Final Update from BCO 2B!
July 7, 2026
Our time in British Columbia has wrapped up too quickly, but our last few days together were nothing short of fantastic and did not lack lots of laughs and fun.
Waking up on day 11 was an absolute treat as it was an incredibly special day – the 4th of July, and the 250th one at that! Although we weren’t in our home country for the day, that wouldn’t stop us from celebrating. We had an all-american breakfast of bacon and eggs before getting in the van to head over to Quadra Island for our last few activities. We started the drive blasting some patriotic favorites – “Party in the USA”, “Born in the USA”, and anything and everything we could sing to bring some of our home energy into Canada for the day. Our short drive to the Island brought us to Chinese Mountain for a perfect afternoon hike. On the way up to the summits, we took turns carrying our masterpiece – a makeshift American flag, handpainted by JJ, Charlotte, and Blair – as we conquered the mountain. At the first summit, Brooks and Stephy led in the singing of our national anthem as we raised our canvas flag above our heads and looked out to the mountains – it truly was a special moment. After enjoying the rest of the hike, making trail conversations, and admiring the beauty around us, we headed to our campsite for the night. While Grant and Hutch set up their hammocks, Sadie and Camille helped cook up some FIRE burgers and hotdogs that we got to savor on the rocky beach while looking out towards the mountains of British Columbia before Moonup and some stargazing as the sky cleared up – what a gift today was!
An early morning on day 12 called for a great day on the water fishing for and catching some salmon. Solomon and Henry reeled in dinner for us as the sun beat down and we listened to some boat tunes. There were also many wildlife sightings, consisting mainly of sea lions basking in the sun and swimming through the sparkling waters. After a morning of fishing, we made our way back to Vancouver Island to prep for a travel day back to Seattle the next day, but before we could anticipate that, Oliver helped cook our prizes from the ocean, adding some lemon and a bit of maple glaze to really up the flavor of the salmon. We put the fish over some pasta for our last self-cooked dinner of the trip, and it was absolutely amazing! We cherished our last night together on the Island, running down to the lake and around the fields of our campsite, just appreciating the time we had. We got to bed to get some rest for our long journey back home the next day.
Saying a bittersweet goodbye to Vancouver Island, we hopped on the ferry and enjoyed the ride, eating lunch together and admiring the views. We had a small world moment as a previous Moondance leader noticed our Moondance shirts and told us all about the trips she had led a number of years ago. It was so cool to exchange stories and hear about how special these trips are – this community truly does run deep, and wow are we thankful to be a part of it. We docked back on the mainland of Canada for the first time in almost 10 days, ready to get back to the states. A Goodwill stop before our banquet was a necessity, with many of us getting silly outfits to draw some laughs during a long travel day. As we drove down to and through Seattle, the US men’s soccer team was playing in the world cup, so naturally, we listened to the commentary as we journeyed home. Although it was a tough loss for us, we got to experience the team’s goal as we drove past the stadium, rolling the windows down and almost hearing the cheers from afar. Our long travel day brought us to our final campsite of the trip before we got burgers for our last meal all together. Then, a long Moonup wrapped up our final night together preceding an early airport day wakeup.
Saying goodbye to this group was hard. They continually kept us laughing and truly were like a little family for two weeks. The time we spent together was a gift to all of us, and we know that we will cherish these memories for years to come. Thank you for sharing your kids with us – it’s been a pleasure to lead and love them!
All the best from BCO B!
Huck, Will, and Sofie
Adventurous Activities in BCO!
July 4, 2026
What a time we’ve been having here in Canada! Gosh, it’s been so special, and we can’t believe how quickly it’s going by. The past few days of activities and new places have been absolutely spectacular!
Day 5 brought incredible vibes as we traveled to Tofino for a few days of paddleboarding, surfing, and some much-appreciated time at the beach. We got into town early, getting to spend some time running around and exploring all it had to offer, including a delicious dinner at a favorite local spot, Tacofino! In town, Brooks led the charge of boys getting matching sweatpants, which have been super helpful with some chilly weather we’ve had this trip, and Charlotte helped coordinate the girls’ purchase of funny nightgowns, which made an appearance during our first Moonup on the beach. Tonight, we had a true Moonup as the clouds parted and gave way to a gorgeous sunset and then a bright, full moon rising above the trees before we headed to sleep to get some rest for an exciting few days!
