Excelsior Ranch

08/15/2026

08/15/2026

On day 5, we ask the girls an important question- “what kind of person do you want to be?” They spend time journaling about it and defining their values.

Here is why this is so powerful: when we define our values and the person we want to be, we are more likely to act in ways that fit with that image. When we do things that are not in alignment with what we said, we feel discomfort (cognitive dissonance).

We wrapped up the week with Samantha Bleyaert from Sam B's Farrier Service who showed the girls how to trim a horse’s hoof, and helped them define what is most important to them.

After a great week at camp, we just want to say thank you to all of the parents, the volunteers, workers, and everyone who made camp so special this summer!

08/14/2026

For me, one of the most difficult parts of camp is choosing pictures because I love them all!

Today is the favorite day of camp by most campers. They learn how to establish leadership with the horse using only their non-verbal cues. They move the horse around from 30 foot away and change its speed, direction, and bring it to a complete stop.

Horses do not automatically do this by the way! Sometimes the girls struggle with this activity and it takes a while for the horse to accept them as their leader, but we patiently keep working at it until they succeed!

I’m so proud of these girls and everything they have done this week!

08/14/2026

For me, one of the most difficult parts of camp is choosing pictures because I love them all!

Today is the favorite day of camp by most campers. They learn how to establish leadership with the horse using only their non-verbal cues. They move the horse around from 30 foot away and change its speed, direction, and bring it to a complete stop.

Horses do not automatically do this by the way! Sometimes the girls struggle with this activity and it takes a while for the horse to accept them as their leader, but we patiently keep working at it until they succeed!

I’m so proud of these girls and everything they have done this week!

08/13/2026

Junior high takes courage and self-control! Horses can teach us how to build those character qualities if we let them. Today the girls put a little bit of speed on the horses and learned to lunge a horse. We talked about the courage it takes to set boundaries with horses, and how setting boundaries is a way we can respect ourselves and protect our relationships. These beautiful girls did an incredible job and we are so grateful to the parents who allow us to invest in them all week!

08/13/2026

Junior high takes courage and self-control! Horses can teach us how to build those character qualities if we let them. Today the girls put a little bit of speed on the horses and learned to lunge a horse. We talked about the courage it takes to set boundaries with horses, and how setting boundaries is a way we can respect ourselves and protect our relationships. These beautiful girls did an incredible job and we are so grateful to the parents who allow us to invest in them all week!

08/12/2026

From learning to pick up hooves, how to get a horse out of reactive mode and into thinking mode, all the way to being calm and confident on the inside, day 2 was incredible! So thankful for this amazing group of girls!

08/12/2026

What started off as a derecho in the morning cleared up to sunny and gorgeous! Day 2 was all about being calm and confident and these girls had a blast!

08/11/2026

Day 1 is all about respect! We have an incredible group of girls at our final summer camp of 2026!

08/11/2026

Day 1 of our final summer camp this summer! Such a fun group of incredible girls!