| Pacific Northwest Exposure Log (2007-07-14 --> 2007-08-03)
Leaders: Genna Suggs, Willy Sebring
Students: Will Borden, Albert Ford, Ali Fox, Elmo McGough, Libba Moore, Reid Palmer, Corey Robertson, Sam Ross, Rachel Rowlands, Robert Spilman
July 14
Are you ready to Moondance?!
Greetings, friends of PNW4! We are so glad you have come to check in on our travels. Let me start off by saying we have a fantastic group of excited, motivated people from all over the country, and Willy and I knew from the second we met these guys that we were going to have a stellar group! For example, when our last Moondancer, Robert, arrived, the entire group ran to give him a hug! Things definitely started clicking for us immediately!
We are currently in Anacortes, WA in route to Rasar State Park as we have just completed an amazing sea kayaking section.
Before we began our kayaking expedition, our sea kayaking guides suggested that we go clam digging as we waited for the tide to rise a bit. If you've never dug for clams before, the process is truly exciting! We found the holes where the clams had dug themselves into the sand, and then we tactfully searched for these clams by loosening up the soil around them. Alli and Reid found the biggest clam, and Blair (our guide) said the meat inside was enough to feed almost 4 people! The entire group helped find more clams, and soon enough, we had enough to save for dinner that night!
We then started our time on the water with our wonderful guides from Outdoor Adventures; Blair, Kathy and Bucky; by learning different paddle strokes and techniques. After conquering the basics of high braces, low braces and forward and backward sweeps, we knew we were ready for more technical kayaking moves, so we progressed to the task of "wet exits." A wet exit occurs when the kayak is rolled upside down and one must escape from their cockpit underwater! Libba, Reid and Robert were the first ones to step up to the challenge, and they performed their wet exits like pros! The water was pretty chilly, but we all mastered the wet exit, and we set off to explore the wildlife on Frost Island. When we arrived, we found several starfish and crags. The starfish were quite large and of a beautiful golden hue. As we passed around these fantastic creatures, a seal came to see what we were up to! It was pretty exciting to see so much of the San Juan Islands's wildlife at once!
When we got back to camp, our fabulous cook crew of Alli, Will and Reid helped prepare a delicious meal of clam linguine which we thoroughly enjoyed! Once our bellies were full, we had a Moonup discussion about who our most inspiration person in our life is, and then we went to bed with the excitement of another day on the water on our minds.
We woke up to a gorgeous day after our slumber underneath the stars. Robert, Albert and Rachel helped prepare a yummy breakfast of breakfast burritos. We just couldn't get enough of the good food our kayaking guides provided us! After our food settled, we got our gear together and embarked on an 8 mile paddle to Watmough Bay. Will, Sam and Alli's kayak kept themselves entertained by singing several showtunes. My boat consisted of Corey, Rachel and me, and we played several games on the way to Watmough. Albert and Willy also played some games in their kayak. Robert, Libba and Reid were definitely the fastest team. And our fearless Leader of the Day ( L.O.D.), Elmo, took on the challenge of paddling a single kayak. When we arrived at Watmough Bay, we discovered an oasis-like beach with beautiful, clear water. Bucky, one of our guides, encouraged us to all get in the water, so we lined up in a huge line parallel to the beach, and on the count of 3, we ran as fast as we could into the water! It was such a rush, and it felt great to cool off after some fierce paddling. It was so much fun, in fact, that we did it 3 times...some of the boys did it even more! We then enjoyed some sunning and some lunching on the beach, and we basked in the knowledge that we were surrounded by the Pacific Northwest's beauty.
When we finished our time at Watmough, we paddled to our unloading point and loaded into the van. As we drove back to our Spencer Spit State Park campsite, we stopped along the way to pick blackberries on the side of the road. We saved these for an after dinner sweet treat, which we enjoyed with some cheesecake and Oreo pudding. It was heavenly! We then sat around a fire which our Outdoor Adventure guides prepared for us, and we warmed up before heading to another great Moonup and ultimately to bed.
