| Rocky Mountain Way log (2003-06-18 -> 2003-07-01)
Leaders: Abby Bullock & Neil Pires
Students: Kelsay Best, Jeff Finn, Heyward Grimball, Ted Montanus, Whitney Prudden, Alexa Blank, Meg Alexander, Maggie Hund, Kristin Eckstein, Harris Diano, Tom Gilliland,Stafford Johnson
Rafting the Royal Gorge 6/19
The group all arrived safely into Denver and loaded into the van. Off they went south of Denver, cutting west over the Front Range into the Arkansas valley surrounded by the towering Collegiate peaks. The group stayed their first night at the rafting base camp on the bank of the Arkansas River. After a few lessons and a traditional meal of quesadillas, the group went to sleep ready for an early wake up.
Everyone woke early to meet their river guides. They met at the base camp and divided into their separate paddling teams. After gear distribution and group paddle talks, all boats hit the water for a day of rafting. Early season brings cold and exciting water. The river was flowing at a healthy rate which allowed everyone plenty of fun and wet rides down numerous rapids.
6/20
After the Royal Gorge was completed, the group left the Arkansas excited to return to conquer Brown's Canyon on their final day, and moved on to Southwest Colorado to prepare for their days of climbing. Today they are under the shadow of Mt. Wilson and the San Juan Range at a beautiful location working on a low elements team dynamics course. This afternoon the group will tackle the climbing tower. Tomorrow they will actually take their new skills and put them to use on an actual rock outcrop outside of Telluride. So far, everything is going great.
The Leaders Report:
Tom was the group's first Leader of the Day. Kristin has entertained everyone with her sharp wit. Harris has been able to feed his healthy appetite. During the rafting trip, Jeff and Stafford sat in the front of their respective rafts. It was a ride they'll never forget. Heyward became a real team player on the ropes course. Both Meg and Whitney have been very friendly and provided lots of support on the ropes course. The group thinks Alexa has conquered her fear of heights. Maggie and Kelsay have been checking up on folks, making sure that everyone has what they need. Ted has helped organize the dubious task of packing and unpacking group gear. They are really forming a great group.
Backpacking, San Juan National Forest, 6/22 - 6/28
Abby called to give the office an outstanding report on the Rocky Mountain Way 1. After the group dominated the climbing tower and the rock wall, they hit the backcountry for 6 days of living out of their packs. The group planned to hike up the Bear Creek trail. They followed the drainage up to tree line and then base camped in order to make a summit bid on Centennial Peak. The San Juans offer spectacular views. Snow speckled jagged peaks rise out the plush alpine forest of southwest Colorado. As the group made their way up the drainage, they pulled together and overcame many unforeseen obstacles thrown their way. Ted was an exhibition behavior role model as he offered a helping hand to many of the others when they were struggling. Maggie put her two cents in at the camp sites. She used her imagination to entertain the group with unbelievable ghost stories every night. Kelsay was great as a positive team motivator in the mornings when the trail loomed ahead. Krisitn became an excellent backcountry cook and fed the crew their best meal, Quesadillas! Meg really stepped up when the group had to evacuate a member. She really helped with the evacuation and exhibited great leader skills! Whitney was very sharing with the group. She offered her personal things including her special tea to anyone who wanted it! Alexa stepped up and learned how to fly fish. She actually became quite good. She definitely demonstrated her ability as a fast learner. Stafford's brightest moment came when he did not let a nagging injury bring down his spirits. He maintained a positive attitude through the entire ordeal and set an outstanding example for the rest of the group! Jeff was a great helper in the kitchen. Aside from being an excellent cook, he was always there to offer a hand. With his great sense of humor, Heyward managed to keep spirits bright and the group always laughing both on the trail and at camp. Harris found his new passion for hiking. He loved it and was especially excited to get above the tree line. His excitement set a positive example for the group while on the trail. Finally, Tom became an expert with his map and compass. He really developed his mountaineering skills and became quite good with it! With the entire group working together and pulling their weight, they successfully made it through their backcountry stint in the San Juans.
Rafting Brown's Canyon and Close, 6/29 - 7/1
After the backpacking, the group moved back to the Arkansas River to tackle the more challenging Brown's Canyon. Brown's is a technical stretch of water that is deep in a granite canyon. Everyone worked together to negotiate the tight rapids and laughed hysterically as they crashed through the big water. Everyone paddled so much better as a team than they did their first day on the Arkansas.
The group finally settled outside of Colorado Springs for their final nights together as a group. Together they went through so much. They celebrated Ted's 16th Birthday, learned to cook, hike, camp and have fun in the outdoors. Most importantly, the group learned to persevere. On the second to last night, the crew was pleasantly surprised by the return of Stafford. He had been in Colorado Springs and was able to rejoin the group for the last two nights!
Everyone has parted and gone their separate ways. New friends were made and new lessons were learned. Everyone seemed to have a blast. Overall, Rocky Mountain Way 1 was a huge success!
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