BIG Memories from BIG Wild
June 19, 2026
Hello Moondance Families!
Day 9 of our trip was the first day of our white water rafting trip! We woke up early to meet our guides to go over what we needed to know, and then we drove from Idaho to our dock on the Salmon River. We packed all our belongings into dry bags and split into two boats! Both boats came up with funny names, and Gracie named hers “Aight Bet”! The guides loved it and were saying it the whole trip! We had a great day of rafting on some smaller rapids, but we still got super splashed. We stopped on a beach for lunch and rested before heading back out! We found our camp for the night, and as soon as Edie stepped out onto the sand, she sank in! The sand was soaking wet, and all of us were sinking in and dying of laughter trying to get out. After finally getting out, we helped unload everything from the boats and started to set up camp! We decided to cowboy camp, meaning we didn’t set up any tents, and we slept in our sleeping bags on the sand! Our rafting guides cooked us an amazing meal of Chicken and asparagus, and we even got dessert! All of the kids were raving about how good the food was, and Henry was ecstatic that we got dessert! We had a great moonup, and we slept under the stars with a beautiful view of the mountains.
Our 10th day was our second day rafting and a bigger day for the rapids! We woke up and hopped on the rafts to get going! Vyom got to sit in the front and we cracking up at his reactions to get soaked by the waves. We learned how to paddle in sync and we even got to go through a rapid outside of the boat. We paused before we go to it to learn how to do it safely and then we hopped in the water and went down! Jerry went down first and absolutely rocked it! Once we got to our camp for the night and set everything up we set up some shade and started to play some games! We learned a new card game, Red King, and London was amazing at it. She picked up the rules so quickly and was eager to teach every new player the rules. Halfway through we got surprised with some candy and before long it was time to dinner. We had another astonishing meal of Pork, mashed potatoes, and mixed veggies. We were so impressed with the rafting guides cooking and glad to have a little break from cooking ourselves. We all cowboy camped again and the stars were just as beautiful as the night before. We all slept very well after song a long day of rough, fun rapids!
Day 11 was our last full day of white water rafting. We had a great morning of rafting and we started it off well with a cliff jump! The guides showed us the best place to jump off and we all went on it multiple times. Batten must have jumped off at least 10 times! The water was cold but so worth it. After that we rafted for awhile before we hooked all of our boats up to each other and used the motor to get us off of the salmon river and onto the snake river to where we needed to be for the night. When we got there our guides told us that we were camping in Idaho but across the water was Oregon and to our right was Washington! It was so cool to be so close to all three at the same time. We had some down time of resting and playing in the water before our guides took us on a little hike to a nearby orchard. WE got to try their cherries, mulberries, and apples! Our guides even used the mulberries in the cobbler they made us for dessert. During moonup Anna tricked us all in a game of imposter. She made all of us the imposter which actually turned out to be hilarious and such a funny moment. We all camped outside again and listened to the beautiful sounds of the river to put us to sleep.
Day 12 we woke up pretty early to get on the river and get back to the van. All the rafts were tied together and we had a motor pulling us through the rapids. We went through a class three rapid that splashed everyone and gave us the wake up that we needed. I think Edie and Maeve got hit the hardest by the waves. It was quite the way to go out! When we got to the van we loaded up our things and had a long drive back to spend the night before heading back Jackson. We stopped at a gas station and let everyone pick out a soda for the ride. Jerry, very impressively, chugged his entire Dr. Pepper the second we got into the car. It made for quite the laugh. We stopped at In-N -Out for a burger and shake for dinner. Caroline got pranked by us leaders as we told her we were eating canned chicken for dinner. She was very relieved when we pulled into the In-N-Out parking lot. When we got to our campsite, we had a much awaited shower that made everyone so happy. We then got some awesome sunset pictures over the dunes. Truett stole the show by taking some sick pictures and “mogging” all of us in the group. Everyone decided it would be fun to cowboy camp again so we slept outside before waking up to drive.