We woke up to a rainy start, but we knew we were in for a great day because we had the most delicious apple and banana pancakes for breakfast! Elmo was a master at flipping the pancakes and cooking the sausage. I must admit, I was impressed! Corey, Sam and Libba rounded out that morning's cook crew, and they did an excellent job. After our food settled, we drove to Agate Beach where we unloaded our kayaks and started our paddle. We saw so many seals and bald eagles! We explored the shoreline of Lopez Island as we skirted the land in our kayaks. Blair took us to a sea cave that was almost 100 feet deep into the side of the island! Willy, Rachel and I were the first ones into the cave, and it was quite a sight watching our friends swim through the chilly water, climb over the rocks and explore the cave with us. After checking out the cave, we paddled back to our load-in point, and we took some pictures with the beautiful San Juan Islands as our backdrop. The sun came out, illuminating the fog that surrounded the islands, and it was such a picturesque view!
That night, we enjoyed a cookout with hot dogs and hamburgers with our guides. Bucky also gave us something to remember our time sea kayaking: a necklace made from pea cord. These necklaces had fisherman's knots on them to symbolize the strong bond that we have already created, and I know we'll keep these with us for a long time! It was truly a special 3 days that we shared with Outdoor Adventures on the water, and we are sad to leave them.
However, we are completely pumped and ready to go backpacking tomorrow! We will hit the Ross Lake Trail in the morning, and you'll have to check back with us to see how amazing our journey was. This group is full of great leaders and motivators, and we all can't wait to spend some time with just our team in the backcountry.
Thanks for checking in, and we'll talk to you soon!
Genna and Willy
Update #2: July 25
Howdy from Concrete, WA! We have just returned from 7 wonderful days in the North Cascades National Park, and our tummies are full after enjoying some amazing organic ice cream from a little place just down the road from Rasar State Park, where we are staying tonight. There is so much to fill you in on when it comes to our Pacific Northwest backpacking journey, so I'll get right to it!
The excitement began before we got on the trail. Rachel spotted a black bear on land from our water taxi. Bear sightings are rare and exciting, so we knew we were in for a great trip after Rachel's keen eye! Alli and Rob started off as LODs on our first day on the trail. Alli is such a fantastic cheerleader, always boosting everyone's spirits when the trail seems long and uphill. Rob set a great pace for our first day on the trail, and we ended up at our Hozameen Lake campsite in no time! The boys really led the pack on the trail, but Libba also held her own at the front of the group. She is definitely in tip top shape! Our Hozameen Lake campsite was quite simply majestic. Rocky, craggy mountains surrounded Hozameen Lake, and we couldn't get enough of the views! Everyone said the scenery reminded them of something out of a Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings movie. Elmo, Albert and Sam really enjoyed playing "Home Run Derby" games by the lake...they used sticks as bats and rocks as balls! I took plenty of pictures of the boys as the sun reflected off the lake and provided perfect photo opportunities! We made a great dinner of cous cous and sausage that night, and afterwards, we had a great time talking to each other from our tents and listening to our laughter echoing through the North Cascades...
The next morning, we woke up and headed to Nightmare Camp...Reid, as we have come to find out, has a gift for singing upbeat songs on the trail, so he kept us going the whole day. Sam and Will were our LODs, and they did a great job setting the pace and getting us there safely and in good time. We arrived a little early, so we chatted about our lives and families back home. We also headed to a great little wooden manmade bridge right by our campsite, and I took some more great shots of the gang. As the night died down, we played several (at least 11) rounds of "Mafia"...you'll have to get the kids to explain to you how to play this game. But let's just say that Corey and Rachel have the best poker faces I've ever seen! That night at Moonup, we congratulated each other on another unforgettable day on the trail, and we headed to bed.
When we woke up the next morning, Corey and Albert got us going as LODs. The sun poked its head out while we hiked to Lightning Creek camp, and as soon as we arrived, we set up our tents and went for a dip in the water. Will was definitely the biggest fan of the water. He must have swam around for over 30 minutes! We got some great pictures of us jumping off the dock, and we also took some pictures with the Nokameen Glacier behind us...we're hoping for some spots in the new Moondance catalog! Corey and Albert conducted an excellent Moonup as we discussed our biggest fears, and that Moonup got us geared up for our next day: the summit bid of Desolation Peak!
Willy and I awoke the next morning to pounding rain, and I must admit we were afraid the conditions were not favorable for summitting Desolation Peak: a 6,102 ft. mountain. But as the rain died down from a downpour to a sprinkle, we gathered up our gear that we would need for the day, and we hit the trail. Reid and Rachel were absolutely phenomenal LODs that day...always pushing us to keep going even when we were tired or sore. After about 5 hours and 30 minutes, the whole gang made it to the top of Desolation Peak! There we saw the fire watch/cabin where great American author Jack Kerouac spent two summers writing. Albert was particularly interested in this information as he is a fan of Beat Generation literature! We enjoyed some pictures and some granola bars at the summit, but we headed down after a short amount of time because of the wind and chilly temperature! When we got back to our Lightning Creek base camp, we jumped back in the water to celebrate our success at the summit! We also treated ourselves to a huge Ramen and chicken fiesta, and we discussed how much our Moondance adventure had impacted us up until that point in our trip. As we went to bed that night, Elmo, Albert and Will treated us to some freestyle rapping from their tents, and we laughed until our stomachs hurt!
