Fireworks in Tahoe!
July 5, 2023
Greetings from the Salmon River!
Today the group hit the river with a head full of steam and paddled 20 miles in half of a day, how impressive! We experienced multiple class 2 and 3 rapids that were loads of fun, as well as plenty of chill time on flat water stretches. Josh, Kyle, Theo, and Elizabeth were enthusiastic about jumping and swimming in the river, it was so fun to watch all the backflips! After a long day on the rapids, the group set up camp on a remote beach on the salmon river. Sawyer, Alex, and Sebastian took charge of getting a spikeball tournament going, it was loads of fun! After dinner, Olin took the boys on a short hike up the canyon ridge where Alex, Sebastian, Josh, and Kyle made it to the top, they loved the view!
The next day was our first full day of rafting on the salmon river! On this day, the kids got to experience many class 3 rapids as well as a class 4 rapid, it was so awesome to watch how well they handled so many difficult rapids as a team! The enthusiasm to swim today was even higher than the previous day, at almost every chance there was to swim the group took advantage of it. towards the end of the day, we set up camp on a beautiful beach where the kids learned new games from the raft guides, they learned a new version of tug of war as well as a new hacky sack game called hack attack! Hampton, Sawyer, and Theo where pro’s at hacky sack! Afterwards the raft guides, Kate, Avery, and Lucy cooked up some awesome pork chops for dinner with backcountry brownies for dessert! We ended the night sleeping under some epic stars!
The next day we woke up, had some pancakes and eggs, and then hit the river once again! This was a long day on the river with lots of flat stretches, meaning lots of swimming and lots of rowing. While soaking up the sun, we listened to some good tunes and had some great conversations. On Elise’s boat the group talked about dream houses and other dreams. When we finally made it to camp, the girls all sat in the shade and shared life stories. Elise, Josh, and the raft guides went and explored an old Chinese orchard and picked some pears, apricots, and apples off the trees. For dinner, Kirby, Josh, and Elizabeth helped make some tacos! After dinner we played lots of spike ball on the beach and enjoyed our last night camping on the river. We ended the night with an awesome Moonup. The question of the night was “what is the best choice you have ever made in your life”.
This morning we woke up early, packed some lunch, had some breakfast, and hit the river for the last time! On the river, we played the movie game, napped in the sun and enjoyed our last moments with our awesome raft guides. It was one of the guides birthdays so we all celebrated her and shared some yummy birthday treats with her this morning. Once we got off the river, we unpacked and hit the road once again. We stopped this afternoon for a 4th of July ice cream treat and are headed to watch some fireworks later tonight! We are stoked for the next part of our journey: fly fishing and backpacking! Happy Fourth of July!
Here are some shoutout’s from your kiddos:
Elizabeth- I miss you guys so much! Having the best time ever. It has been so gorgeous for the past couple days. I have explored so many places already, and I can’t wait to explore even more! Tell Alex that I miss hanging out with him so much. Can’t wait to see you guys! Love you!
Kirby- Hi guys, I miss the dogs a lot but I am having fun! It’s pretty and the weather has been great. Also, I think someone forgot to deposit money into my debit card, so I have none. I would really appreciate it if you guys gave me some. I can’t wait to see everyone. Happy Fourth of July!
Alex-This trip has been amazing. So many beautiful views and great memories being made with Seabass and all these really cool people. It’s only been about a week and has already been some of the best times of my life. I miss y’all so much and am excited to see you guys again.
Seabass – Hello, I am having a blast! Rock climbing was too easy, rafting was cooler than last year, more white water.. and we saw big horned sheep! I miss the dog. Hope you have a happy 4th! Don’t party too hard- I miss y’all!!! I lost my glasses- so sorry .I have found out that I am pretty good at spike ball. Alex and I play a good duo. We are going to watch fireworks! I will miss the acc fireworks. I also taught everyone how to play poker and blackjack. See y’all in a week and don’t have a sign when I get home!!
Sawyer- hey guys, I am having the time of my life. I’m meeting so many great people. Rock climbing was super fun. I slipped a few times though but overall super fun. White water rafting was so fun but cold! We are in the car right now headed to watch fireworks and go to the rodeo tomorrow- very excited to see Logan. I love y’all so much and can’t wait to see y’all and share a bunch of good stories with y’all. Happy Fourth of July.
Avery- Hey guys!! This trip has been so cool, and I have met so many awesome people. We just finished 4 days of white water rafting and 2 days of real rock climbing! It was super fun. But currently I am super burnt and peeling. I miss u guys so much hope u r not having too much fun at Coldplay and Rufus without me. Also can u talk to the dentist and see if I have lost all my teeth because Rn one is wiggly and I want to make sure it’s not and an adult one. Miss u guys and happy Fourth of July, love u all!
Lucy- Hey everyone, im having so much fun but I miss you guys so much. Everyone I have met here is so funny and awesome. Rock climbing was so amazing, and my favorite part was rappelling down after we climbed!! We just finished white water rafting and it was fun but I fell out so many times. Today is the 4th of July and we are going to see fireworks which is really exciting!! I’m so excited to tell you guys all about it when I come home. Love and miss you all so much!
Kate- Hey Guys! I miss u guys so freaking much!! I’m having an amazing time and have experienced lots of new things along with it. I’m sad I had to miss Gus birthday, but I hope and am sure he had the best birthday ever, tell him I miss him and love him and I will be home soon. We climbed lots of hills, did a two-day rock climbing, it was fun and challenging, lastly we had just finished our four day white water rafting, let’s just say we had a wild ride, have lots to tell you when I get home! I love everyone here they are so funny and we have had so many good laughs, we’re all getting so close and I love it so much. Today is the Fourth of July and I’m so excited to watch the fireworks and take a shower! Tell everyone at home and our neighbors to have the best time watching the fireworks, in Maryland or wherever you guys are at, I’ll be watching them from Idaho! I love u and miss you.