Day 13 we drove to Jackson. We stopped at goodwill to pick out funny outfits for our banquet dinner and rodeo. Libby was rocking some vertical striped pants and a horizontal striped shirt. It was very funny and we all definitely got some strange looks as we shopped in Jackson! We got to our campsite where we unloaded our stuff and then got ready for dinner. We went to a Mexican restaurant and all got giant portions of food. The girls also pranked Vyom by telling the restaurant it was his birthday. They surprised him with churros and a sombrero hat and the whole restaurant sang happy birthday. Vyom was very surprised. We then went to the rodeo where we got to watch some bull riding and horse riding. The rodeo picked Aubrey to compete for a rodeo tshirt and cash prize. She, of course, won the race and our whole group was fired up watching her win. Moondance got a shout out in front of the whole rodeo which was exciting. We then headed back to camp for our final moonup and talked about all the stories and memories we had made from the trip.
Day 14 was an early wake up. We got to the airport around 5 am and our first departure was at 7. It was so sad saying goodbye to everyone but also such a great sign that it was so hard to leave. It just showed us what amazing of a time we had together! Anna and Jerry were our last troopers to leave. It was such an incredible two weeks and we couldn’t have been more grateful for the time we all got to spend together and the relationships we made!
Idaho and Ice Cream
June 15, 2026
Hello Moondance Families!!
We have been so much fun and non-stop laughter. Our group immediately connected but since the start of the trip we have gotten so close. It is such an amazing group that we have and we couldn’t have asked for more positive, determined, and happy kids!
Our 5th day started our a little cold and rainy! We got up to start our exciting day nonetheless! We had our ropes course, zipline, and alpine slide activity planned for the day, but unfortunately our plans changed just a little. When we got to the event area they said that we should do our ropes course first, and even thought they told us it was going to be cold and rainy, Edie and Gracie got everyone excited anyways. We rode up to the top of the mountain in the ski lift, so we were already wet at the start, but that couldn’t stop them! They both conquered 3 different ropes courses and they did it with huge smiles on their faces! When the crowd is down we can always count on Gracie to cheer everyone up and we love that Edie will never back down from a good challenge. After we finished up the ropes course the guides let us know that everything else would be closed for the day. We were so bummed of course, so to cheer everyone up and warm up we went into Jackson Hole and got hot cocoa for everyone!! After that we put our heads together and decided what we could do to dry off and stay warm. After some debate we decided a movie was in order for us braving the ropes course in the cold rain! We loaded up on popcorn and candy and got a few hours of reprieve from the rain. Once we finished the movie we came outside to a beautiful sunny day, which was for the best!! London had us all laughing with her remarks about how goofy the movie was and how much plot it lacked. Thankful for the sun, we went back to camp, cooked dinner, and had a slow night of games and talking before bed.
Day 6 was our earliest day by far because it’s our roadtrip day to Idaho!! We all packed up as fast as we could and got in the car. We had breakfast in the car and all chatted about how excited we were to add another state to our repertoire. We figured everyone would fall asleep, but boy were we wrong! Batten and Caroline had us all laughing with their banter in the front row, laughing, playing, and keep everyone entertained. Since we have no phones, we all spent the entire car ride talking and getting to know each other! We passed around a notebook with song ideas and Jerry had some really good picks that got us all hyped up! After a good while of the kids asking if we were there yet, we stopped for lunch at Chick-fil-A and surprised them with their highly requested stop of Swig. We had a nice stretch, got to eat on some grass next to our car, and then it was back on the road after that! We finally made it to our camp for the night! We were jumping for joy when we realized that there was a shower at this campsite and the shower we got was heavenly! After we set up camp we hid inside of the tents to hang out because the wind was so strong. The rest was much needed after a tiring road trip. Anna got started on our amazing dinner of Chicken Alfredo! We all ate together, and mid dinner, a local and his dog came over to say hi! The dog, Moose, ate the rest of Libbys dinner and immediately started licking her face and we couldn’t stop laughing about it all night. We ended the day by walking up the sand dunes for the sunset. Once it set the stars were the most beautiful any of us had ever seen. After a long day we were happy to go to bed and get some rest!
