Final Farewells in Washington

June 30, 2024

Good afternoon Moondance! 

It’s been a bit of a teary-eyed day here at SeaTac. The last plane is in the air, and us leaders aren’t quite sure what to do with ourselves. It’s been an absolute pleasure and honor getting to know your children. Through challenges, both physical and mental, this trip pushed us to chase our best selves. We built a community founded on good risk-taking, authenticity, and humility. It did not disappoint.

The last two days of our trip were a bit of a whirlwind. After climbing on Monkey’s Face, we packed up camp and made our way back to Washington. A dinner of grilled cheese and tomato soup was a comforting meal before our second to last Moonup. Great conversations were had under the lamplight before we took an early night, tuckered out from our big day of climbing and travel.

Yesterday, we drove an hour up to our final campground at Millersylvania and exploded our gear onto a parking lot to repack everything for departure day. After some tasty mac and cheese and Shirley Temples, we set aside the afternoon to reflect on the past 20 days together by completing course evaluations and writing letters to their future selves. We hope that when your kids receive their letters later this year they can revive the feeling of their backcountry trip and apply it to their lives back at home. Once we finished up our letters, we made our way to Goodwill to choose each other’s wardrobes for banquet dinner. The results were…well…interesting. From funky dresses to flippers to batting helmets, we were decked to the nines! To say we were overdressed for our dinner of Mexican is a gross understatement. After strutting our stuff in downtown Olympia, we loaded back up into the van and headed back to camp for a game of fishbowl and superlatives. Down by the lakes edge under the moonlight, we capped off our trip with our final Moonup. As the evening wound down, we appreciated all the small moments we will miss from our time in the PNW and reflected on how our time together changed our outlooks on life. The group hug at the end of our Moonup said it all. We are confident these lessons about resilience, personal growth, and the art of not caring have stuck, and will follow your kids for a long, long time. We are proud to have led these kiddos and watch as they tapped into capabilities and skill sets they didn’t know they possessed. Parents, thank you for entrusting your most precious people into our care. We can’t wait to see the places they will go and the people they will become.

Yours,

PNW1B

(Porter and Ellie)

Awe-Inspiring Adventures in the Pacific Northwest!

June 29, 2024

Wow guys! 

Since you’ve last heard from us, PNW1B has been from cold mountain rivers of southern Washington to the high desert of central Oregon. As the trip begins to close, let’s take a look at the past week.

Some highlights:

–          kayaking over Ishi Pishi rapid (Class III)

–          SUPing on the lower Wind River

–          rafting the Lower White Salmon River

–          climbing and rappelling in Smith Rock State Park

–          CONQUERING MONKEY’S FACE

On day 13 of our trip, we traveled down to southern Washington on the hunt for whitewater. After a 6 hour van ride full of Porter’s weird music (classic rock and country) and Ellie’s dad jokes, we finally made it to Cascadia Camp. Our host, Jim, greeted us warmly, lending us a cooking shack with a set of cast irons and woks to make some proper front country meals. Jim shared his knowledge of outfitting excursions in the Yukon and gifted the group The Earth Speaks, a compilation of wise musings on the natural world. After a particularly rusing passage from Edward Abbey, Jim left us to think about our responsibility to appreciate and speak for the wild places we call our playgrounds. Cameron and Brady learned how to make a Bolognese sauce with Porter and served up enough pasta to feed a small army (we ate it all). Cards were played, Spikeballs were spikes, and soon enough everyone drifted to sleep dreaming of the ripping water to be paddled the next morning.

Two weeks into our trip on the dot, we began our whitewater section with a kayaking trip down the Klickitat River, a frothy river that runs down an ancient basalt lava tube. Bri excelled at kayaking, fearlessly charging down standing V-waves from start to finish. Throughout the day, all of the kiddos learned how to stay upright and on course through rapids, sharpening their skills on whitewater. After a great burrito lunch riverside, everyone climbed back in their yaks to brave a class III rapid, Ishi Pishi. Jim was quick to congratulate all of the kids on their accomplishment once we returned to camp. That night, we made fried rice and Ellie taught everyone how to play Kemps. Violet and Amara were naturals, and got the rest of the group hooked on the game. After dinner, we feasted on a cobbler fresh out of the Dutch oven before heading to bed in the Doug fir grove.