Waking up on Day 6 to the sound of waves crashing on shore right next to us was special, as we knew we would soon be on the water for our next activities of the trip. As we got into the ocean for the first time to paddleboard, we played a number of fun games, but Henry proved to be the reigning champion of last man standing, pushing everyone else into the water with ease. Moving into an afternoon of surfing, Hutch and Blair showed their expertise by going far out and “chasin’ some serious mavericks,” as Will Rob says. JJ and Camille also were absolutely shredding, getting up simultaneously on almost every wave they caught. When heading back to camp and making a delicious dinner of stir fry, we noticed a band setting up to play on the beach, and as Moondancers, you know we had to go join in on the fun. The group quickly ate dinner and ran down to sing and dance to some live music. The band ended their short set with one of Stephy’s favorites, “Twist and Shout” by The Beatles, creating an unforgettable wow moment for the group and leaders. After a pretty late Moonup following a fun and spontaneous night, Sadie and Oliver braved the cold and watched the full moon rise from the rocks on shore, marking an incredible end to a long but exciting day.
Day 7 brought even more fun with an early morning and a big swell. Immediately, Grant and Solomon found their rhythm and shredded the gnar together, catching some big waves! After surfing, the group headed to the campsite for some hot dogs before an afternoon of paddleboarding and chilling on the beach. As a tradition on the last night at the beach, the gang cooked some pita pizza and ate it while we watched the sunset and prepared for our final Moonup on the beach. In celebration of a successful couple of days in Tofino, we prepared a surprise “Lobster Stew” (hot chocolate) for the chilly night on the beach. The mood was bittersweet as we were leaving Tofino, but expectant of what was to come on the other side of the island!
Day 8 was an exciting one, and not just because it was time to travel to the east side of Vancouver Island for our next portion of the trip. Today was Canada Day! We celebrated early by making M&M pancakes and putting on some Canadian flag tattoos to get in the spirit of the day. Charlotte and Camille blew out special red and white candles on the pancakes to celebrate the birthday of our host country. On our way across the island, we stopped for a gas station stop where Henry loaded up on a new group favorite, Corn Nuts! Throughout the journey, Blair kept the vibe high with some amazing song requests. Upon arrival at camp, the group enjoyed a chill afternoon that included a lot of card games and frisbee as Grant and Hutch showed off their disc skills. With an early morning ahead, our crew quickly fell asleep to the peaceful sound of rain on the tents, anticipating some fun on the rock faces the next day.
Days 9 & 10 were spent in the beautiful woods of Cumberland looking for crags to climb and mountains to top! Despite the early morning chilly rain, the group was up and at ’em looking for adventure! Immediately, Solomon and JJ found their rhythm on the wall, showing off their skills to the guides and the rest of the group. While they were busy on the wall, Oliver was a master belayer, ensuring his climber was always safe while climbing! On Day 10, the group faced one of their scariest, most intense obstacles yet… an 80+ ft. rappel off of a sheer cliff! Sadie was very impressive with her confidence and boldness, going down the wall seamlessly! After the group conquered this challenge, it was time for IRON CHEF at camp!! Brooks was the captain for the boys, while Stephy was the team captain for the girls. The boys cooked Supreme Mac & Cheese for the boys, and the girls cooked a combination of chicken alfredo and bolognese. While both were phenomenal, the Supreme Mac & Cheese took the cake and won it for the boys. We had a great time hiking and climbing the east side of the island and were eager to head to Quadra Island to end our trip!!
We can’t believe how fast it’s flying, but also are so excited for these last few days with this group. They’ve been incredible and we have full confidence that they will continue to be through our final days together. For now, we’re off to catch some fish and climb some mountains, but we’ll be sure to tell y’all all about it!
All the best from BCO B,
Sofie, Will, and Huck
Charlotte – Hey mom and dad!! I miss y’all so much. I having a great time and have done a lot of fun things! I’m so thankful I got to be sent no this trip I hope y’all re gaveling lots of fun. I can’t wait to see you! I hope sawyer had a great time on his trip this is the best trip ever! Love you!! See you soon!!
JJ – Hi mom and dad!! I love and miss y’all so much!! Thank y’all so much for sending me on this amazing trip. I am having the best time and can’t wait to see u all! Tell everyone at the lake I said hi! Love y’all!!
Brooks – Hey Mom and Dad I miss y’all and love y’all so much I’m having so much fun. Thank you so much for sending me on this trip. I can’t wait to see y’all.
Blair – Hi mom and dad I’m so thankful you let me go on this trip, I’m having such an amazing time! I love y’all and can’t wait to see you thanks again I’m so happy!