Our 7th day was definitely a day of perseverance. We had a great morning and had planned on sand boarding down the sand dunes, but in an unfortunate turn of events, we got locked out of the van and the keys were stuck inside of it. After having the park rangers and some kind neighbors, we called AAA for some help! We had a few hours to wait for them so we ate lunch, played games, and got to know each other. Even though it was frustrating, the best part was how well the kids responded to it. They never once made us feel guilty or like it was some huge problem. Maeve repeatedly made jokes to keep the mood light, and reminded me several times that it could have happened to anyone. Their empathy and kindness was so heart-warming to see and we are so lucky to have such wonderful kids on this trip. Once our AAA guy came, we all jumped up and down cheering for him. He might have been a little scared of us, but we were so happy. We got back into the car eventually and finally got to start our next smaller roadtrip, We made our first stop of the to an ice cream place to thank the kids for being so great! After making it to our new home + state park, Henry cheffed us up some amazing barbeque chicken quesadillas and we sat around the campfire.
Day 8 has been so amazing! Today we fly fished! We started off In a field and used yarn instead of flies for practice. After getting all of the moves down we took all of our fishing poles and moved to the water! Truett got the best spot with the most amazing view and his cast was so impressive. We got super close a few times to catching something, but sadly no one caught anything. We still had such a good time trying, and anyone who wasn’t quite into fishing the entire time sat up on the rocks and had a fun game of cards. After hours of fishing, we decided to go into the city to walk around. We found some Idaho merch, and then decided that the kids deserved another ice cream stop! We all ate our ice cream in the sun right next to the beautiful lake and talked to some of the locals. After a good day of fly fishing, we went home and got started on packing for our rafting trip. We all learned that you can’t bring any cotton into the backcountry and we learned how to pack our bags properly. We got our last shower for a few days and got started on dinner. We had breakfast for dinner and it was a big hit! Vyom kept trying to make insane shapes with the pancake mix and had us all laughing at the ideas he had. We ate all together and sat around the fire to hang out before bed. We didn’t last because we were all so tired, but we are so excited to go rafting!! We couldn’t be more thankful that you have trusted us with your kids. They are wonderful and we can’t believe we are on the last leg of our trip.
Hey mom and dad! We just got off of a four day rafting trip and it was so much fun! I miss yall and love yall! See yall soon! -Caroline
Dear mom and dad, We are otw back to Jackson! We just finished our rafting trip and it was so much fun and the food that our guides made was amazing! Thank you all so much for sending me on this trip! Love uGracie 💕
What up Mother and Dad, We finally finished our rafting trip and we are going back to Jackson. I can’t wait to see yall but I don’t want to leave I am having the best time ever I forgot I have a phone. Tomorrow we are finally going to the rodeo hopefully I don’t get lost 😉 like when yall lost David in Jackson. GO HEELS I CANT WAIT TO FIGURE OUT IF WE ARE GOING TO THE WORLD SERIES. -Batten
Dear mom and dad, We just finished rafting and it was so much fun!!! We had the best food and amazing guides! Thanks so much for sending me! -Anna
Hi mom and dad, We just finished a 4 day rafting trip! It was so much fun! Thank yall so much for sending me here! Tomorrow we are going to a rodeo and then leaving the next day! Can’t wait to see all of yall soon! Love yall! -Libby
Hi mom and dad! We just finished our four day rafting trip!! The rapids were crazy and it was so much fun!! Edie and I are having a blast and made so many new friends and memories. Can’t wait to see you and show you all the pictures and videos!!! Thank you again for everything and encouraging me to try Moondance. Love you lots! -Maeve
Hi mom and dad! I just finished a 4 day rafting trip and it was a blast! I am having so much fun with these kids and leaders you don’t even know. I could easily spend another week with them no doubt (of course I miss yall though😉😘) Thank yall for sending me to this AWESOME camp! -Edie
Hey mum and padre! We just finished a four day rafting trip that was like we would raft all day and then spend the night at the beach and continue rafting and stay another night on a different beach. All of us kids and even our leaders are super close and everybody is really nice and funny. I love you guys but I love this so so much and could stay here for another 2 weeks. Thank you so much for sending me here I’m really grateful for how much I get to shower at home now. I love you both so much!-London
Hi mom and dad, I miss you guys we have just finished white water rafting and are heading back to Jackson hole Wyoming for the rodeo. I am so exited to see you guys back at Dallas and tell you guys my stories. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to go on this awesome trip!Jerry
Hey mom and dad, I am having a great time and am very thankful that you guys have give me this opportunity to go to moondance. I have learned so many new things and feel like I could climb any rock. I miss both of you and will see you soon bye. Thank you.- HENRY
Hey mom and dad, I’ve been having a great time. I’ve made a bunch of friends and have been enjoying myself. Thank you for pushing me to go on moondance cause I know I wasn’t the most excited. Love you guys, see you soon. -Vyom
Hey mom and dad I miss you guys and I will see you guys in like 2 days or 3 and thank you for letting come here I will tell you more when I see you love you guys. – TRUETT
Wild West Energy!