Day 15 started lazily with a French Toast brunch before an afternoon of SUPing on the pristine flat water of the lower Wind River. As we paddled upstream, the group spotted a multitude of belted kingfishers, cliff swallows, ospreys, and bald eagles. Before turning back towards our put-in, everyone took part in a balance competition on the paddleboards. Gravity got the best of everyone, but the brisk water was energizing. We stopped in the beautiful little town of Hood River for ice cream at a cash only shop, getting freshly made scoops before grilling out back at camp. 24 burgers and some leftover fried rice later, we took an early night before the main event of our river section.

Our last day in southern Washington was an unforgettable experience rafting the White Salmon River. This full day excursion included top-notch whitewater, wonderful guides, and a surprising number of sneak attacks between the Lady Boat and Boy Barge. Dalton and Kess, our guides, were helpful in pointing our geologic features on our way down the river and ensured our safe passage through some intense rapids. Colin leaped at the opportunity to do a bridge jump into a deep pool and got everyone else onboard to try a leap of faith into 30-something degree water. The lower section of the river was a bit more tame, but we kept it interesting by delving into deep conversations with the guides about our interests back home and the natural history of the White Salmon river basin. Once returning back to the van, we drove south to central Oregon for our climbing section, reaching Smith Rock State Park just in time for sunset over the incredible red rock spires.

The next morning, we woke up early to meet our guides for the next several days of the climbing section. After some quick yogurt and granola, the squad hiked down into the park for a day of top roping in one of the most iconic sport climbing locales in the nation. Despite some early apprehension, the whole group began facing their fears and conquering tricky routes up the basalt slabs. Lovie proved to be a natural crusher on the ropes, leading by example by tearing it up on the wall early in the day. After climbing wrapped up, we all took a short drive to a nearby waterfall to jump in some cold water. We took Moonup out to an overlook under one of the most incredible sunsets any of us had ever seen, soaking up our time in the high desert.

Day 18 of our trip was another early one. After scarfing down some bagels and cream cheese, we hiked down with our guides to another cliff face for our second day of climbing. Today, Nick showed off his skills on the wall, inching his way up a gnarly 5.11c grade route called “Embryonic.” Everyone practiced rappelling in order to prepare for the notorious Monkey’s Face the following day. Amara conquered her fear of rappelling and chose to do the 80’ rap twice! Once the sun got high in the sky, we ventured back to camp before going into Bend for a lovely town day. We ate across the world in a food truck venue, fueling up for tomorrow’s big day on Monkey’s Face.

Day 19 was a massive one. In a fitting end to our activities, we woke up at 5am to hike up 800 feet to the top of Smith Rock for a day of mind over matter. Meeting our guides at the Springboard, one-by-one we took an open-air Tyrolean traverse over to the Mouth of the Monkey. From there, we hopped on the wall with the help of our four guides, Michael, Will, James, and Carson. Hundreds of feet in the air on a sheer basalt face, exposed to the wind and everything else, we inched up to the Monkey’s Nose before taking a near 200-foot rappel back down to terra firma. This mentally grueling challenge was no match for the students of PNW1B! Everyone who harnessed up completed the traverse, climb, and rappel in a feat of bravery and mental toughness. We celebrated our achievements with some ice cream and good conversations about personal growth during the climbing section. We leaders are so proud of your kids for taking a major step outside of their comfort zones on Monkey’s Face. Climbing up a rock spire hundreds of feet above the ground is an intrinsically scary experience, but you wouldn’t know it by the way they absolutely crushed it. The days of practicing climbing techniques paid dividends. The time on Monkey’s Face will be an experience that sticks with them for the rest of their lives.

While our trip is winding down, our energy and stoke levels remain through the roof. Thank you for reading along in these weekly installments of your kiddos’ adventures in the PNW, we hope you’ve enjoyed getting a glimpse into our killer itinerary.

Until next time!

Yours,

PNW1B

Thank yous:

Nick: Mom and Dad, thanks for sending me on this trip! It’s been so much fun.

Violet: Thank you to the friends and family that recommended this trip to me! I’ve had a blast.

Lovie: Thank you Mom and Dad for sending me on this trip! I’ve made some great friends and have had a lot of fun.

Cameron: Thank you Mom and Dad for letting me come on this trip. It’s been more fun than I could imagine, and I can’t wait to tell y’all about it.

Bri: Thank you Mom and Dad for sending me on this adventurous trip. I’ve made some great friends and will see you soon! Te amo.

