The 10th year for the Teton Challenger Camp was in many respects the best so far. The weather was ideal; the lake level the fullest in years (due to a heavy mountain snow pack); and the staff was highly competent and worked together superbly.

Having a more mature group of older teens and young adults this year (ranging from sophomore to age 21), the emphasis of the program could be summarized by this year's theme: "Prepare for the Future." All instruction through camp emphasized preparing personally for what's ahead.

This year campers arrived a day earlier to help set up the base camp, along with staff members, in the woods of Colter Bay Village. Campers were divided into two men's and two women's teams—blue and green. After a staff training day and orientation meetings, the camp program began with a training day in wilderness emergency skills. Then one team received training in reading topographic maps with a compass, preparing essential gear for day hikes and basic rock climbing knots. At the same time the other team trained and prepared for the three-day backpacking trip.

The three-day backpacking trip followed the Death Canyon trail up to Fox Creek Pass (about 10,000-foot elevation), with spectacular vistas at the top, wildflowers in bloom and snow in the high country. On the middle day campers explored farther and went snow-sledding, looked for wildlife and took lots of pictures.

Sightings of wildlife during camp included elk, moose, deer, bison, eagle and osprey, black bear and grizzly bear. (Campers are trained in reacting correctly in the unlikely event of an encounter with a bear.)

During the same three-day period the other team spent two days rock climbing at two scenic locations, and the third day embarked on the Wilderness Challenge Course. Teams of four or five are taken to a hiking area in the mountains, given a map with a destination to find and are presented with challenges to solve along the route. Points are gained or lost according to how challenges are dealt with. The course is about six miles and takes most of the day, with a debriefing period afterward.

Base camp life included bathing in the snowmelt waters of Jackson Lake, fantastic meals (including elk and antelope stews), Compass Checks each morning and Christian Living discussions every evening around the fire. Compass Check subjects this year included: treating the opposite sex with respect, serving with sincerity and humility, elevating our speech and eliminating euphemisms, respecting laws and rules, proper respect for authority, showing faith in God despite peer pressure or political correctness and preparing for coming adversity.

Sabbath services are held in the woods, with this year's sermons and Bible study messages on trusting the Bible, being teachable and the history of our Church. The next day was another day of recuperation and training, plus half a day in the town of Jackson, a town full of Western flavor, unique shops and fantastic art galleries.

The second week the teams reversed venues, then Thursday everyone helped take down the camp and load it into the trailer to be stored another year in a Dubois, Wyoming, storage unit.