It’s that point in the summer again. SURVIVOR 2021 IS HERE. For Hill Campers, and this year our Tribe West — On Camp, Survivor is a highly revered special event. This two day competition is the ultimate test of strength, stamina, outdoor living and survival skills, and teamwork.
After the evening breakout at the beachside, the teams were revealed. Each group was assigned a color and an animal native to Sri Lanka. This year, the teams are as follows: Orange Dugongs, Green Mongooses, Grey Hornbills, Yellow Asian Palm Civets, Red Faced Malhokas, Brown Toque Macaques, Black Sambars, Purple Faced Langurs, Pink Flying Snakes, and Blue Grizzled Giant Squirrels.
To kick things off at the first event, one member from each team had to unravel a rope wrapped around a log in a challenge called ‘Under, Over.’ And while this may sound simple, each coiled rope is attached to two competitors. They must crawl under and over as quickly as possible while also making sure not to collide into each other. Be careful not to tangle your rope or you’ll fall behind! UNDER, OVER, UNDER, OVER.
Once free, each team was off to find materials to build their rafts in the afternoon. While everyone sprinted through the woods, some angry blue men were on the hunt to put a dent in each teams plans. To protect themselves, campers planked to be safe! But that wasn’t all. There was also a T-Rex Dinosaur roaming around. If you see it, stay still! If the dinosaur catches you moving, there will be dire consequences for your team.
Each team was then also tasked with collecting wood for fire building on day two.
In the afternoon, each team competed in ‘Wade and Go Wet,’ a true test of stamina. In this tag-race, participants were tasked with running through the water around four posts. In order to win, you must catch up to the other team and tag them out. No swimming, only running! By the end, everyone came out of the water with super strong calves!
Simultaneously, other team member were jousting on the lake. Whoever falls in first loses. Best of three wins!
Also at the lakeside was raft building and racing. After each team thoughtfully built their rafts, they hopped into the lake to see how many laps they could complete before the time was up. Extra points if you could keep your flag dry!
And that’s the end of day one!
Bright and early the next morning, everyone got ready for a full day of Survivor activity rotations. Throughout the day, each team completed mini challenges to earn as many points as possible to put their team ahead.
Day two began with ‘Stumps.’ During this activity, one representative from each team stands on a tree stump for as long as they can. Whoever stays on the longest wins big points for their team. The judges can also offer bribes to each contestant to convince them to step off. But make sure you properly accept the bribe before calling quits; you may lose your team’s place and the offer. Don’t worry though — there are bathroom breaks.
Like ‘Stumps,’ another team member each participated in ‘Poles’ and ‘Lawgs’ where they kept their hand on a pole and stood on a giant log, respectively. All the same rules and stipulations from ‘Stumps’ apply to ‘Poles’ and ‘Lawgs.’
While this was all going on, people were running and swimming through the rigorous obstacle course. This is a true measure of agility. Campers ran, crawled, and jumped through this wet and muddy trail as quickly as possible!
Then, the wood collected on day one was put to good use in Iron Chef, a culinary test full of chopping, sautéing, and roasting. Each team had to plan and cook a two course meal to be tasted and scored by the judges. Stir fry is always a popular choice! This summer, some mixed things up with a ratatouille. Seven points to the yellow team!
Some other gnarly afternoon activities included the truck pull, tire flip, rock climbing, archery, the tube roll, and the Nitro Swing (don’t knock over the tennis ball).
After dinner, each team presented their cheer and handshake in a final effort to earn points for their team.
“We believe that everyone is a winner at IHC. But this is not IHC… this is Survivor. And there can only be one winner at Survivor.”
And now the moment you have all been waiting for. The winners of Survivor 2021 is…
The Pink Flying Snakes!