Amara: Thank you so much Mom and Dad for letting me come on this trip! I’ve made some great friends and had so much fun, can’t wait to tell y’all all about it!!

Colin: Thank you Mom and Dad for sending me on this trip! It’s been really fun.

Brady: Thank you Mom and Dad for giving me the opportunity to go on this trip! I’ve made great friends and memories. Love you guys!

Back from Backpacking with Stories to Tell!

June 23, 2024

Trip Update 2: 6/23

Hello again PNW1B friends and families!

A lot has happened since we last talked. Six days of backpacking in the North Cascades brought us all memories to keep our cup full and made our group tighter than ever. Mountain summits, polar plunges, backcountry enchiladas, weird deer with human personalities, lots of summer sausage…yeah, we got weird in the woods.

But first, let’s drop the story time bit for a second. We leaders are so proud of your kiddos and what they accomplished on their challenging trek through the North Cascades. They helped cook, cleaned, practice Leave No Trace, danced, swam, hiked, used topo maps, laughed, cried, laughed until they cried, but most importantly expanded their comfort zones beyond what they thought conceivable. Summitting Mount Desolation was a grueling escapade where everyone pushed themselves to the max. Basking in the rare sunlight around Ross Lake made us all appreciate the Source just a little bit more. Watching the last beams of sunlight strike Mount Hozomeen on our last night made everyone appreciate the remote beauty that one rarely finds outside of the backcountry. These memories are not for now, this summer, or even next year. We hope (and believe) that your children will carry moments of our backpacking section in PNW into high school, and college, and maybe…just maybe…their kids will hear about that one time mom or dad accomplished something in the PNW as a kid that they didn’t think they could.

Day 1:

Our travelers departed from Ross Dam Trailhead, caught a water taxi, and were whisked into the remote backcountry on the far shores of Ross Lake. Packs were heavy with a week’s worth of food and gear, but time was made for sausage, almond butter, and jelly English muffin lunch at Rainbow Point. The trekkers made their way north along the shore, braving misty rain before pitching tents at a campsite overlooking the lake. Colin learned how to use a Whisperlite and fell in love with backcountry cooking, making everyone chicken bacon quesadillas. The travelers fell asleep after learning about sump holes and what LNT principles look like in the backcountry.

Day 2:

Ellie made hashbrowns for breakfast and Porter opted for a strong cup of joe to get amped for another day on the trail. The travelers continued northward towards the looming Mount Desolation in the distance, mentally fortifying themselves for the coming night. Upon arrival to Lightning Creek, tents were pitched and heaping portions of pesto pasta were made. The nightly Moonup was held on the shore of Ross Lake while our travelers gazed over the peaks around them, soaking up how good it is to feel so small in such a large, wild place. Bedtime was early tonight; a big morning lay ahead for the group of trekkers.

Day 3:

Today was the big one. A midnight alpine start was on the menu for our trekkers today, and wow were they hungry for trail. Everyone donned headlamps and packs, flying through the first two miles as everyone described words they want to be described as. The travelers dunked their heads in a freezing cold stream before hanging a right onto Desolation Peak Trail, a singletrack that would make a mountain man quake in his boots. But this trail was no match for the group led by the fearless Leaders of the Day, Nick and Bri. Riddles were solved; water bottles were guzzled; bodies were challenged. After 6 hours and over 4,500 feet of elevation later, the group pushed to the summit of Mount Desolation just after sunrise. A hellacious number of snacks were consumed by the tired travelers, and the clouds parted for a moment to reveal the spectacular viewpoint on which they stood. Before turning back down the mountain, they took a cat nap to recharge. Coming down the mountain, new perspectives revealed wildflowers dotting the alpine mountainside, moss growing over the understory, and glades of massive western red cedars. The trekkers returned to camp 12 hours (on the dot) from the moment they woke up that morning. After taking a nice long dip in Lake Ross and warming up on the shoreside rocks, they made pancakes––with sprinkles––to hold them over before a hearty dinner of jambalaya. Needless to say, everyone went to bed after Moonup holding themselves a little taller than the day before.

