Colorado Roots Music Camp - what to bring, what not to bring, what to know

Blankets & sheets or sleeping bag
Pillow
Towel
Or you can rent all of the above (blankets, sheets, pillow, pillowcase and towel) from the Rocky Mountain Mennonite Camp for $5.00 for the week. Let us know ASAP if you want to do that.
Clothes for 7 days (There are no laundry facilities.)
Instruments
Flashlight – you can buy a great LED headlamp at outdoor stores or even anywhere where they have a lot of flashlights, like Home Depot; they’re light, small, and very handy and hands-free.
Toiletries
Sunscreen – given the thin atmosphere here, you’ll burn very quickly!
Washcloth
Warm jacket or sweat shirt (it gets very cool in the evenings)
Medical insurance card and information
Name, address and phone of emergency contact
Comfortable walking shoes
Spending money, credit card or checkbook
Music supplies – picks, capos, tuner, strings, rosin, etc.
Insect repellent
Water bottle (this is important; just trust us and bring one)
Any medications you take, in their original containers
Hat

Things you also may want to bring

Instrument stand
Music stand
Jammies
Earplugs
Recording device like a tape, minidisc, or MP3 recorder. There are several out there: iRiver makes a good MP3 recorder, as does Olympus (for example, at http://www.amazon.com/Olympus-WS-300M-Digital-Recorder-Player/dp/B000BJ1UAE).

In January 2009, a friend told us about the Philips SA2115 recorder. It stores everything as WAV files (which normally take up a lot of disk space), but somehow has such a low sampling rate (or something) that a 45-minute recording comes in at about 10 megabytes. Thus, with its 1 gigabyte storage, you could conceivably put all your sessions for the whole camp on it without having to offload the stuff onto your PC. At Tech For Less (a local Colorado Springs place that does mostly mail order, but also has a storefront), they're getting $37 for an open box model; check out http://www.techforless.com/cgi-bin/tech4less/SA2115?id=Seq5xyuw&mv_pc=62 for more info. They're available other places as well. And yes, they sound plenty good for this purpose.
Recorder supplies: Batteries, tapes, disks, etc.
Mountain bike
Hiking boots and supplies
Laptop computer. We hesitate to mention it because it distracts from your camp experience, but there is a Wi-Fi connection at the camp. There, we said it.
Poncho and/or umbrella (Marianne says “no one uses an umbrella in Colorado.” Yeah, well, I might.)
Camera, camcorder, etc.
Camping or RV supplies. If you’re RVing, bring plenty (like 100’) of hose and extension cord.

Things to NOT Bring

Alcohol
Tobacco
Firearms
Drugs
Pets

Things you need to know

When to arrive: please check our Getting Here and Back Home page for this info.
High elevation: the Rocky Mountain Mennonite Camp is at over 9600 feet. If you’re from a significantly lower elevation, you may notice some symptoms that accompany the adjustment to a higher altitude, such as breathlessness, fatigue, and an increased need for rest and sleep. One of the best ways to aid adjustment is to drink lots of water, as in 8 cups a day. As in 2 quarts. As in half a gallon.

There’s also a prescription medication called Diamox which is used to treat glaucoma but is also prescribed for altitude sickness. Here are two websites (of many) that describe it:

o http://www.rxlist.com/drugs/drug-6753-Diamox+Oral.aspx?drugid=6753&drugname=Diamox+Oral

o http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acetazolamide

That said, most people who travel from lower elevations to ski areas in Colorado (9000’ and higher) don’t have problems.

Phone at camp: there is a phone at the camp where your family can contact you, or vice versa, for important matters; the number is 719-687-9506. If you need to talk for a long time or often, please either go to where there’s cell coverage or use your computer (see next item).
Wi-Fi connection. We'll provide all the connection info when you get here, but you should know that the Wi-Fi connection at the camp uses WPA encryption instead of the older WEP. So you should check and see if your wireless adapter supports it (for example, a Netgear WG111 doesn't, but a Netgear WG111T does). Mac users should be OK. And, of course, smug.
Cell service at the camp: There isn’t any that we can find, but there is cell coverage about a 10-minute drive away. If you’re going to need to make phone calls and are bringing a laptop, you might consider signing up for Vonage; it’s a Voice Over IP service that gives you phone service over your computer’s network connection.
Pets: No pets are allowed at the Rocky Mountain Mennonite Camp
No smoking is permitted anywhere on the Rocky Mountain Mennonite Camp. This may be your big chance to stop smoking.
No alcohol is allowed at the Rocky Mountain Mennonite Camp. Dang.
Visitors: Only campers and their (paid) companions are allowed at the camp. Please don’t put us in the position of having to ask someone to leave.
Medical care: There are no medical personnel. Again, please be sure to bring any medications you might need, preferably in their original containers.
Stores and services: Nearest groceries, gasoline, auto repair, restaurant, and ice is in Divide, about six miles away. Nearest supermarket, variety stores, drug store, bank, doctor, and dentist is in Woodland Park, about thirteen miles away.
Summer weather: Summer in the high country offers pleasant days and cool nights, with temperatures ranging from 30-40 degrees (F) in the morning to a high of 65-75 degrees (F) in the afternoons. You can expect frosty mornings, but the sun brings rapid warming. High mountains generate rain and hail storms quickly and frequently, but they usually are short in duration. Bring appropriate clothing and enjoy the weather as part of the adventure!