Theo – Hey y’all! I miss y’all so much and I’m having a great time. Climbing was great and white-water rafting was really fun even though we flipped the boat. We saw a bunch of cool animals like bald eagles and mountain goats. I got really burnt but it’s whatever. We’re in Idaho right now and I think and we’re going to watch fireworks. I hope y’all are having a great 4th of July- happy early birthday, dad I hope y’all have a great day. I love y’all
Hampton- Hey guys! I miss y’all so much but I’m having so much fun! Rock climbing was fun and I’m sad it only lasted two days. White water rafting was my favorite part so far and sleeping on the beach was so cool. Flipping the boat was kind of scary but it was exciting. We’re about to go watch fireworks and I’m so excited. We have a long car ride today and tomorrow, but it’ll be all worth it. Happy 4th of July! I love y’all so much and I miss y’all!
Kyle- Hi Mom and Dad! I miss you a lot. I am having an awesome time so far with rock climbing and rafting, which we finished today. I really enjoyed sleeping on different beaches every night while rafting and all the meals we ate were delicious. After rafting today, we are driving back toward Jackson Hole and we’re going to find some fireworks to watch for the 4th of July 🇺🇸. We’re staying at a campsite in Idaho tonight and then we will get back to Jackson tomorrow and go to a rodeo. I’ve been taking a lot of pictures, and I can’t wait to see you guys in Tahoe!
Josh – Hey, hope everything is well, I’m having a really wonderful time here. I’m a little sunburned from rafting but my sun shirts really helped, so did all the sunscreen I brought. I’m looking forward to fishing and swimming in two days because all the water is so nice. I hope the family is good in Wyoming and the Scream Shack is still running good. Tell aunt Jen, goonga and jake I miss them! I also hope all is well with Zach, Dad and Chloe! I look forward to Tahoe! And dad, I’ve been eating my protein bars! Bye!
Big Wild Climbing With Exum + Exploring Jackson!
June 30, 2023
Hey BGW 2B Friends and Families,
Summer is here and this session of Big Wild started off with a bang! After picking up the group from the airport, we headed to camp to unpack and learn how to set up tents. Once we were settled, we headed to the Taggart Lake trailhead to go on a short afternoon hike. When we got to the lake a few of us jumped into freezing cold water and it was epic! Once we made it back to camp, we played some group games and ate some pizza. While the girls played cards, the boys played an intense game of hacky sack. We ended day 1 with our first Moonup!
On day 2 we woke up, had some muffins and headed to meet Exum to start our first day of climbing! We met our guides for the day, grabbed some gear and then hit the trail. To get to the trailhead we had to take a boat across Jenny Lake. The views from the boat were insane! Once we finally started hiking, we learned about the power of approach shoes and how the sticky rubber on the bottom of them can help us with our climbing. We then had a few lessons where we learned some important knots and information about our gear. Since Elizabeth is a huge climber, she helped teach other people in the group about knots. After finishing ground school, we finally hit the rock and started to climb. We all tied together and made our way up the rock. Once we got to the top, we learned how to rappel. Theo was crushing it from the beginning! We eventually all made it back to the bottom and then hiked back to Exum’s base shop. After climbing, we had an evening in downtown Jackson! We let the group shop and see everything that Jackson has to offer. Lucy, Avery, Elizabeth, Hampton, Kate, and Kirby all got similar Jackson sweatshirts that are super fun! After a great evening in town, we headed back to camp where we made a fire and celebrated our first full day together. At camp, Olin taught some of the girls how to throw a football. We ended the night with another great Moonup!
The next morning, Alex and Sawyer helped Elise cook breakfast burritos before we headed back to Exum for our second day of climbing! The climbing was EPIC. We were split up into smaller groups and did some routes that was a little more challenging. After multiple pitches and awesome views, some of the group stopped to have lunch on top of Hidden Falls. After lunch, all of the groups did some sick rappelling. Hampton, Josh, and Seabass (Sebastian) had the coolest rappel and were having a blast together all day! When we finished our climb, we headed back to wait in line to take the boat back to Exum. While we were waiting, Elise, Josh, and Kyle decided that they would rather hike back to Exum instead of waiting in line for the boat. After their hike, they had some extra time and swam in Jenny Lake before meeting back up with the rest of the group! Once we got back to camp, we played wavelength before cooking some yummy Mexican food. We once again ended the night with a sweet Moonup. The question of the night was “what is your favorite place in the entire world and why?”
Now we are hitting the road to start the next section of our trip: rafting! We have a long drive ahead of us, but we are super stoked to get out on the river and soak up the sun!
Sending lots of love!
Elise + Olin
Off to Adventure in Wyoming!
June 27, 2023
Hello Big Wild Families!
We heard from our leaders this afternoon and the group has landed safely in Jackson Hole! The trip is off to a great start, and we cannot wait to hear more stories from their adventure.
Please remember our leaders and students will be unplugged during their trips but we will be posting up to three trip updates throughout the next couple of weeks! This will allow you to follow along with the trip and the students will also give a special shout out mid-way through! You can also follow us on Instagram, @moondanceadventures, to see more of what we are up to this summer!
-Moondance HQ
