Sunday, October 23, 2011

PAD2O Frontenac Hiking Trip #2

October 18 - 20, 2011

This is the hiking trip that had to be postponed at the beginning of October, which is always a scary proposition as you know the temperatures start to drop dramatically and rain is more prominent in October. Luck would have it, the original trip would've started with two days of heavy rain, but the forecasts for this trip were even worse (50+ mm of rain and heavy winds on Wednesday). Lucky for us, weather forecasters can't predict too far in advance and we had pretty good weather for the middle of October.


The students were excited to get started. Similar to the 1st trip, our goal was to take a new route to our first campsite on Little Salmon Lake. Things were moving along quite well with Josh doing a great job navigating. Then we had two unfortunate individuals twist their ankles, along with the strains of the heavy backpacks for some, forced us to go a bit slower. This made the last few kilometres seem really far and it brought great relief when we finally did get sight of our campsite. The peace and beauty of it all did make all the hard work worth it, especially the wonderful display of stars that night.


The next morning we woke up to a real mixed bag of weather. It started with the sun, then cloud and just when we were ready to pack up our tents, we got two fairly heavy showers (oh, oh, were the forecasters changing the weather back to heavy rains?). Once we got hiking again, the weather settled and we had a mix of sun and cloud with the odd sprinkle. The group knew this would be our longest day and set a solid pace. Arriving at the beautiful lookout on Big Salmon Lake in good time, allowing us to enjoy a nice lunch at campsite #5. The final leg of the day was also completed with great efficiency, giving us plenty of time to set up camp, collect firewood and make our dinners before the winds and rain blew us away.


The winds during the second night were extreme, with winds upwards of 70 km/h. The night also brought thunderstorms and plenty of rain. One of the tents, which a large group of girls decided to huddle in to keep warm, would see the fly get lifted by the strong winds and then they would get blasted with the rains, soaking everyone and all their equipment inside. Needless to say this group spent a wet and chilly night before they decided to get into one of the better tents. In the morning, you could tell which students didn't get enough sleep, as tensions were high in some fractions of the group as we were trying leave camp. Some students also gave up trying to keep things dry, as they knew we were headed home. This was a good thing for the majority of the group.


Camping can be a challenge for some people, add to that having to carry all your gear on your back and the chilly unpredictable weather of October, you get individuals that are brought way beyond their comfort zone. I must say that with this group, some students really impressed me with their ability to deal with some of those struggles and their ability to rise above it to ensure enjoyment for themselves and others. I do hope for those students that were really beyond their comfort zone, that they realize this is part of enjoying the Canadian Wilderness, but for every day you face hardships, there are ten others that will bring you the utmost exhilaration.

16 comments:

tylerlcf said...

Hiking Trip Reflection
This hiking trip was amazing. I was extremely excited when we got on a bus. On the way there, the bus ride was really long and I remember that my legs fell asleep. This first day was really hard on everybody and I remember that I had both food tarps on my bag. I was glad that after three hours, we got to the campsite. I was with Scott and Josh and the first thing we did was set up the tent. The whole trip was so cold and I had 5 layers on to keep warm. When we had to hang our food bag it was so heavy, Scott was p in the tree and he pulled it up while I lifted the bag and Josh pulled on the rope. The second day was better than the first. I was used to the weight of the backpack so it was a bit easier but, still hard. He second way was extremely windy and our tent almost blew off our platform. I woke up and the pegs holding our tent to the ground were out almost all the way. We also had racoons poking and laying on the tent. On the last day I was glad to go home. I was given the map to navigate our way to the bus. When we got on the bus everybody fell asleep but I stayed awake. When we got back to school, I unpacked and then went to take a shower. I never worked harder in my life then I did on this trip. I loved and I wold do it again.
Tyler Franklin

BillaBong said...

