Being An Adventure-Focused Mom: Stories and Experiences That Inspire!

One of our favorite parts of Keely’s Camp is the opportunity to connect with the many rad moms in our community. The sentiment of “I wish this had existed when I was a kid” is a common one and we feel so lucky to provide meaningful experiences to the next generation of adventurous girls. Witnessing many of our longtime staff members become moms has motivated us to empower and support moms too! In 2024 we offered our first mother-daughter camp (check out this year’s Mother Daughter Hut Based Backcountry Ski Camp) and had a record number of new moms share their knowledge through coaching. We hope to continue uplifting moms in our community and wanted to start by sharing sentiments from a few moms who inspire us!

Lisa Rust is a mom to Keely’s Camp camper alumna as well as a high school teacher, former mountain guide, EMT, and current Search and Rescue team member:

“Any attempt to instill a sense of wonder and adventure in our children is a balancing act. As a mom who passionately guided people to the summits of the highest peaks around the world, including Everest, I had no desire for my kids to follow in my footsteps so I could live vicariously through them. I just wanted my two kids to believe that they could do anything during their life that they set their mind to and overcome any obstacles that they may encounter along the way.

My approach was to expose my kids to as many different activities, locations, and foods as possible, so long as they were having fun. I would take them out skiing at age 4 in the worst weather imaginable, but only until they started to whine and were clearly no longer having fun, and then take them inside for hot cocoa and a warm fire. Balance, not expectation. Gentle encouragement, never pressure. It was all about the gummy bears and hot cocoa on bad weather days. On the flip side, I would spend nearly 8 hours fishing lakeside in the rain with my son when I only thought he would last about 8 minutes, even though I had many other important things to do that day.

The first time my son unexpectedly climbed to the summit of Mt. Hood at age 7, I knew he would look back on that experience later in life and think to himself, “if I did that, then I can do anything!” I say I unexpectedly climbed Mt Hood because, at age 7, I had no intention of taking him all the way up. His dad told him that if he wanted to make it to the top, he would need to stay way ahead of mom on the way up so that I could not make him go back down with me. When I finally caught up to him, he was clearly still having fun, so up and up he went, little man, all the way to the top while tied into his dad with a rope and mom following directly on his heels to prevent him from slipping.

We took my daughter on her first via ferrata cable route high up on a cliff in Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland when she was 11. Thunder and lightning unexpectedly came in. We even experienced a shock while on the route. She was scared, but we taught her how to stay calm, consider options, predict outcomes, and make it through a challenging situation. We finished the route safely. She learned life lessons, and came back the following year to complete the route in beautiful weather. She even brought her best friend along.

Expose your children to as many activities as you can, teach them to challenge themself, overcome obstacles, and stop when it is no longer fun. This has always been our family’s approach to adventure and fostering awe and wonder in our children.”

Lindsay Mann is the Keely’s Camp Operations Manager, Mountain Guide, and Ski Racing Coach: 

“As of December 2024 I’ve been a mom for two years and four months. I am still in the early years of motherhood, and each day I realize how I am influenced by my courageous mother (who currently lives on a sailboat 5 months out of the year), my bold sister (whose adventure accolades are too long to list here), and my spirited friends (current moms, future moms, and overall amazing women).

If asked to write this blog a year, five years, or ten years from now I would likely have a different response. However, for today, this what it currently means to me to be a mother with a goal of raising a daughter with an adventurous spirit.

Most of the time everyday feels like an adventure. Some days the risk taking comes with letting my daughter help me in the kitchen, watching her go headfirst down the slide or climb higher at the park than I may be comfortable with. To me, trying to raise a bold child means creating an environment where she is willing and excited to try new things. We have gone on trips, camped, walked on skis, and been on boats- yet a proud mother happened this summer on a rainy day at home.

My daughter and I had just gotten back from some travels, I was tired, my husband wasn’t home from work yet and it was raining outside. Before I knew it my daughter had gotten her boots on by herself, grabbed her raincoat, and was opening the front door. She just wanted to go outside and stomp the puddles.

A smile came to my face watching her dancing in the puddles, “flying” through the rain, and being willing to just go outside and make anything an adventure in any kind of weather. We were outside for almost two hours finding all the best puddles and laughing when the water went into our boots.

It reminded me that I can work hard to travel and go on big adventures but sometimes the moments where they most embody this adventurous spirit are right out your front door.”

Jess Kelley is a veteran Keely’s Camp Coach, former US Ski Team member, and Ski Racing Coach: 

“Once I had children it became apparent that life as I knew it was never going to be the same again, and in a good way of course. But both my husband and I were always used to being on the go, whether that was exercising or going on trips, we didn’t like sitting still. Once kids came into the picture, home life became much more the norm. When we were younger, we had plans of taking a trip to hike around Mt. Blanc on the TMB (tour de mont blanc) trail, but were never able to find time to make it happen before kids came along. When our first child, Blake was a baby we decided to plan the trip and take him with us, carrying him in a backpack, right before his first birthday. We had no idea how it would go, he was a happy and easy baby who liked spending time in the backpack, so we planned the trip and went for it.

We spend seven nights and eight days trekking 110 miles through Italy, Switzerland and France and at the end of it the one that “complained” the least was 11 month-old, Blake. He was either happy or sleeping most of the days and all night. We carried everything ourselves, my husband had Blake and some snacks and other baby stuff and I had all of our gear. We packed VERY light and stayed each night in mountain or town “huts” along the way. It was such an incredible experience and was something we will never forget. It also made us realize that it’s important to incorporate our kids into life in the best way possible by taking them on our adventures so they can experience them in their own ways.

We try to lead by example, but at the same time we let the kids be their own guides for what they want to experience so they can learn what they enjoy versus feeling forced into it. We plan to do the TMB hike again when both of our kids are old enough to do it themselves and we continue to take them on hikes, bike rides, camping trips, and skiing as much as possible. It’s rarely easy, but it’s almost always worth it and we hope that we are setting them up to love the adventure and outdoor lifestyle as much as we do!”

A HUGE thank you to all of the great moms in our community, you are amazing, and we can’t wait to continue connecting with you in 2025 at Keely’s Camp!