The next morning, we knew we deserved a break, so we slept in a bit. The girls and I were the first ones awake, and we sat on a log overlooking Ross Lake and talked to one another before the rest of the gang awoke. From our Lightning Creek campsite, we set forth to Devil's Camp...the hike seemed like a breeze after the 13.6 mile day on Desolation Peak (half of that was straight uphill!)...Alli and Robert were yet again great LODs who I have come to name "The Dream Team." We got to camp relatively early, and Willy treated us to some awesome chicken, cheese and sausage quesadillas. It was raining the whole time we were cooking, but the gang did a great job of keeping everyone's spirits up and looking on the "bright side" of things...a talent which each Moondancer on this trip possesses, and I have truly been impressed and impacted by their positive spirits! That night, we discussed how much we have grown as a group. We all agreed that we must stay in touch after our adventures are over!
Yesterday, we arrived at our final campsite on the trail: Rainbow Point. Will and Libba were LODs, and they helped our group get through a 3.7 mile hike in no time! When we arrived, we set our tents up quickly so that we could enjoy some pier jumping and swimming in Ross Lake. Sam and Will had a good time pushing each other in the water...Willy also enjoyed pushing me in the water! Ah, a truly supportive co-leader! After swimming, all the boys played cards, and the girls enjoyed getting some sunshine on the dock. We cooked a great meal of penne pasta, and we held our Moonup session on the pier. Rachel shared with us the plotline to the novel she's working on. All of us were so impressed with her creativity! We also chatted about how there was nowhere else in the world we'd rather be than together in the Pacific Northwest with the moon over our heads and the mountains surrounding us!
We awoke this morning with three deer surrounding our circle of sleeping bags, as we slept outside last night. It was unbelievable how close they came to us! But our time in the woods had to come to an end, so the water taxi picked us up and when we got to the van, we pumped some classic Disney jams like "Under the Sea" and "Just Can't Wait to Be King." After loading our tired bodies in the van, we headed to get some organic ice cream from Cascadian Farm...though most everyone had more than just ice cream (milkshakes, bagels, muffins, etc.) It was the least we could do to reward ourselves for a happy, safe and unforgettable time on the trail.
This group of Moondancers is so very special to Willy and me. We weathered a lot of rain on the trail, but never once did any student complain about the conditions. This group is so positive, and parents, I can't thank you enough for letting me spend time with these guys. But thankfully, we're only halfway done with our journey! We are headed to Mecca Flat, Oregon for some rafting on the Upper Deschutes River, and then we round out the trip with 3 days of climbing at Smith Rock. Monkey's Face, here we come! Thanks for reading, and keep checking in!
July 29th Update
Good afternoon from Smith Rock, Oregon! Though we've been out of the backcountry for only a few days, so many exciting things have happened for our team! First of all, the group was treated to a fast food stop after our backpacking section. The kids were so happy to eat some good burgers and milkshakes, as you can imagine! We got to our campsite shortly after our fast food fiesta, and Reid, Sam, Robert, Elmo and Libba decided to go for an evening stroll (or climb, rather) up the mountain at our Mecca Flat campsite. They were pretty adventurous and reached close to the top of the mountain when we had to call them back down for dinner! That night, we were covered by the light of an almost full moon (a special experience for us MOONdancers!) and showered by several shooting stars at which we gasped and smiled. As the stars sprinkled over us, we discussed the Moonup question "What was the greatest gift you've ever received." I think almost everyone agreed that the love and support from our families and friends were the greatest gifts we could ever ask for. We then drifted off to sleep as Will bid us (and I mean every single ONE of us!) goodnight...a nightly tradition he started in the backcountry!
