Director Jud's Blog

Winter and now the holiday season is already here... it seems like just a few weeks ago we were planning the Session 3 Crew Olympics and playing "Jud Games" on the front lawn. It’s hard to believe that the Stone Mountain Adventures Teen Summer of 2013  ended about four months ago. Since then the leaves on the trees have changed color and fallen off and, as I write this, the temperature outside is a chilly 16 degrees. More snow is expected this weekend!

The rhythm of the seasons brings familiar change and now that the first snow fall and inaugural sled riding on Pam and Biff’s hill have come and gone, in general, we spend more time inside stoking the wood stove than outside “playing.” With shorter days and longer nights it’s a little harder to get outside and easier to curl up with a book. But the winter world is beautiful and peaceful and gives new perspective on a familiar landscape.  Stone Mountain Adventures Teen Summer camp in now blanketed by snow.

In the barn Pam and her helpers dress in layers and use hand warmers while the horses have once again gained their important winter coats. Lessons have ended for the fall and the ring has turned into an ice skating rink for Wyatt and Molly.

Wyatt is 7 ½ and in the 2^nd grade and Molly is 5 ½ and in kindergarten. Molly is excited about her once-a-week ballet/tap class and gymnastics. Wyatt takes piano lessons and begins basketball this week. Both kids participate in the Juniata Little Eagles basketball clinics, too. They catch the bus each morning at the elk farm/corner stop sign and get off the bus in the afternoon full of exuberance and stories of their day at school. They are both excited about winter and the fun it brings with snow angels, sled riding, building snow people and skiing at nearby Tussey Mountain or Blue Knob.

Anne is once again an Assistant Women’s Basketball Coach at Juniata College. They have started their season 5-2 and will host a holiday tournament on 12/29-30. Anne also continues to run and plans to run in the Nike Women’s Half Marathon in Washington, DC, again this spring.    

I had an incredible fall that included a trip to Montana to visit family and again coaching the Juniata College Men’s Rugby Team. One highlight of my fall was a two day rock climbing trip to Seneca Rocks, WV, with 2013 SMA camp counselor (and former camper) Tim Bailey. This was a trip that we talked about doing all summer and, due to Tim’s persistence, we finally made it happen. Seneca Rocks is the tallest peak east of the Mississippi River that requires ropes to reach the summit. Tim and I did multi-pitch climbs each day climbing three pitches on the first day and five pitches on the second day (a pitch is a full length of rope or between 100 and 150 feet). We were blessed with great weather and incredible views; we both had a feeling of accomplishment having made it safely to the summit on both days!