June 9, 2026
Big wild has been such an amazing time so far! We all met and waited for each other at the Jackson Hole airport and to pass the time we played lots of games! Once we all arrived we got into our van and drove straight to what has been our home for the past few nights, Grus Ventre Campground! We learned how to set up a tent, respect wildlife, and care for our campground. Our tents have a perfect view of the grand Tetons and the stars at night are so clear! After our long day we got pizza for our first night and ate it while watching the sunset in a beautiful field. Batten showed off his amazing hacky sack skills and even gave tips to those of us who were struggling. Once we finished we went back to camp to get some much needed rest.
Our second day was rock climbing!! We started off with a few easier rocks to see what we were capable of and we were blown away by how talented all of these kids are. Gracie was originally scared to crawl through a tight hole in the side of a boulder but after taking a step back and taking a deep breath she not only made it through once but twice! She then encouraged everyone to try it. After we had done some of the easier stuff we went on to try harder things. Truett was incredible at it and got up the hardest rock there in under 30 seconds. After our long hot day rock climbing we made the small hike down and decided to go try our the nearby lake, Jenny lake. It was definitely colder than we thought but after we learned that the lake was made from a glacier it made a lot of sense. That didn’t stop London from getting in all the way in twice! Most of us tried with her too and the cold water was lost to the back of our heads once we saw the stunning view we had from the water.
Our third day was also rock climbing but more advanced but in a different area. We arrived at Jenny lake again but this time we drove across it to get at the base of the Grand Tetons. We had a small hike up to our training section to see what all we learned from the day before and then we got split up into groups to try to real thing. These rock climbs were no joke but Edie was the first to step up to volunteer to try anything all day! It didn’t matter if she didn’t get it the first time because she was going to keep trying no matter what. We all got to try different rock faces and test out our new skills. Anna climbed one of the hardest rock climbs of the day and despite getting stuck on where to go next in the middle she decided to keep going and she made it to the very top! Libby was also one of the accomplished rock climbers of the day! She climbed up to extremely hard rocks that the guide said we might not be able to reach the top of. Libby of course reached the top of both! Once we all finished our rock climbing we hiked down and instead of taking the boat back we enjoyed the 2 mile hike back around the lake. Once we finished our hike we were hot, dusty, and sweaty! We decided to back to the water and bring our eco-friendly soap with us to shower. Caroline had us all laughing at her screams and laughs at how cold the water was but thankfully we all made it our and with clean hair. We drove back home and played some games before we made dinner. Jerry made the burgers and they were cooked to perfection! After we cleaned up and got in our warmest clothes we hopped in the van and drove to The Wedding Tree, a beautiful lookout, for sunset and Moonup. The view was truly spectacular and none of us could look away.
Day 4 started out amazing with a later wakeup time and a great breakfast of sausage, eggs, and pancakes! The weather has been perfect the entire time so far but it was a perfect sunny and windy today. We drove to our destination, Phelps Lake, and began our 6 mile hike! Vyom lead the pack most of the time and kept us at a brisk pace that had us all in awe! We got a beautiful view as we walked the border of the lake. Towards the end of our lake we got to see a Moose from about 15 feet away. We quickly and quietly moved on and a park ranger was nearby to redirect the Moose but it was so amazing to see that in person. After our hike we were all beat and almost everyone fell asleep in the car-ride back. After a few hours of chill time and games we bundled up and packed all of our cooking gear to go to a fun place to cook dinner! We set up our cooking gear on Lower Slide Lake and Henry cooked our highly requested of Mac & Cheese and hot dogs. We spent hours on the beach talking and Maeve kept us laughing with her impressions of tik tok sounds and movie conversations. We packed up and had moon up under the beautiful stars at our campground. We are excited for what the rest of the trip will bring and so happy we have such a positive and connected group! Wyoming couldn’t be a better place for us to get to know each other and connect with nature!