We awoke the next morning with the excitement of our rafting trip fresh on our minds. We packed our things up at Mecca Flat, and we headed to Maupin, OR to tackle the Lower Deschutes River. We were also so pumped for Rachel because it was her first time ever rafting! And of course, she handled both days on the river like a pro. My boat consisted of Libba, Reid, Elmo, Albert and Corey. Willy's boat was composed of Alli, Robert, Rachel, Will and Sam. My boat enjoyed paddling to the rhythm of songs like Old Crow Medicine Show's "Wagon Wheel" and Journey's "Wheel in the Sky." Willy's boat actually spent more time in the water than in the raft! They seemed to enjoy swimming through the rapids at times more than riding them on the rafting which was a sight for my boat as we were behind them. We spent about 3 hours on the river that afternoon, and we covered about 12 miles. Our favorite and most exciting rapid that day was called Train Wreck Rapid, and our campsite was shortly after Rattlesnake Canyon. We really loved our campsite because we were able to sleep on the soft, sandy beach and listen to the soothing sounds of the Deschutes as it lulled us to sleep. We went to bed knowing we'd have to cover a lot of ground (or water, if you will) the next day.
Will awoke the crew the next morning with the announcement that some sheep were grazing on the mountain across from our little camp site. Sure enough, we peeked out of our warm sleeping bags, and we saw some big horn sheep herding together on the incline. Once we pulled ourselves out of our sleeping bags, we were treated to a fantastic French toast and sausage breakfast by our cook crew of Corey, Elmo, Libba and Sam. Again, Elmo ruled at making the sausages just right! We were so pleased to have such a great meal, and we thanked our rafting guides for supplying us with such a treat. We then got back on our rafts and embarked on a 33 mile day on the river! After a few miles, we came across a spot called Nooky Rock- a 12 foot high rock perfect for jumping of off and into the cool Deschutes! We pulled our rafts ashore, climbed up the rock, and enjoyed jumping into the refreshing water. Rachel, Albert, Elmo and Sam must have jumped at least 4 times! We ended our time at Nooky Rock and kept floating down the Deschutes. Again, Willy's boat spent half the time in the water as they swam through some crazy rapids. I was so impressed with all of their tenacity but especially the super trooper females, Alli and Rachel!
Not only did we get to spend some time paddling and cliff jumping that day, but we enjoyed playing games like Rodeo and Trust. In Rodeo, one person stands on the front of the rapid, holds onto the bow line, and tries not to get "bucked" off as the paddlers spin the boat. No one on my boat lasted very long, and I must admit I was the worst! We also played a few rounds of Trust where you stand on the edge of the raft and link our paddle up with the "T grip" of your partner. You then lean back while holding onto the paddle while "trusting" that your partner won't let you go or lean forward! Of course, the objects of these games are to stay on board, but we loved falling into the river and cooling off.
We continued to roll down the river, and we approached our take out point close to 7 that evening. That meant we had spent over 9 hours on the river! With sun-kissed faces and sore arms, we thanked our rafting guides and headed to Smith Rock. I also calculated our mileage from sea kayaking, hiking and rafting, and I discovered we've covered over 100 miles on land or river by our own strength! Quite an impressive number for just 15 days into our trip!
When we arrived at Smith Rock, our LODS (Libba and Rob) conducted a great Moonup as they asked each one of us what our life's theme song is. I really loved the creative nature of this question (by the way, the group has come up with so many incredible Moonup topics...I don't know where they get these great ideas from!), and each answer was so thoughtful and based on inspiring reasons. If you are interested to know, here are our theme songs that keep us going and define who we are and how we'd like to live our lives!
Libba: "Love Today" by Mika
Elmo: "Everybody Hurts" by R.E.M.
Albert: "Hurricane" by Bob Dylan
Robert: "Don't Think Twice" by Bob Dylan
Corey: "Dixieland Delight" by Alabama
Will: "Live Like You Were Dyin'" by Tim McGraw
Reid: "Life is a Highway" by Tom Cochrane
Rachel: "Don't Stop Believing" by Journey
Alli: "Feels Like Rain" by Josh Schiker
Sam: "Better Together" by Jack Johnson
Willy: "Hakuna Matata" from the Lion King
Me: "Ain't Wastin' Time No More" by the Allman Brothers
We hope that you'll keep checking back with us as we are about to round out our trip with 3 amazing days at Smith Rock. The weather is hot and our excitement regarding the task of defeating the Monkey's Face is even hotter! Get ready to be amazing by our accomplishments and good looks! As Reid would say, "hold the phone" and stay tuned for our next update...because as Robert would say, the rest of our trip is bound to be "money." Thanks and "respect!", as Albert would say. We'll talk to you soon!