Day 4:

Today was a stout hike, but the travelers persisted through a long day of up and downs, both literally and figuratively. A long stretching break helped ease the sore muscles, as did Poptarts. Amara and Violet pushed through the physical challenge with extreme mental toughness. Brady used his leadership skills to encourage everyone on the hike to keep pushing through to lunch, showcasing his ability to positively motivate the trekkers. After stopping to refill and treat water at Nightmare Creek, the travelers stopped for lunch along the bank, reveling in their accomplishments thus far. They camped at Nightmare, where Cameron said that his pita pizza was the best thing that he had ever eaten. Lovie summoned up the courage to dunk herself in 30-something-degree water and ended up getting everyone else to join her. While Desolation was the main course of this trip, Day 4 surprised everyone by being the day in which personal growth was the biggest theme.

Day 5:

After an early departure from Nightmare, the hikers marched their way up to Hozomeen Lake, a pristine body of water known for its views of adjacent mountains and the ever-present Common loon. An early dinner of enchiladas followed a lazy afternoon of naps in the dappled forest light, swimming in Hozomeen, and endless comments of “this is the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen.” The final Moonup in the backcountry was special; Cameron asked about a moment when you wished you had more time to appreciate. Under the looming mountains catching their last bits of sunlight for the day, everyone’s answers were authentic and real. The travelers took one last swim before dark and opted to cowboy camp under the stars before heading back to the front country.

Day 6:

The trekkers hit the trail early on Day 6, eager to descend the four miles and change back to the pickup spot for the water taxi. After getting back down to Ross Lake, everyone agreed that they were too close to Canada to not sneak over the border. So they did. The water taxi back to Ross Dam revealed just how far the group had journeyed in  6 short days; they passed Desolation, Lightning Creek, and other familiar landmarks that took days to travel between. In this moment, the true enormity of their accomplishment began to soak in. While everyone was ready for showers and the comforts of the front country, I believe that everyone left a little piece of their soul out on the East Bank Trail in the North Cascades.

Day 7:

The travelers made their way across the state gearing up for the next bit of their adventure. Rumor has it that they might trade hiking boots for chacos. Stay tuned!

Yours,

PNW1B

Pacific Northwest Paradise!

June 15, 2024

Greetings families and friends of PNW 1B,

We are writing to you from a ferry, smack dab in the middle of the coolest inland sea we ever did see, the Salish Sea. Three days and nights of kayaking have brought our group closer together than we thought possible in such a short period of time. Groggy, slow mornings of packing up camp have turned into a speedy ritual of waking up, packing tents, and making breakfast. In other words, we are a well-oiled machine. Let us catch you up to speed.

The kiddos arrived in SeaTac on Monday and quickly began trading stories of home and favorite card games with one another shortly after making their way down to baggage claim. Once our last arrival got in and bags were retrieved, we traded skyscrapers for Douglas firs as we headed north towards our first campsite on the Pacific, Bayview State Park. After a familiar dinner of pizza under the shade of ponderosa pines, we headed down to the pebble beach for our first sunset Moonup. Seasoned veterans Nick and Violet were chosen to lead by example as our first Leaders of the Day (LODs). The nug jug was opened for the first time this summer (ask your kids after the trip) and much was appreciated from our day––the pink cloud hovering above us, good songs in the car, laughs all around. After we closed our inaugural Moonup, Ellie convinced everyone to start the summer with a cold dip in the Pacific.

Day 2 started early with yogurt, fruit, and granola. We traveled to Anacortes to catch an early morning ferry to the San Juans, but we were able to squeeze in a quick walk on the beach beforehand, seeing everything from massive beach worms to a friendly otter. Once on the ferry, we all opted to catch some rays on the sun deck, playing games of ninja and photosynthesizing in the warm sunbeams. Upon arrival to San Juan Island, we made camp on a lovely little lake and had a picnic lunch. Porter wouldn’t stop talking about birds (I think his love for them might be starting to rub off on the kiddos). We prepped for sea kayaking and met our guides, Moll and Arden, in Friday Harbor. There were nerves. Most of us had never done an overnight in a sea kayak before, so this trip was going to be a challenge. Back at camp, we chowed down on beef tacos with fajita veggies, avocado, and lots of hot sauce for the brave ones. Cameron, Nick, Colin, and Porter invented an awesome new game called Mallet Ball. After another great Moonup, we took an early bedtime, but not before Brianna noticed a ton of bats feeding on insects over the lake we were camped beside.