Hiking trip reflection
When I heard we were going on a hiking trip in Frontenac Park I was excited to go. When the Bus for the trip came I was very excited to go and start hiking. When we got there all I could think of was getting to see the park and what was waiting for us inside. After the first two hours of hiking I was starting to get sore and could not wait to get to camp. Once we got to camp the first thing we did was set up our tent, I was sharing a tent with Phil and Christian. Hanging the food that night was fun we were sharing a bag with Sammy and Julia. So our bag was extra heavy with all that food. I learned how to tie a bowline to tie the rope to the bag to hang. We had to use two ropes and we all had to help lift the bag because it was too heavy for three people and one rope. Later on I heard an owl across the lake it was peaceful that night and the stars were so clear to it gave me the chance to study the stars. Day two was hard. We had to walk twice as far and it was even longer then the day before. During the day we got to see a white tailed deer run by it was the first animal we had seen up close. When we got to camp it was quite windy and it was hard to start a fire. So we use the rubbing alcohol to help keep the fire burning so we could cook dinner. We found a frog and I got to hold it. When it was time to hang our food it was already dark and the tree we were using was not strong enough to hold two bags of food. I had to go look for a new tree in the dark that was fun. The next morning was wet, it had rained over night and our tent, and half of our food was soaking wet. The hike home was long and exhausting, and I got to see some more frogs on the way back. When the bus came I was sad to leave but excited to go home. On the way home everyone fell asleep except a few of us that stayed awake for the ride. When we got to school I unpacked the things that weren’t mine and then went home. I hope we go on another hiking trip again soon.

Alicia Beaudoin said...

Personal reflection

On the hiking trip I learned many things, one thing I learned is not everything goes as planned, and it’s not as easy to say you’re going hiking and camping outside for three days. I thought it wouldn’t be hard to walk around with a huge bag on my back, but it was a pretty tough experience.
On the hiking trip I enjoyed the campfires at night the most, sitting around the fire laughing, making memories, it was an experience I won’t forget. But I also liked having the experience of hiking for the period of time we did, with the amount of luggage on our backs. As usual you have your enjoyments, and stuff you wish didn’t happen, and for me I really didn’t want our tent to leak that night of the rain storm. It was very uncomfortable, but things happen, and you deal with them as best as you can. Which we did, we ended up sleeping 7 girls in a 2 person tent.
In the hiking trip I would do a couple things different such as; I wouldn’t have brought a summer tent, I would have brought an all season’s tent. I would have also changed our menu plans, because personally I don’t think my groups menu was very healthy, and as filling compared to Mr. Brower’s menu plan. I would have made bigger meals for supper and brought less junk/junk food that we didn’t end up using or eating.
Personally I think our trip went well, but could have been better with better attitudes and if we were more prepared, and aware of what was going to happen. Honestly I wouldn’t do the hiking with the bags on our backs again, but I would defiantly go camping again!

Alicia Beaudoin!

PHILosopher said...

We were soaked. We were sweaty. We were cold. Despite all this, we still had fun! I can't think of words to express how happy I am that I'm home, but I would definitely go on this trip a second time. Other then planning better and scheduling our time more efficiently, I would just be better prepared for the weather!

I think the exhaustion and lack of comfort was easily the worst part, but if we hadn't been tired enough to fall asleep right away, do you think that we would have been as excited to get to the campsite? That was probably the best part, arriving at camp after a 2 - 4 hour hike. People were actually running to the site when it came into view, using energy inspired by the rest that they would now get. Plus, the hiking part just made the resting part more worthwhile. This trip gave us moments that you could not have experienced had we been driven, or didn't have to carry all of our supplies. Also, if this had been just a regular school trip to a museum, we wouldn't have been elated at the fact that when it was over, we got to use REAL toilets!

At the first site, the only thing anyone wanted to do was drop their bags and rest. Which we did! However, then we had to get some work done. We set up tents, and prepared dinner, but after dinner, it was a mad rush to get everything in a bag and up a tree. When all the work was done, we relaxed, played some cards, looked at stars, and sat around the campfire. We tried to get some campfire songs going, but we didn't really know any good ones.

The second site was a bit less fun to set up. It was very windy, and everyone got cold. I don't get cold easily, but even I was gripping my hot chocolate mug for warmth. Partly through the night, we got bombarded by rain. The combination of the sound of wind rushing through the trees and raindrops hitting our tent gave us little chance to fall asleep. The wind was pushing the side of the tent against my sleeping bag, and the rain seeped through. I didn't realize it until halfway through the night, and by then the sleeping bag was too wet to try to dry.

There were definitely tough stretches, and parts where we could have given up, but we pulled through the twisted ankles and the blisters, and I was pleasantly surprised at how supportive everyone was being to each other! I learned that a bit of bad weather can ruin a whole night, and that food needs to be hung as early as possible. However, more importantly, I learned the value of camping with good friends.