Genna
August 1
Howdy friends! Well, if you are keeping score, the final of the Moondancers v. Monkey's Face match is as follows: Moondance- 12, Monkey Face- 0! We just completed the killer 170 ft. high, 35 ft. across Monkey Face Tyrolean Traverse just a couple hours ago, and we are on cloud 9! But first, let me fill you in on the details of how awesome our previous 2 days at Smith Rock have been!
We started our first day of rock climbing with a bang. We met our guides from First Ascent, Nina and Nathan, and they gave us the basics on how to belay, tie knots and use correct climbing commands. Once we had a good grasp on the "How To's" of climbing, we attacked the rock with full force! The guides set four different routes for us to try out, and many of us succeeded in all of them! Reid, Albert and Elmo got up the toughest climb that our guides had set that first day. Alli and Corey overcame one climb that gave them a little trouble in the beginning. But the girls stuck with it, pushed through, and those of us watching the action were so excited when they reached the top! Rachel and Will were great LODs, and they did an amazing job cheering on every climber. Sam was such a helpful belayer; whenever anyone needed a hand, he was always there to help out. And of course, we were not only impressed with Libba's fearless climbing abilities, but her hilarious grunts kept us entertained as well! After a long day of climbing (over 5 hours worth!), we enjoyed some great fruit and sandwiches for lunch, and we headed to Steelhead Falls.
When we arrived, we were so hot from the Oregon sun that we had to jump into the water immediately! We found some sweet rocks that were about 15 to 20 feet above the river, and though the water was chilly, it felt fabulous to jump in and feel the coldness on our sore bodies! We enjoyed a few good jumps, and when we were just about worn out, we headed back to camp. We enjoyed a great dinner of cous cous and sausage, and we got ready for bed. We couldn't wait to wake up to another day of climbing at Smith Rock!
We woke up fairly early the next morning. Reid and Corey were our LODs, and they did a fantastic job of getting everyone up so that we didn't miss out on a second of more climbing! We hiked from our campsite area to Spiderman Buttress, a section of Smith Rock State Park. The First Ascent guides set 4 more really neat routes for us to try out. Without hesitation, Reid climbed all of them within about an hour! In fact, Reid somehow managed to do 18 different climbs (9 each day) during our first 2 days of rock climbing! He is a naturally gifted climber, for sure. Reid, Albert, Elmo, Robert and Libba all succeeded in climbing the hardest route that day called "In Harm's Way." It was amazing to watch them scale the walls like old pros! The guides also set up a repelling station for us to practice lowering ourselves from a climb. Corey, Rachel, Sam, Alli and Will really rocked at repelling, and we rewarded our fantastic efforts with some Huckleberry ice cream from a neat little climbing shop down the road from our campsite. We also made a great ramen and teriyaki chicken feast for dinner, and we literally passed out after our Moonup discussion. The climbing and the sunshine really wore us out!
This morning was quite possibly the most exciting day we've had since we met each other 19 days ago. We woke up early, and we hiked the Misery Ridge trail to reach the top of the Monkey Face. The Monkey Face is hard to describe, so you might want to "Google" it to get the full picture of what I'm talking about. But here is an idea of what we accomplished: we pulled ourselves across a 35 ft. tyrolean traverse which was situated 170 feet above the ground! Once we pulled ourselves across, we sat in the "mouth" of the Monkey Face until it was time to climb up to the repelling station. The climb is about 15 to 20 feet. So that meant that we had to repel down about 190 feet! The views were absolutely gorgeous, and everyone succeeded in the task. It was such a wonderful feeling to know we had all completed it, and we were all there to cheer each other on. Please ask your kids to describe this day for you because I guarantee each one of them will speak of this morning with a HUGE smile on their face. We took PLENTY of pictures, so you'll have to check them out when you get our photo CD! The Monkey Face is no easy task, but each Moondancer really impressed Willy and me with their tenacity and composure. It seems these guys have grown so much not only as individuals but also as a team in these 3 weeks, and I think they displayed this theory today!
Now we are in Bend, OR enjoying ourselves until it's time for Iron Chef tonight. Willy and I will split the group up into 2 teams, and they will be given all of our leftover food. With their wit and creativity, they are competing against each other to see who can make the tastiest meal with the food we have left! It should be a hilarious time, so check back in with us to see the results of this massive competition! We thank you for taking the time to see what we are up to...we are definitely going to make the most out of the last 48 hours we have together!
Genna
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