Day 3 began with breakfast burritos and an early van ride to Roche Harbor, where we met our guides and loaded up our kayaks for a long day’s journey out to Jones Island. Immediately upon setting out on the water, we saw two harbor seals playing off the rocky coast. Everyone quickly got the hang of navigating on tandem sea kayaks, and Cameron and Lovie set the pace for everyone, beasting out on the paddles. We stopped for lunch before the biggest open water crossing of the day. On the rocks above our lunch spot, we stopped to take in the view of our eventual camp for the night over two miles away! We reviewed the tenets of Leave No Trace, which Brady recited from memory to everyone. Once setting our eyes on the prize, we paddled our hearts out to camp at Jones Island. Arden and Moll continued to teach everyone about more advanced paddle technique. At camp, we broke out the SpikeBall net before dinner. We talked about our highs and lows for the day, and during this time it became evident that our group was meshing more quickly than anyone would expect. We ditched our tents to sleep under the stars, feeling the breeze across our face as we drifted off to sleep.

We took a lazy morning in camp on Day 4, gorging on bacon and chocolate chip pancakes. After cleaning up our dishes, we struck out for Yellow Island, a nature preserve to our south. Upon beaching, we walked around the island spotting the lovely madrone trees and taking in the wildflowers speckling the island. Bald eagles were seen flying overhead as we paddled to our lunch spot on another small island nearby. After a big lunch of pulled pork, some of us opted to take naps under the sun while others explored the tide pools on the falling tide. We paddled back to camp in the afternoon to enjoy a charcuterie snack before a big meal of pesto pasta. After dinner, we made smores and hiked across Jones Island to catch sunset. During Moonup, we got vulnerable and shared our most embarrassing moments. It’s been so nice to open up about things we don’t normally do in the special, caring space we create at Moondance. After walking back to camp in the dark, we noticed something glowing in the sea. It turned out to be bioluminescent plankton! Everyone filed down to the beach to throw rocks in the bay and watch the water light up with bluish-green sparkles. Special moment right there.

Yesterday, we bid farewell to Jones Island and prepped for our long voyage back to Roche Harbor. At this point, everyone was a hardened paddler, so we ate up the miles back home quickly. These salty dogs didn’t even stop on land for lunch break; we just ate our sandwiches (and chocolate) in the saddle. After we got reacquainted with terra firma, the adventurers hopped in the van and returned to our campsite on the lake. Amara led the charge in creating a new card game, keeping everyone entertained for hours. We also prepped for our upcoming backpacking section in the North Cascades, learning how to properly pack and fit backpacks and realizing that maybe…just maybeee…you really only do need two shirts for 6 days in the woods. For dinner, we took a local food stop in Friday Harbor. Fish and chips from locally caught cod won out as the most popular dish of the evening. Over Moonup, everyone discussed some of the most challenging moments they’ve gone through, cementing the type of space we all want Moondance to be: supportive, thought-provoking, and meaningful. After so much activity, early shut-eye was an imperative.

Today was an early morning. Breakfast burritos were a hit a couple days back, so we did them again. 36 eggs later, we are on a ferry back to the mainland. By the time you read this, we will be making our final adjustments to our packs for backpacking tomorrow. It’s time to get weird in the woods.

Yours,

PNW 1B

Shoutouts!!

Nick: Happy Birthday Dad!! I’m having a lot of fun out here in Pee En Dub.

Colin: Happy Father’s Day! Thanks for making me do this trip!

Cameron: Thank you so much for letting me do this trip! I’m having a ton of fun. Happy Father’s Day.

Brady: Thanks for letting me come on this trip. I’m feeling better. Love and miss you Mom, Dad, and Avery.

Amara: Thank you so much for letting me come to Moondance again. Happy birthday Mom! Happy Father’s Day Dad! Love you so much.

Brianna: Hola, te extraño muchisimo. Can’t wait to see you soon! Kayaking was fun and I’m excited for rafting soon. Happy Father’s Day, Dad. You’re the best. Happy Birthday Mom! I love you guys.

Violet: Having lots of fun over here in PNW. I love my new friends and leaders. Love and miss you!

Lovie: Hey Mom, Dad, and Harper! Thank you so much for letting me come here. I’ve made some great friends. Happy Father’s day T-boy! Love y’all!

Arrival Update

June 11, 2024

Hello Pacific Northwest Families!

All students have landed safely in Seattle and are well on their way to their first activities. The trip is off to a great start and we cannot wait to share more about their amazing adventure!

-Moondance HQ