Fear is a natural feeling for many kids before tackling the ropes courses at Blue Mountain Resort.

The fright quickly turned to joy, however, as the participants of Camp Via made their second ever trip to the Carbon County venue as part of an annual summer camp.

“A lot of our kids go into the day saying I can’t do this,” Alivia Sinko, program director, said. “But when you get them up there and see them do it, that moment gives you chills. It’s such a big boost for their self-confidence.”

Camp Via is for teens and young adults ages 12-21 with varying abilities. The program, which serves Northampton, Lehigh and Monroe counties, provides instruction on a variety of skills to help participants achieve their personal goals.

When the program heads to Blue Mountain, Sinko said, the goal is to get every participant up the stairs leading to the ropes course.

“Even if they don’t want to do it, we want them to be able to say they tried,” Sinko said.

One participant Friday doesn’t like to wear sneakers due to sensory issues. Because of safety reasons, however, she was required to wear sneakers to navigate the ropes course.

“I wasn’t sure how things were going to go, but she ended up loving it and doing the course multiple times,” Sinko said. “She did the zip line multiple times as well and she just had an absolutely wonderful day. It kind of sums up what this program is all about.”

Via’s staff works with teens and their families to develop each individual’s vocational and educational goals. Part of that includes recreational activities to develop socialization among peers.

“The Blue Mountain trip is a part of that, but we have also gone to places like Sky Zone and several museums in the Lehigh Valley,” Sinko said. “We did a day on the Jim Thorpe train and that was a lot of fun for everyone. Sometimes we will go to a park or a zoo.”

Outside of recreation, the program helps participants with occupation awareness through career exploration and interview skills, and life skills to prepare for a transition from school to adulthood.

“The underlying background no matter what we are doing is building those independent skills,” Sinko said. “Days like we had at Blue Mountain are great for getting them to push their limits and realize what they can achieve, even if they don’t think they can at first.”