Last Friday, a caravan of ninth grade StC boys and faculty set off early in the morning for Camp River’s Bend in Millboro Springs, Virginia. The trip was the first in a series of planned grade-level expeditions for our Middle and Upper School students, and it was a chance for our boys to bond, learn new skills and experience the great outdoors. 

Located roughly two and a half hours west of Richmond in the Alleghany Mountains, the camp occupies more than a one-mile section of the Cowpasture River and is bordered by the George Washington National Forest. 

The freshmen participated in house activities, outdoor skill-building and class bonding exercises. Boys were also free to hike, visit the river, play basketball, or just enjoy being with friends in a beautiful mountain setting. 

“You could see all the stars at night,” said Owen Horne ‘26. “It was a great time to rest, to be calm, but still stay active in a sense,” he said. 

Upper School Science Chair Billy McGuire, who went on the trip as a chaperone, sees the trips becoming a meaningful rite of passage for different grades. “I hope these trips bring a tighter brotherhood, a better awareness of their similarities and differences, and what each one of them individually brings to the table,” he said. 

Sutton Olson ‘26 said,  “It was a great chance to get to know some of the new guys better.“It’s just a good way to connect and figure out who we are as a class. As we get older and realize that we don’t have many of these trips together left, we’ll realize the value of them more.”