I also noticed a huge difference between the bus ride there and the bus ride back. On the way there, everyone was anxious, but really excited. On the way back, everyone but four people fell asleep. When everyone was awake, it was almost as quiet as everyone being asleep! The trip took a toll on us, and we were all glad to be home.

It was an extremely good experience, and I'm glad that I went through it with friends. I have been camping before, but it was quite different from this. I had never carried supplies for three days on my back before, never hung my food in a tree before, and had never relied on a campfire to cook my food before. On this trip we learned quite a bit, and if I was offered the chance to go again, I would take it in a heartbeat. Good job guys!

Julia said...

I was really excited for the hiking trip the first time it was mentioned. I go camping often with my family and I thought it would be the same sort of thing. It was not at all! I’m used to driving the car to a campsite and leaving everything there while we go swimming or walking and come back to a campsite that’s already set up. This trip was totally different for me, but I think it was a really good experience. I learned a ton of things on this trip; things I wouldn’t have learned as well from a classroom. One of the biggest things I learned was about people, and the problems we can overcome as a group. The first day was really hard for all of us, as we were all pushed physically. I’m not entirely sure what we were all expecting, but after about the longest fifteen minutes of my life, we were all ready to quit. We all had to grow and change a bit after that. Stopping every fifteen minutes wasn’t going to help us any and neither was complaining the whole time. I think that throughout the days, we got stronger and complained less. We also learned about each other. I noticed many people offering water to those who were thirsty and had run out, and offering to carry things for those who were struggling more. I also noticed people seeing the need to stop and rest, and making sure everyone got a chance to rest. Food was one of my biggest issues. Above all else, I was really worried about the food spoiling, or us not having enough, or something leaking. This was the first time I ever seriously had to worry about my own food, and where my next meal was coming from. That was another great experience for me, and I couldn’t believe how much I appreciated the fridge when I got home. I can’t believe that people used to survive without the means to keep their food fresh. I was stressed about that the whole time! The rain was another difficulty which definitely held us back. We were extremely slow in the morning, not only because we had to reorganize the food and make it, but also because of the rain. Each day started out with our packs getting wet and our things being very heavy. This made starting the days harder, but as the day progressed, the packs got lighter and more bearable. The rain was fairly minor during the day though, which was wonderful. My favourite parts of the trip were when we arrived at the campsite and had everything set up and dinner was cooking on the fire. When we had a moment to reflect on how far we had come as a team, to have fun and to just be a part of something great. I really felt like we were a team and it felt really good to relax and feel that I had done my best that day. I would do this again in a heartbeat!
Julia Elliott

Mady said...

Hiking Trip Reflection

So we didn't have the best weather! But the views were great!
From the minute we learnt we were going on this trip we knew it would be a blast!

On the first day of the hiking trip I was giddy with excitment! The idea of spending 3 days camping with my friends was awesome! After a long two and a half hour drive to Frontenac Park our whole bus was filled with excitment! As we started on our way hiking I soon figured out that carrying a pack the size of me wasn't as easy as it sounded. I think the next three hours were the worst part of hiking because I wasn't used to the wieght of the pack on my back. As soon as I first spotted the campsites from atop the hill my whole mood was lifted. Once Michelle, Brittney and I set up our tent it was finally time to sit back, relax and make dinner! A few hours later it was time to hang our food, by now it was getting dark so we asked Josh to help us. The problem with hanging food in the dark is that you cannot see when a rock is coming at you, so when Josh pulled down on the rope the rock came full speed at him! After Mr. Brouwer fixed him up he still went back to finsh hanging our bag with us!

After a long, cold night I was glad to be back on the trails again! Although the second day was a longer hike it did not feel as long as the first days hike. The pack felt better on my back and the weight of some food was gone too. The scenery was beautiful on this part of the trail, we got to see some beautiful parts of the lake and the view from the lookout was fabulous! By the time we reached our campsite I was exhausted! At the second campsite it was very, very cold and windy! We sat by the fire to keep warm and ate smores ad jiffy pop! When it was time to go to bed it had gotten even colder so we decided to have 7 girls sleep in a 4 person tent. This was a great idea at first but then it started to rain, and it wasn't a light rain. In combination with the wind blowing our tarp around, the rain and the cold tempurature, it was a recipe for 7 cold, tired, cranky and soaking wet girls! Half way through the night we all decided to swap tents, at least now we were dry but were still cold!