Camille – Hi mom and dad!!!! I love and miss y’all soooo much!! Than you so much for letting me go on this trip it is the best time of my life!! So exited to see y’all soon yayayaya
Stephy – hi guys! I miss y’all so much! Thank you to my amazing parents for giving me this great opportunity and always being supportive and helpful through all of my decisions and challenges. Love y’all! And thanks to my 3 amazing siblings for shaping me and being my best friends! Thanks to my friends at home for always having my back and I miss y’all!! And thanks to my group and counselors for being so awesome and fun, this trip wouldn’t be the same without y’all! See yall soon family!!
Oliver – Hi mom and dad I miss you. I just wanted to saythank you for sending me here and how much fun I am having, see you guys in a few days. Iove you.
Hutch – Hi Mom and Dad. I miss y’all. I am having so much fun on this trip and I making many memories. I am so thankful y’all sent me here. I love y’all and I can’t wait to see you guys again.
Henry – Hi mom and dad I am so happy that you gave me the opportunity to go on the amazing trip. Can’t wait to see you guys soon. Love you
Sadie – Hi mom and dad! I am having so much fun here, thank you for giving me this opportunity! I’m excited to see ya’ll soon, I love you! Say hi to McLean for me
Grant – Hi Mom and Dad I can’t wait to see y’all.I love y’all so much, thanks for sending me here the experience is awesome. I miss y’all so much. Love you!
Solomon – Hi Mom and Dad I miss you guys so much. I cannot wait to come home and see you. One of my leaders is telling me the scores of the England games I can’t believe it was so close. I got you all gifts including Zoe and Lou on town day where we get to walk around. Can’t wait to see y’all miss guys so much. Love you!
Shout Outs!
June 28, 2026
Brooks: hey mom and dad I miss y’all and love y’all so much I’m having so much fun. We rafted the first two days and did a hike today. It was really hard but the view was really cool. I’ve made so many new friends and we’re having a great time. I miss y’all and love y’all so much bye.
Camille: hey mom and dad I love y’all so much and I’m having SO MUCH FUN yesterday we finished rafting and I cooked dinner then today we chilled a bit, I cooked eggs for breakfast and had a 4 hour hike but then we drove to the ferry and now are waiting to get the van on love y’all so muchhhh
Oliver: Hi mom and dad, I am having so much fun thank you for sending me here. I love you.
Stephy: Hi family! I miss y’all so much. Send this to family gc. I hope you are having so much fun at the World Cup! And Mikey, I hope college is treating you well! I’m sure you are doing amazing, and Sammy, I hope NYC is amazing! I miss y’all so much. I am having a great time. It’s really beautiful. We’ve done rafting and a really hard hike but rafting was so cold but really fun. It’s rained a bit. We just went on a ferry and it was so fun, I got to watch some of the World Cup finally. I am so behind. I also miss chick fil a and love island. I am so excited to see you guys again and go to the World Cup together! I am counting down the sleeps. Thanks for this great opportunity, I love y’all more than anything! See you soon!
Grant: Hi Mom and dad the first day we went rafting and that was amazing. The water was cold though and we slept on a little island it was great. The second day we went on a little raft ride and then chilled. I was a leader of the day which you get chosen for. Today we went on a super hard hike and the view was top 3 I have seen. Now we are in the van about to go on a boat love you.
Blair: Hi mom and dad I’m having a great time! I hope y’all are too at the beach. I miss you guys but also am really enjoying British Columbia. I loved rafting and hiking has been very fun. I wish you could experience this too! I’ll see you soon, love you!
Sadie: hi mom and dad (hi McLean, but you’re in alaska)! Thank you so much for sending me, I’m having a lot of fun and BC is so pretty! I’ll see you soon, I love you so much.
Charlotte:Hey mom and dad. I’m having so much fun. Today we went on a four hour hike but the view from the top was so pretty. We are in the car now waiting to get on a ferry! We also went rafting two days ago. It was fun and we stayed on an island. I’m having a lot of fun! Thank you so much for sending me! Bye love y’all tell sugar I said hiiii! Love you!!
JJ:Hey mom and dad. I’m having the best time. My group is so fun and I’m having a blast. Thank you so much for sending me here. Today we went on like a four hour hike and I actually had fun and the view was amazing. A couple nights ago we stayed on an island and it was so pretty. Tell Birdie I said hi and the Fourth of July lake group. I love y’all so much!!!!
Henry: Hey mom and dad it is so much fun. We just went on a hard hike called the chief hike and I am going to win the photo contest.
Hutch: Hey mom and dad I miss y’all we are having fun. We went white water rafting and then had food. We did a hike today. It was pretty hard because it was very steep. Now we are getting on a ferry and it’s gonna be fun. (Two hours later) On the ferry it was super fun. It was like 2 hours. They had good food and it was tasty. Aight toodles love y’all.
