a long hiatus due to injury and wasn’t passionate about the sport until others took the time to show him the beauty and fun of the outdoors and the importance of preserving it. This summer, he will return the favor for a new group of campers when he returns to Avid4 Adventure as an Assistant Director at Avid’s Blue Sky camp.
There he hopes to recreate the same feeling of welcome and belonging for campers that he felt working with Avid4 Adventure in the past. In this episode, he explains how he plans to create an unforgettable experience for his campers, particularly as a member of the DEI committee. Having been lucky enough to find two life passions, he is eager to help others find theirs, too.
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Avid4 Adventure website: www.avid4.com
Avid4 on Instagram: @avid4adventure
Avid4 Adventure on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@avid4adventure
Email the host: [email protected]
Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm
Jackson Anderson is a self-described jack-of-all-trades. At any given moment you can find the 11-year-old enjoying everything from mountain biking and rock climbing to playing video games with his friends and even beatboxing! He explains that, as someone with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), he gets bored easily with any one activity. Yet, when he does discover something he’s interested in, he can absorb himself in it for hours on end.
He also has an incredible mind for risk assessment. He understands that fear is part of outdoor experience, and knows when to follow his keen intuition. When approaching any task, whether it’s navigating a mountain trail or settling down to a school assignment, he naturally applies what’s known as the Risk Matrix. He describes an accident that took place during a group mountain biking activity and how it influenced the way he views the sport.
After listening to this episode of The Avid Adventurer, you’ll understand why host Dave Secunda believes Jackson has a bright future in risk management if he wants one. Jackson shares his number one rule for parents to follow when deciding whether to enroll their children in outdoor activities, and the most important thing to remember once their children are enrolled!
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Links
Avid4 Adventure website: www.avid4.com
Avid4 on Instagram: @avid4adventure
Avid4 Adventure on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@avid4adventure
Email the host: [email protected]
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