The Alevin Lead the way to Cedar Lake via Chuckanut Mountain

Arriving at the Pine and Cedar Lakes Trailhead the Alevin gathered in circle, ready to get on the trail. Before heading out the mentors called for an opening meeting as they recognized that much of our typical BEC core routines were not practiced the previous outing due to some location logistics. The mentors wanted to hold the group to these routines and encourage the Explorers to formulate a plan for the entire day. Mentors explained that we were willing to drop our plan for the day and follow their inspiration as long as they were actively engaging as a group and with the environment they were in.

We nominated a Tribal Elder and the mentors stepped back to let him lead. After the group came to a consensus the Tribal Elder reported back to the mentors that we were going to hike to Pine Lake and find a place to play Spider’s Web. After the game the group would spend some free time exploring around the lake while some of the group worked on their carving projects. The mentors agreed with the plan and added in a long sit spot at the Lake.

As we hiked up the steep trail the boys immediately peeled off their layers and aligning their mindset for an uphill battle. Pressing on the group started to recall all the different switchbacks along the trail. It is great to see the elder Explorers coming to understand the lay of the land. This would mark their third journey up to the lakes and the boys were excited to look at the Sundew plants that grow on the Sphagnum moss covered logs that float in the lake. These connections represent the deep sense of place the Alevin have for our reoccurring outing locations.

Our boys must have been halfway up the trail before any of them thought to have a sip of water. Staying hydrated on the chilly November explorations is tough, but necessary, for the body’s regulation of its internal core temperature. Luckily none of the group seemed to be struggling with the cold at that moment!

Hiking up the trail the mentors kept checking in with other hikers coming down to see how strong the wind was at the top of the ridge line. The mentors explained to the group that it was important on days where the wind and weather conditions were moderately risky but still manageable for the group to have forethought and awareness toward environmental hazards and recognize changing weather conditions.

After an hour or more of climbing we arrived at the ridgeline and were greeted by an amazing trail map that had been installed over the summer. The Explorers mulled over the map and it was clear that climb took more effort than the boys anticipated. Some members of the group called to amend the plan and hike to Cedar instead of Pine Lake. The Explorers looked to the mentors to solve the decision, but we looked back at the boys and reminded them who was in charge of the plan for the day. Through some collaboration the group decided to go a shorted distance to Cedar Lake and save their energy for exploring.

Hiking along the ridge the group started to get chilly in the wind as the sweat we had worked up cooled rapidly. Arriving at the lake we bundled up and the group immediately ate lunch and transitioned naturally into free exploration. After some decompression time the mentors called the group together and asked the boys how their plan for the day was working out. The group recognized that they had strayed from their plan and wanted to continue their free exploration of the lake. Putting on our mentoring hats we encouraged the boys to set time limits on their free exploration so that we would not have a reiteration of our time spent squirreling out and not focusing on our skills work like the last outing.

Setting a limit the boys got exploring. It was fascinating to observe the group dynamic. The boys spent a majority of their time talking amongst one another and goofing off rather than immersing themselves in the ecology of the location like they had talked about. Reflecting on this recent phenomenon on our outings our mentors feel that the group is in the full fledge of adolescence and have become hyper-aware of their relationships with others, where they fit in in the group, how they’re perceived, and are dissecting and processing their own culture and beliefs. This could explain our struggle as mentors to balance the time for the group to bond and talk with providing skills, activates, challenges, and adventure in which everyone is engaged.

A few minutes before we transitioned out of free exploration the mentors noticed that one of the explorers had made a very concerning symbol out of sticks on the forest floor. The context around the steps leading up to the symbol being made and the motivations behind the making of the symbol is still unknown to the mentors. It could have been an unethical joke, it could have been a careless action, or it could have been the participant’s exposure to the recent publicity in the media from certain extremists groups within our country. No matter the context it was very important at that moment to call the group together to talk about it. 

The symbol that was quickly disassembled by the embarrassed Explorer was one whose history was co-opted from a peaceful symbol into an emblem of violence, hatred, oppression, genocide, and tyranny. We asked the group what the symbol represented and what it would feel like to be someone who experiences daily bigotry, hatred and/or oppression and to see that symbol while out on a hike.

The Alevin looked visibly uncomfortable and responded sheepishly: fearful, disheartened, angry, sad, humiliated, scared, despair, uncared for, targeted, etc.…  The boys learned a few extremely valuable and humbling lessons that day: that symbols and actions that might not hold a lot of meaning or context to them have a very real power to affect others around them and cause harm, that our minds are wilderness and if we let them run wild and compartmentalize and rationalize too frequently we can override our moral compass and ethics, and that we must not run from the shadow side of the world. We must face it, name it, and learn how to overcome, heal, and grow from our experience with it.  