Solomon: Hi mom and dad I miss you guys so much and I’m having lots of fun. We went white water rafting for like 2 and a half hours which was awesome and we went on a super fun hike. We just went on a ferry to an island and it was a ton of fun. For the first time I didn’t get homesick the first night so I’m really happy with that. Love you guys counting the days till I gotta see you.
Having a Blast on BCO!
June 28, 2026
Only a few days in, but we’re already having the time of our lives here in BC! Our first bit of time together in Squamish was nothing short of incredible, and we’re excited to be able to tell y’all about it!
After everyone arrived at the airport on travel day, we made the long trek from Seattle and smoothly made it across the border to spend our first night in Canada! From even just our first van ride, we knew we were in for a treat with this crew. We went ahead and set up our tents, put down our crazy creeks, and ate some delicious pizza from a local spot in Langley, BC, before having our first Moonup of the trip! Some of our incredible veteran students already stepped up by setting the tone on our first night, giving way for Henry and Camille to be our first Leaders of the Day (LODs), and they have continued to show up since, especially during our first activity – whitewater rafting!
Day 2 could not come soon enough, as we had a beautiful van ride on the Sea to Sky highway to get to the Squamish River for rafting. On the way there, we stopped at a small park on the water where the group quickly began a rock skipping competition, and most of them even beat us leaders! After a fun and short break from driving, we hit the road again and made it to the rafting base, where we got suited up in our wetsuits and made our way to the put-in spot. Starting our journey downstream, the water was high, and the rapids were epic. Grant and Hutch led the charge at the front of the rafts, braving the conditions. The water was freezing, and the rain was coming down, but that wouldn’t stop us from jumping in and going for a little afternoon swim! Charlotte and Solomon were first to dunk themselves in the blue glacier water, with the rest of the group following close after. As the whitewater calmed and the day began to draw to a close, we beached the rafts to set up camp on our island for the night, along with playing many games of Mafia and a new favorite of ours, “Shmodice”, also known by some as “Silent football”.
Waking up on day 3, the rain didn’t stop, but neither would we! A hearty breakfast of chocolate chip pancakes and fruit, made incredibly by our raft guides, fueled us for a morning of cruising calmly down the river and getting to know each other more by telling some hilarious stories and jokes. Oliver and Stephy drew many laughs from the group as we enjoyed views of mountains, glaciers, and gorgeous trees all around us on the river. The motivation and positivity from this group never faltered as we carried the rafts out of the water at the end of the expedition, yelling, “WHO’S GONNA CARRY THE BOATS” – and we did! Although our rafting was over, the day brought more fun as we headed to our campsite for the evening and night. We set up a tarp to keep our hangout spot dry and enjoyed a rainy afternoon together. JJ, Blair, and Sadie cooked up ground beef, rice, and peppers for our burrito bowls, and wow, it was the perfect way to wrap up such an eventful day. Gaining some energy from such an incredible meal, the group made up a ‘try not to laugh game’, where they put water in their mouths, tried to make each other laugh, and could clearly see who won and lost based on who spit out the most water – it was safe to say that Brooks may not have won, but he sure loves to laugh, so I think that makes him a winner in all our eyes. As rain gave way to some blue sky, we made the spontaneous decision to find somewhere special to do Moonup, ending up at a park right on the water for our last night in the town of Squamish, and watching the sun set over the mountains and through the clouds.
The adventure only ramped up on day 4 as the group absolutely crushed the Chief Hike, making it to the 2nd peak – 3 miles and almost 2,000 feet of elevation has nothing on us! The views from the top were more than enough of a reward for the challenging hike, and made for the best goodbye to the mainland of Canada before we ferried over to Vancouver Island to continue our trip. The ferry brought incredible views of the water, mountains, and even some whales that the group greatly appreciated and found incredibly cool. Being tired from a long day, we got to camp, ate dinner, and quickly fell asleep to gear up for what will be an awesome next few days – we can’t wait for it all!
The past few days have been nothing short of amazing. This group is beyond positive, funny, and like a little family already! We can’t wait to tell y’all about all our adventures, but in the meantime, we’ll be tearing up the waves in Tofino! Talk to y’all soon!
All the best from BCO B,
Sofie, Will, and Huck
Safe Arrival in Seattle!
June 24, 2026
Hello California Families!
We heard from our leaders that the group has landed safely in Seattle! 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 trip updates throughout the next week! This will allow you to follow along with the trip. You can also follow us on Instagram, @moondanceadventures, to see more of what we are up to!
-Moondance HQ