We woke up in the morning packed like sardines! After packing up camp we started on the trails again. When we got onto the bus everyone was soon passed out cold! I was sooo excited to get back to school and tell everyone about the awesome time we had!

All in all I had a fabulous time, I learnt alot about making fires, hanging food and saw a little piece Canadas natural beauty. We also saw a lot of animals. I had an excellent time on this trip and am looking forward to the next one!

Taaylor :D said...

Hiking Trip Reflection

The excitement of my first overnight trip with Cairine set in the morning that we got to school, ready to head out. All my things had been ready and waiting from the weeks before, as the trip was postponed. From the comments I had heard from the trip that went first, I knew it was going to be a blast from the second we set foot on the bus. Upon our arrival to the starting point, you could feel the entire group’s excitement buzzing in the air. It seemed like it was going to be easy and fun, but a few hours into the trail, it dawned on us all that it wasn't going to be as easy as we had expected. I found myself panting and sweating much sooner then I thought I would be, and I was not enjoying the bruises and blisters I could feel starting on my toes and hip bones. When we arrived at camp on day 1, it was a sure relief to us all; we had made it through our first day in the woods! We set up our tents easily and the fires were burning within the first half and hour of being at camp.
Day 2 was my favourite of the 3 days we spent out in Frontenac Park, but I know I was one of the very few who thought so. For me I found the day was fun and I really enjoyed the scenery. Although it was tough walking so much with my already blistered and bleeding feet, I felt a great sense of accomplishment at the end of our longest day in the woods. My favourite part of the trip was when we stopped at the lookout above campsite 5, as it was absolutely breathtaking. All was going as planned and everything was fun... until of course night came. My group hadn't had the best tent for the conditions and when the storm came through our tent didn't hold up, causing our tent to flood in ankle deep, freezing cold water. We were forced to move to the neighbouring tent, which was cold and packed. By morning, all our minds were set on just going home. The last day was neither fun nor joyful, as my whole group had minimal sleep and soaking equipment. When we saw the bus pulling around the bend; we all got to breathe a sigh of utter relief. In conclusion I did enjoy the trip and would definitely like to try it again in my future, but we would ensure that our group had proper equipment and better attitudes towards the experience.

Sammi said...

The first time I heard of the hiking trip I was overly excited. This was not only because I had never been hiking or camping before, but also because of the time of the year that it would be with all the beautiful colours! The bus ride over felt very long, so to make it go faster I played twenty questions with my friends. The first day, my bag felt like I was carrying an elephant in it. When we got to the campsite, I was overjoyed that I could take off my "elephant" bag, and that I could sleep - little did I know that there would be much work ahead of us before that could happen! The first thing my partner, Julia, and I did was set up tents, while Phil, Matt and Christian collected wood, set up a fire and filled all our water bottles. I was a little scared to drink the water the first time because I thought it might have a weird taste to it, but it didn't, so I drank up. When we made dinner that night, it took SO long because we ended up having to use the fire. The stir fry we made tasted so good though, that the wait was well worth it. I volunteered my bag to be used as the food bag for both groups. It was hard to hang it, as I had never done it before. On the way back from hanging it, Mr Brouwer jumped out at me and Julia and we were scared that he was going to do it again, so we were very cautious. The next day we woke up at 6:30am just so we could be ready to leave in the morning - even though we didn't. The day went much better though, because I was used to my bag. But because it had rained the night before, our bags weighed even more (even minus the food we ate), because both the tent and its cover were very wet. I rolled my ankle a couple times, but not bad enough for it to hurt a lot. When we reached the camp that we would be eating lunch at, I was extremely hungry. We had Mr. Noodle and it was a lot easier to cook with the stove than it was the night before with dinner. I learned that sometimes you just have to keep trying with the stoves because they're not like the stoves at home where you just flip a switch and there's heat. This made me appreciate the stoves we have at home. I remember that when we all reached the campsite we would be staying at the second night, everyone was yelling in excitement! After eight hours of hiking up, down, up and down sitting for the rest of the night would be wonderful! The rain that night was horrible! My sleeping bag was very wet at the feet by the morning, even after tucking it under. I learned after getting home when my uncle told me that the sleeping bag touching the side of the tent was a bad idea because it's going to suck the moisture in because it has something to absorb it. The third day, our bags where still very wet because of the rain. I rolled my ankle more as the day progressed and it got to the point that I fell and was limping the rest of the way. luckily we were very close to the end by then. On the bus ride back, pretty much everyone fell asleep, but I stayed awake because I couldn't stop talking about the fun times that I had! I was very happy to go home and have a restful night that night after all the hiking that was done the three day before. This trip is my favourite experience I've had in the outdoors not only because I pushed myself physically, but because I spent it with a great group of people that I really grew closer to! If I was offered to do this trip again, I would say yes even if I had a broken foot!