Shoutouts:
Hey mum and padre! I miss yall lots and have been having fun. Rock climbing was super fun and we went on a hike around a lake. I’ve enjoyed what we’ve done so far and am very excited to do everything else. They other kids are nice! Thank you so much for sending me here. I love yall so much! -London
Dear mom and dad,
I am having so much fun! The activities are so fun and like the coolest thing I’ve ever done. Wyoming is the prettiest place I have ever seen. Thank you so much for working hard so I have these opportunities! I love you guys see you in a few days! -Gracie😽😽😽😽😽😽
Hey mom and dad! I’m having the time of my life! Today we did a 6 mile hike and it was so pretty! We rock climbed real boulders and it was so much fun! Miss yall so much! I love yall! Thanks so much for providing me with this amazing opportunity! -Caroline😘
Hey mother and dad. I am having fun in Jackson hole we leave tomorrow to Idaho. I have got over my fear of heights by rock climbing. I am having fun with Caroline and Gracie. I can’t wait to see you guys at the beach with David on the boat. I miss yall! Love yall and go Heels going to Omaha. -Batten
Hi mom and dad! I miss yall so so much and Neal and Goldie. I am excited to come home but I am having a lot of fun. We climbed the grand Tetons National Park and it was really fun. Me and Maeve did the highest and hardest climbs! Our councilors are great! We are making so many memories and all the kids are great. The van rides are so fun and everyone is really funny. The food is not what I expected but it’s like really good and real food we’d make at home. I made burgers on Sunday night with this boy Jerry. Love yall so so much and I miss you more than you know. Thank yall 😘😘❤️❤️🚨 -Edie
Hi mom and dad!! Miss you guys so much, Hudson, and ruby. On Saturday we went rock climbing and practice for Sunday. Then on Sunday we climbed mountains in the grand Tetons national park. Edie and I were in a group and we climb this really hard and Insane mountain. The view was amazing. I’m making a bunch of memories with everyone and it’s really fun. The food actually isn’t that bad and yk me with camping so it’s not going too well. But I’m having fun. I miss you guys really much and can’t wait to see you but I’m having a blast. I love my counselors. Thank you for sending me here and I love you guys tons. Tell Hudson I miss him and hope ruby is feeling better. Love you lots💕 -Maeve
Hi mom, dad, and scout. I am having so much fun! So far we have gone rock climbing for two days and gone on a 7 mile hike. I have made so many great friends! The food is sooooo good!! Thank yall so much for sending me on this trip! Love all of yall! -Libby
Hi mom, dad, and Tux. I am having so much fun!! We climbed for two days on the Tetons and then went on a 7 mile hike around a lake. The food is actually pretty good and the tents are pretty comfy. See you soon! -Anna
Hi mom and dad. It’s been going good for these past few days. We’ve rock climbed the first 2 days and today we went for a 6 mile hike. The food has been good and we’ve made tacos burgers and Mac and cheese. Love yall and can’t wait to see yall in another week-Vyom
Hey mom and dad I miss yall but am having a lot of fun learning new things like rock climbing and seeing cool views while hiking. There are 2 leaders every day one girl one boy that make the dinner and cheer everyone up, I made Mac and cheese like a pro. Love you guys have fun in the heat. -Henry
Sup boys it is sick out here like crazy we rock climbed some decently big stuff it was really fun the views are crazy I got great leaders and made some really good friends I miss you guys and I am having a really good time love you guys and have a bit of fun in Italy -TRUETT
I am having fun out on Jackson hill and we are going to Idaho tomorrow. We have been rock climbing and swimming. I miss and love you guys, tell the girls I said hi. – Jerry
Safe Arrival in Jackson Hole!
June 5, 2026
Hello Big Wild Families!
We just heard from our leaders that the group has landed safely in Jackson Hole, WY! The group is headed to their first campsite, and we can’t wait to hear stories from their adventure!
Please remember our leaders and students will be unplugged during their trips, but we will be posting trip updates throughout the next week! This will allow you to follow along with the trip. You can also follow us on Instagram, @moondanceadventures, to see more of what we are up to!
-Moondance HQ
