Waiting. Anticipating. This is the state of mind that the Boys Explorers Club mentors live in as the spring season approaches. What events have unfolded and shaped the lives of these boys we are waiting to see? Starting with a journey out to Racehorse Falls is a fantastic way reunite and begin our Spring season.
The Alevin were short four boys this outing, a testament to the busy lives that they lead. We missed those who were absent, but we look forward to seeing you all at our next outing! Our opening meeting was humming with energy. There were so many stories to tell and much to catch up on. Matt and Greg held a brief meeting and those explorers that had previously been to Racehorse Falls shared numerous bits of trail beta to the whole group. We quickly boarded our faithful bus Stubbs and headed out.
Our bus ride provided the boys a chance to chat and catch up about the winter, we parked Stubbs piled out, and had our opening meeting. Mentors handed out jobs took an opportunity to refocus our eyes to the emergence of Spring. Much like our explorers, plants in our forests are busting with energy after patiently waiting for the lengthening of daylight and a chance to bloom.
Following a brief discussion we headed out on a boot beaten path and into the lush forest festooned with moss and lichen. Abruptly the trail met a huge logjam which we scrambled over and onto the large cobbled banks of Racehorse Creek. Here the ground is littered with fossils of ancient plants. Their forms are distinct enough to identify. There were palm fronds, grasses, deciduous leaves and ferns. Fossils were hiding in almost every rock. The boys were lost in the pursuit of ancient plants and quickly a log became an impromptu museum. Matt and Greg were also head down and marveling at the abundance of ancient plant life.
After looking at our fossils, the mentors led a discussion about the ethics of taking fossils. Should we take from this place? How many is too many? What should our intentions be when we collect these things? It was an interesting discussion and we agreed as a group that one or two taken with deep respect was appropriate.
The challenge of our outing was finding a suitable creek crossing. The waters of Racehorse creek are shallow, but deep and swift enough to make wading a poor choice. Fortunately a pair of Western Red Cedar trees were recruited by the stream and provided a narrow bridge across the cold water. Matt gave the explorers a brief primer on keeping backpack straps unbuckled incase of fall into the creek and stepped lithely across the log to a point where he could assist the boys should they need an extra hand for balance. One by one the boys mustered their concentration and carefully crossed the creek. After a quick stop for a snack we charged upstream eventually finding the deer paths that were much more efficient that the ever narrowing bank. At a broad gravel bar interspersed with Red Alder saplings and enormous tangles of splintered tree trunks we dropped our bags.
Matt led the explorers up to the falls while Greg prepared for a brief skills lesson on fire. The boys and Matt reveled in the magic and power of the cascading water, and after a brief stay returned to the gravel bar where Greg was waiting to share some fire knowledge. The river’s abundant supply of large cedar logs made fire making materials very easy to obtain. Greg briefly demonstrated how to properly baton splits of cedar into smaller and smaller pieces. With a small pruning saw and a knife we transformed a huge splinter of cedar into beautiful firewood. Greg also demonstrated using his knife to shave paper-thin curls of wood off of a cedar stick and create “feather sticks”. By now the weather had shifted and a steady rain was falling. With the help of a little stick of “fat wood”, Greg was able to start a small fire with the sparks cast from a ferrocium rod (often incorrectly called a flint and steel).
We basked in crackling cheer of our very small fire and discussed the fire journey ahead of the explorers. We extinguished the fire and scattered the soggy ashes so that like the deer we could disappear back into the forest. Mustering all of our focus we doggedly hiked back to stubs executing another flawless stream crossing. Once at Stubbs we circled for our closing meeting and gave thanks for another chance to be together and share these rich experiences in wild places.
Thank you Alevin Explorers for another fantastic outing. What a tremendous way to begin a season exploring together! Another thank you to you Parents, we certainly could not do this important work without your support!
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