taylorrankin said...

Hiking Trip Reflection :

The second hiking trip was a tiring and difficult trip. On the first day we got off the bus very excited to get moving and have a great time in the outdoors. but not even 20 minutes in, i twisted my ankle which made me have to stop at first then slow down. the last 2 kilometers were the worst though, we climbed hills with our packs and it felt like we'd never got to the first camp site. My favorite part of the trip was the second day, with everyone ready for what the day in-tailed(8k walk). We all stopped at the beautiful lookout and it felt like we were on top of the world. when we got to camp that night though, the rain and winds started to pick up. Me, Taylor L, Alicia, and Jillian were the girls in the worst tent, we stayed up till 5 in the morning trying to not get all the rain in. All of my things(including my backpack) was soaked. I was happy to go home. This trip would have been more successful if the weather could have been nicer and not so cold. And overall i'd do it again, but only if i know its going to be nice out.

Michelle said...

Hiking Trip Reflection
At first thought, hiking for three days sounded like a lot of fun. But as the date drew nearer nerves and awareness of how unprepared I thought I was started to kick in. But after organizing myself and finally getting on the bus to start our trip to Frontenac park I realized much of a learning experience this was going to be. The first day was what I believed was the hardest, not being used to the weight of the packs and constant movement. We stopped frequently which in my opinion may not have been the best choice because we enjoyed the breaks to much. When we finally got to camp, setting up the tent probably would have been a disaster without Maddy. She had been camping more then Britney and I had, so she taught me how to set up the tent which was easier than I thought and fun to do as well. Cooking out first meal was fun but in the end turned out not to be the best. It was good our noodles for our pasta were just a bit too crunchy. We hadn't put enough water in the pasta to cook it. The camp fire was a lot of fun and the first night was warm and we all slept well and were ready for the next day. Our second day was the best for hiking. My pack felt lighter after I had reorganized it. And we didn't take as many breaks, we just kept walking. But that night was hard. There were big winds that blew the top of our tent up, opening us up to the rain and winds leaving every one in the tent soaking wet and freezing. We fit 7 people in a four person tent because we were so cold and scared to be by ourselves when we started hearing racoons outside our tent. And when we woke up in the morning almost everything was soaked. We learned how heavy a yet bag can feel on the last day of hiking. But it was still fun. I was so tired when I got home I fell asleep almost straight away. The trip was a lot of fun and it really helped me become independent. I would do it again any day!

chrisawesome said...

I was on the second hiking trip that was postponed 2 weeks which was kind of a bummer considering I was actually looking forward to it. After the 2 and a half hour drive by bus to Frontenac Park we finally had arrived at where we were supposed to start our hiking. The first hour was a cake walk, but after that it started getting a bit tedious. There suddenly seemed to be a lot more hills that were in our way which was making it a bit hard on the legs and the 30lb + bags on our backs didn’t help my cause. It took us around 3 hours to reach our first camp site. First things first: get water, which I offered to do. I decided to go bare foot so I could walk in far enough to get “good” water but it was pretty cold in the water. I and my group had a nice dinner: homemade pizza, which we would melt on over the fire. That night was really crappy for me. My tent was sharing a tarp with another tent but we put it so that one piece of our tent was off the tarp. It just so happened that piece of the tent was where I was sleeping; I got maybe 4-5 hours a sleep since we also set my ipod alarm for 6:30 to get a head start. The next morning was really beautiful; our campsite was right at the end of the lake so we got a full view of it. The fog was just coming up from the lake and the colors on the trees just made it that much better. But it was too sweet; I had horrible pains from the hiking before since it was probably the longest I’ve ever walked for in my life. Hiking to our second campsite was horrible for myself, I had horrible pains and it didn’t help that we had to walk for about 6 hours; I never thought I would be so happy to see a campsite. By the time we got to our second campsite the wind started to pick up which made putting up the tents and making the fire a bit harder this time around. After having some trouble hanging up our food we decided to go into our tent and play some UNO. I won one game but that was it. That night I had a good sleep, except for the 50+ winds, rain and some raccoons touching my legs from the outside. The next morning was pretty bad. It was wet, windy and it started to rain, hard! Once we were all packed up we started to head towards the bus. I felt really refreshed going into day 3 which let me keep up with the rest of the group until the last 30 minutes. The bus ride home felt so good, even though everyone smelt pretty bad. I slept for almost the whole ride back to school. Once we got back we unpacked and I went home. I must say this hiking trip was a bit more then what I expected. Not going to lie it wasn’t that fun but it had its fun moments and beautiful scenery that made up for it all.

