Dingoes: This week the dingoes enjoyed a tremendous amount of personal growth with a sprinkling of ceremonies and parent visits throughout. The boys enjoyed a short day hike to the top of a peak on Thursday where Spirited Otter was christened with a trail name. Three short hikes followed including an overnight stop at a beautiful site where three dingoes received tokens in recognition of their personal growth. Monday and Tuesday saw solo opportunities for Grounded Stag, Compassionate Grizzly, Spirited Otter, and Firey Sunset in preparation for their parent visits Tuesday morning. The other dingoes progressed steadily on their Ngarna Wukas and busting sets in main camp as they weathered a quick return to wintery conditions on Tuesday night.
Gnowees: This week the Gnowees showed their resilience through conquering multiple hikes, skills, and participating in vulnerable gatherings. The girls led three ceremonies this week to honor each other with well-deserved tokens, such as “giver”, “seeker”, and “truth-speaker”. They even gave the “openness” token to, Pepper, the groups’ therapy dog this week. We played games, sang many songs, floated through guided meditations (led by the girls), witnessed beautiful sunsets, and even a rainbow! We admired the sun with a sun/gratitude party and the girls displayed their gratefulness for the almost perfect rainbow by joining hands and singing after a tough rain.
Goannas: The group enjoyed hiking this week with an awesome day hike filled with enthusiasm as we made it to the top of a rocky peak. Resiliency of group members were demonstrated as we waited out rain, hail, and snow; all in one day! The Goannas held excellent team building and accountability within the group. Our hunt for willow branches led to one of the best back packs in the field (engineered by a student)! Creekside harvesting for busting materials revealed rare wild flowers and great conversation and the boys loved playing capture the flag. This week, the group engaged in group gatherings that led to emotional growth through vulnerability.
Brumbies: The Brumbies were excited to welcome three new members into the group. Their mentors were very motivated to support their new friends transition from first camp to main camp. As such, they worked with the newest members intently while getting to know them. We had map reading sessions and had the group lead two hikes over the week. We worked on busting and expressing our feelings with the group through morning meditations and journaling. Wednesday we honored three brumbies with tokens showing gratitude toward their growth and accomplishments throughout their stay here.
