| Colorado Trail log (2004-07-14 -> 2004-08-03)
Leaders: Sarah Brooks Smith and Richard "Janis" Henry
Students: William Bridges, Drew Brophy, Bobby Corroon, Andrew Fortin, Teddy Gates, Knight Hammock, Parker Israel, Beckett Lilien, Charlie McElveen
The trail has never seen it so good! This adventure is on it's way as we begin with an amazing rafting adventure on the Arkansas Rive. We will have more soon!
The Colorado Trail trip just finished an awesome backpacking section in Gunnison National Forest. The weather tries to discourage us, but we prevailed, and enjoyed a twenty-five mile journey throughout the beautiful Colorado Mountains. We warmed up on the first day with a decent 5 mile hike to get our first taste of the backcountry. After dining on some delicious quesadillas, the group retired to their tents to shield from the rain. We woke up and gained some serious elevation on the second day where the group camped in a high alpine meadow at 10,600 ft. This spot was an ideal position for us to attempt a summit bid up Fairview peak. We all decided that a sunrise hike would be incredible, and it lived up to expectations. We broke camp at about 2 a.m. and were up on an awesome viewpoint to see the sunrise at about 6 a.m. We then did the last little push up Fairview, and then headed back down to camp to stuff our faces and pass out. The group then moved to an incredible alpine lake up around 11,600ft! Some of the boys took a dip in the frigid water and enjoyed the first rain-free day. We are back in the front country and headed for an awesome sea-kayaking adventure.
The colorado trail trip just finished a two day kayak adventure. The first day, each kid hopped in their own personal kayak and jetted off to the explore the beautiful Blue Mesa Resivior. We had a quick lunch break on a rocky beach and than preceded to paddle onward towards our campsite for the night. When we arrived at our home for the night the kids instantly enjoyed a dip in the scenic swimming hole. The next morning the kids were much more familiar with the boats and made record time back to the van. Overall it was an amazing adventure and the kids say it is there favorite so far!!
7/24/04
Hayes just spent Saturday with the group and said they were all doing great as they began their rockclimbing section. Sarah Brooks and Richard said they have had a tough time getting updates due to lack of internet access, but they promise an update soon. The group climbed all day Sunday as well. Lots of smiles and some incredible climbing by everyone. They'll check back in soon.
The CT just finished rock climbing in Lake City, CO. The weather finally gave us a breather as the sun was well received nearly all day. We started off with some great warm-up routes on the first day. Knight found his niche for climbing and made sure he did every route set up. Andrew and Beckett (team Charlotte) also used their time to show off their extreme tandem skills on the mountain. The guides set up tougher, more challenging routes that were a major mental and physical challenge to get up. Drew showed extreme determination as he was continued to battle and push up the toughest of routes. Parker continued to provide the group with comic relief with his comments as he climbed and belayed. Willie and Bobby climbed as well, but saved up their energy for the ensuing game of stickball where they challenged the Chi-towners, Charlie and Teddy in an intense battle on the field. The group is feeling great and enjoying the beautiful town of Telluride as they soak up some civilization before heading back into the San
Juans for their last backpacking extravaganza, where we will be out on Aug. 1.
NEW LOG
The Colorado Trail dynasty just finished a nice relaxing backpacking section in the San Juan Mountains just south of Telluride. Knowing that we had already conquered extreme mileage and a huge peak ascent, we set a more leisurely pace and the students took charge. On day 1, Bobby and Drew led us to a nice little campsite right on the river where we enjoyed a good round of quesadillas cooked especially by the grill master, Parker. On day 2, the students once again led the way as Knight and Andrew scouted ahead after lunch for a great site. They stumbled upon a huge meadow for the whole group to relax at for camp. This meadow proved to be an awesome baseball field as well, and seeing as we had lots of time to kill, William and Teddy got a game going immediately. We moved camp on the third day and began hiking back down where we found an even better meadow than before, once again with a prime baseball field. After a few hundred games, we came in and dined on our favorite dish of shells and cheese, where Charlie scared the entire group with his enormous eating power, as there are rumors of a hollow leg. After that Beckett showed off his skills of eating anything that was left over, including powdered milk washed down with a little onion soup. The group is doing well and headed to do one more rafting trip down the Arkansas River.
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