b-hood said...

For three days straight in October, about 20 of us students had a bag full of everything you would need to survive off in the wilderness. We carried these bags up steep hills, down steep hills, left and right. It was unbelievably tiring. I did not think I could handle 3 days after we hiked for about 15 minutes, but I learned that if you really set your mind to do something, you can pull through no matter how tough. Or if you just don't have a choice but to continue.
During this trip, I learned how to successfully build a fire, tie up food so animals cannot get to it, and how to leave no trace of an area you were previously in. What I enjoyed the most was sitting around the campfire surrounded by my friends and eating smores and jiffy pop. My least favourite part was the hiking. Now that was not just tiring it was also painful. Something that I would do differently if I had to go on another 3 day hiking trip would be to pack lighter and take a better tent as we were all soaked when morning came. If I had the choice to do this all over again, I probably would. I think it would be a lot more enjoyable the second time around because I would know what to expect. I think our menu planning was decent, it couldhave been improved though I am not sure how. We tried to make the meals as balanced as possible. I wish we had brought a lot more snacks though.The rain was definitely annoying. The second night, 7 of us cuddled up into a 4 person tent butwere forced to switch tents because theirs got soaked. The chores that we had to do I would not say they were incredibly difficult, just not entirely easy either. For example, getting the wood. We had to make sure that we were not harming the environment when gathering, and it also would have been a lot easier if we got the wood that we would need before dark so we would not be scrambling all over the place. During the hiking trip, I felt as though we were not prepared well enough to enjoy the experience. But afterward, I realized that you never know when you are going to be stuck in the wilderness, you never know what might happen so it was good that we were not completely prepared so we know to always expect the unexpected.
Aside from the pain, exhaustion, and cold wet nights, I really enjoyed this hiking trip. It is an experience that I will never forget for as long as I live. I learned new skills that I will cherish forever. I gained a lot of memories that brings me closer to my friends and for that I am grateful that Mr.Brouwer set up this trip for us. Anyone that is looking for adventure should most definitely consider Frontenac Provincial Park as an option.

Josh Switzer said...

Last week our PAD2O class went on a hiking trip to Frontenac Provincial Park. On this trip I had a good time, being out in the nature was a really good experience. On the first night we learned how to hang our food so that it would not get eaten by animals. So after successfully hanging our groups food. Another group needed help so I went and helped then. Long story short, I got a rock to the face.... not too fun. When we could be walking, I found that I would get less tired if I was at the front of the group. Cooking was definitely not the highlight of the trip, it took alot of time and washing dishes was not enjoyable. The trip had its ups and downs but I would definitely do it again.

Mr.Brouwer said...

Hiking in Frontenac Provincial Park was by far my favourite trip in this class. I did pack way too much stuff than I needed, but I like to think of it as a good personal challenge that I won. I learned to never let my mom help me pack ever again, but at least I knew that if something happened I would have enough stuff to last me a few more days.

The hiking part of the trip was amazing and I enjoyed the beautiful sights such as the cliff overlooking the lake where the class took a break, it was nice just to sit, relax, and enjoy a nice cool breeze for a bit.

I did not enjoy packing up the tent after the second night for the tent was soaked from the previous night’s thunderstorm and full of dirt. Overall I must say it was a fun trip and I hope to do it again in the future.

By Scott Hudson

JilliaanSmith said...

