And the 11th annual MiniOcktoberfest is a wrap!

From the moment everyone met at the parking lot on a bright and colorful Saturday morning to the moment everyone returned soaked and not-yet-caffeinated, everyone was in high spirits and the energy was just contagiously positive.

But after 8 straight weekends with rain playing warden, everyone was just happy to be out for a few hours in the sun.

Our campers backpacked a couple of hours up to Bald Rocks in Harriman State park and set up their campsite in anticipation to a chill evening and a full moon extravaganza!

The rain started coming down and 6am Sunday and just did not stop. And a usually easy going Sunday morning turned into a soggy rush to pack up and leave our campsite during breaks in the rain.

And yet, despite skipping breakfast, despite packing up in the rain and despite backpacking down in the rain, every camper waited and supported each other with the same positive vibes they had the previous day when they were all meeting. No camper was left behind.

Just like in prior MiniOcktoberfests, this year’s camping trip also felt like a mini-United Nations, hosting campers from Latin American countries, Italy, Serbia, Guayana, Korea and Japan. Everyone tried to learn new words in other languages. Everyone felt welcome.

It was another incredible reminder of how important it is to be outdoors (especially surrounded by all those colors), to create spaces where everyone feels welcome (even when guests surprise trip hosts with plus ones that weren’t on the final guest list) and how when you combine the first two, everything works out and everyone had an amazing time.

Want to see the trail we backpacked? Subscribe here to our very outdoorsy newsletter and you’ll get access to the Outerthere Alltrails map for this trip!

And check out more camping trips here.