With that heavy debrief the group was ready for a sit spot, but not before reading a poem entitled A Poem for Hope by Wendell Berry. Spreading along the lake’s edge we marveled at the tall stand of Cedar and Doug Fir that outlined its shore. The gust of wind sent ripples out over the lake and we settled into the peace of the place as the brisk temperature set in.

After the sit spot we had a check in and shared what we had contemplated on the sit spot.  Sharing some apples we held of circle of thanks and thought about the first half of our 2016/17 year together. Brian and I are excited to continue the journey with the Alevin this January and would like to thank parents for all the support you provide your Explorers and our organization.

Look for date and locations for the last five outings of the year to be posted on the Alevin’s group page by December 5^th.

For more photos please visit the Alevin’s photo gallery from the day.

Alevin Explore Pine and Cedar Lakes

The Chuckanut Mountains are probably the ideal place for immersing in the natural world with Alevin explorers.  Despite the warm weather and sunny skies the trailhead for Pine and Cedar Lakes was quiet as Greg and Matt waited eagerly for the boys to arrive.  The Alevin have been stretching the edges of their skills this season.  They have begun to step into the role of mentor to the younger explorers, they are learning to create fire, and their carving skills are steadily growing.  The Alevin are decisive and efficient when working as a group and there are many compassionate leaders emerging from this group of strong young men.  The mentors were excited to offer them another challenge to finish their season.

Once all of the explorers had arrived Matt and Greg held a very brief opening meeting and without any prompting the boys simply began to head up the trail.  The mentors looked at one another slightly amused and followed their lead.  It became apparent that our group had several different paces emerging and it would be necessary to figure out how we were going to travel as a group.  Matt helped the boys brainstorm some trail etiquette.  The Alevin established that we needed to stay together, yield to other trail users, not trundle rocks, avoid switchback cuts, and offer a friendly hello to the folks we met.  The motto “Its about the Journey not the destination” rings true and the boys and mentors kept that in mind as we started back up the trail.  Given that we were a group of twelve our paces were very well matched and we managed to stay together for the most part for the rest of the hike.

The trail to the lakes is quite steep.  So when the boys requested a stop for lunch we had to search quite a ways for a reasonable were we could congregate and not block the trail for a quick lunch break.  Matt and Greg attended to the first of the emerging hotspots and after filling our bellies we set out once more to climb ever upwards along the old logging road.  We passed numerous plants, which offered us a chance to learn a few more species that abound in our local woods.  We saw Goat’s Beard, Foam flower, and Piggy Back plant in bloom and even a species of orchid called Rattlesnake Plantain (though it will bloom later this summer). 

When we finally reached our first major junction someone yelled “HIDE!” and off into the bushes we scattered.  The flat sunny spot next to the junction was the perfect place for a rest and some time to practice a few skills.  Matt was working on his hand drill fire by friction technique and many boys were practicing their carving skills.  The Mentors suggested that the Alevin needed to make a decision about which trail to take and offered a map of the Chuckanut Mountains for guidance.  A decision was made in record time and again we headed up.  Along one switch back there is a perfect log crossing that spans a small seasonal drainage.  The boys were eager to cross, but with urging from the mentors we worked through a full risk assessment, came up with a plan, and those that wanted to were able to cross the log!

There were several stops along the way before we reached the junction that would take us the last little bit down to the lakes.  We attended to blisters, listened to owls, investigated fatwood, and examined the landscape for places to play a game of spider’s web. When we finally reached the junction Matt and Greg prompted the group to make a decision about where to have our closing meeting.  It was quickly decided that we would head down to the shore of Cedar Lake explore for a brief time and then finish our season with a strong closing meeting.

The sight of the lake injected the Alevin’s tired legs with a burst of energy and they ran the final 100 yards and dispersed along the lake shore looking for signs of carnivorous plants and amphibians.  With some reluctance to stop exploring, the boys gathered for a final circle of gratitude.  We reflected upon our journey this spring that began amidst the fossils of racehorse falls and ended with the warmth of sun on sandstone beside Cedar Lake.  Thanks were given to the land, trees, the lake, mentors, explorers club and family.

With the realization that we must cover the same distance in one hour that had just take us three hours to accomplish we set off down the trail.  At first the boys were racing down the trail a cloud of dust following them, but slowly their pace evened out into a steady walk down the steep trail and in the span of one hour (with lots of help from gravity) we emerged at the trailhead to find the smiling faces of the Alevin Explorers’ families.

The mentors would like to offer our deepest gratitude to the Alevin Explorers.  You are fine human beings and we are grateful to know you.  We have noticed so much growth in you since the beginning of the fall season.  When you come together again in September for the first outing of the Fall the Mentors will be eager to see you again and hear the stories of your summer adventures.  Hopefully we will see you around town this summer, in one of our camps or better still in the Chuckanuts! One final thank you to the parents and families of the explorers.  Your sons are great people and it is a pleasure to work with them.  Thank you for your trust with them and for supporting the work we do.  There are lots of photos in the gallery so please take a look!