Hiking Trip Reflection

Coming into this class at the beginning of the year I didn't think I'd end up having to carry a bag bigger then me for hours. Originally I didn't have plans to come to this trip thinking it'd be better to stay at school and catch up, but my main girls Taylor and Alicia convinced me the night before. There we're some key elements I did not get to focus on during the short period of time I had to prepare for this event.

Since our camping trip was the one postponed later in October it was a lot cooler weather we had to prepare ourselves for. From the moment we stepped foot off the bus I knew I had made one of the best decisions to come, and that I wouldn't regret it. It was nice weather when we arrived, but mainly everyone was just relieved to get going and begin the fun.

We began with a group picture and from that, we got on the trail and began following Josh's map reading. It only took us about half an hour in before we could start feeling the digging in our hips and shoulders. A pain we weren't used to yet, but knew we'd have to eventually be. We took breaks and enjoyed the scenery, but tried to limit our breaks to less often and in longer strides. This seemed to work for the most of us, until some peers would take out snacks and drag on the break for longer then we'd expected.

When we finally reached our first campsite, my group and the other girls group immediately called dibs on the middle spot, right by the water with a really pretty view right outside our tent. We assigned tasks for each of us to do, in order to prepare for later in the night before it got darker. This worked out great, and by supper we all had a pile of fire wood and a nice fire with our food cooking on top. We made sure we had a big enough water supply of purificated water to last us till the morning. Since we knew we wouldn't be able to go back out for that later.

We had a great campfire the first night , and some of the other groups came and joined us for smores. Personally,knowing we'd have campfires and smores was one of the things that drived me into coming and was probably one of my favorite parts of the trip aside from bonding time with my girls. We set up our beds and had some of the other girls in our tent for games, when we we're screaming for the others to hurry. Five minutes later we found us all outside taking care of Josh's .. “accident”. I found we all handled that really well, and let Mr. Brouwer know as we should have.

The second day was probably one of my favorites. After we all we're packed up, we we're running a little behind since some of us started breakfast too late,and it took too long to pack everything back up after. We definitely should have been more prepared, and gotten some stuff ready the night before, instead of having to the next morning. We we're all a lot more prepared for the approx. 5 hour trip ahead since we we're more used to it, and our load had been slightly lightened from the food we had ate.

(1/2)

JilliaanSmith said...

(2/2)

Although for me the second day, I carried a lot more group stuff to push myself, as well helped around. We got on the trail and began with my “great” mapping skills, and directed everyone to campsite 5 where we had lunch and enjoyed the breath taking view from the look out. It began raining after we finished lunch and we got back on trail for the next stretch to our second campsite. After the first half , we felt a weight of relief go by and felt unstoppable. Ignoring the pain, we we're almost all getting used to, we enjoyed the perfect scenery we got to experience the whole time. Some of our fellow campers did not have the most positive attitude during our time hiking, but we'd help lighten their load and try and help them have a better experience.

The second night was one to remember. After we put out the fire, and headed to bed. We decided to have some late night snacks , we thought we'd finish and wouldn't have to hangup in the food bag, which unknowingly only lead us to some furry visitors later that night we felt clawing at us. That not being the worst of it, due to our summer tent, it did not stand a chance against the fall season. The wind blew the top off and allowed the rain to come pouring in from the screens on the sides of our tent, drenching all of us, and our “guests”, meanwhile all of our stuff. This lead us to sleeping in the smaller tent with 3 times the amount of people it originally holds. We had to share the few blankets and pillows that weren't soaked and lied on each other uncomfortably. The few hours of sleep the “lighter sleepers” such as myself got, we're up bright and early.

On the third day thinking we could hangup our stuff and let it dry out only led it to getting more drenched when it started to pour again that morning. We had breakfast but we're in a hurry to pack up our wet stuff. Not only was I excited for my load to be the lightest on the last day, I figured I'd take a lot more then my bag could fit and carry a bunch of stuff our whole class used. There being no more room left even on the outside of my bag, I found myself carry things in my hands that would bother me, but I'd be helping out even more. Some fellow campers would say the last day was the longest, but I managed to have the same positive attitude as every other day to stay in front and keep on moving. Hoping that would rub off on my peers. By the end of it we we're all rushing towards the tables and sat down to pig out, and get ready for home. Getting threw those 3 days felt like a big accomplishment we had all been threw together, and looking back the only thing I'd ever change is our tent ♥
J.Smith