Summer Activities
September 2, 2022
Written by Caleb Cox and Jacob Patterson
From just chilling at home to vacationing out to Alaska, many students at our own Thunder Ridge High School and in the Highlands Ranch community have spent their time this summer in some pretty fascinating ways. Keep reading to find out what some of the people in Colorado have done with their summer break!
TRHS French Teacher, Mrs. Eggleston had fun in Colorado most of her summer renewing her license, attending a family reunion, and taking her kids to adventurous activities such as soccer practice or going to the zoo. However, her most enterprising vacation this summer was when she went on a 7-day ocean cruise in Alaska with her family. Whether it was seeing exotic animals in the water, or listening to epic piano solos, this cruise was going to make this summer one to remember. Despite the rain and fog obscuring the view and adding to the suspenseful mood on the ship, she was able to make out a few exotic animals, including a few humpback whales in the water, and brown bears on the shore. There were hundreds of glaciers that they passed by, however, one of them stood out of all the others: The Bering Glacier is the second biggest glacier in Northern America and Canada and it spans a total of 10 Kilometers from the Gulf of Alaska, to Elias National Park. Whenever there were no animals or breathtaking landmarks outside, a few activities were being held inside. Mrs. Eggleston was able to take part in trivia, karaoke, and a fantastic duel piano performance. The pianists were outlandishly skilled at their profession and were taking personal requests from the audience and singing any song with near-perfect accuracy and pitch. The trivia was also very perplexing because many of the questions were about the ship and the history of the landmarks and animals that were all around them. By the end of the cruise, Mrs. Eggleston and her family had experienced the best 7-days at sea they ever had, and they will forever remember the eventful memories they obtained there.
Class of 2025 Sophomore from Thunder Ridge, Oliver Smiley stayed at home most of his summer, playing video games, and just talking to friends. There are a few cold places that he could have gone to for a vacation, but his family decides to go to Alaska. There he saw some baffling things, including sled dogs and tremendously deep snow. These dogs could run extremely fast, even though the deep snow and terrain they had to cover, and the musher was even more skilled, with the ability to control over 5-6 dogs while keeping balance on the sled. In the more populated areas of Alaska, such as cities and towns, there wasn’t any more than around 5 inches of snow at most. However, up in the more mountainous regions, it sometimes got to more than 10 inches deep!
Maura McGettigan adventured to Texas, the Lone Star State where she was Manager shift lead working at the local car wash. Whilst in Texas, she did some relaxing activities with her friends and partner, including floating in the river, staring at the clouds, and line dancing at a country club. The rivers in Texas can get warm due to the extreme temperatures that are currently there, so it wasn’t too cold, nor hot, while Maura and her friends were floating around with neighboring ducks in a Texan river. Country clubs in Texas can get wild due to the people’s western spirit! Many dances brought them joy, from the Cowboy Cha Cha, to even the Electric Slide, dancing and singing at the country club was a magnificent experience for Maura.
Many different people had a lot of fun this summer in and outside of our home in Colorado, and they will remember the fun times they had for many years to come. However, the fun isn’t just over yet! Even though school has started and summer has ended, that doesn’t mean that fun and joy can’t be had. If we keep up our school spirit, it will encourage others to do the same, creating a happier place. Football games, clubs, and other extracurricular activities are all available to be a part of if you desire, and everyone would love it if you participated!
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