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.

The Alevin linger at Lizard Lake

My wife taught Kindergarten for many years. For over a decade, her district offered half-day Kindergarten only. Then the district, partly in response to her urging, began to phase in all-day K. Presumably thanks to her dedication to the change, her’s was one of the first classrooms to make the change. 

As she was preparing for her first full-day class, I was speaking with her about what the extra time meant for her curriculum. Would she add to her existing subject areas or institute additional topics? Her response (paraphrased) - “ You poor, innocent, unwitting soul. I don’t need to add more work to rush through…I need the extra time to do justice to the curriculum I’ve been teaching!”

A similar sentiment applies for Saturday’s Lizard Lake outing. The Blanchard Mountain area in the

Play misty for the Alevin

southern Chuckanuts offers so many opportunities for skills work and play, the mentors fell into the same trap I failed to avoid many years ago; we started up the trail with a long list of options to fill our longer-than-usual seven hour outing. And what happened? 

Rather than a record number of different activities, we did three tried and true: we hiked and explored, we practiced making and tending a fire, and we climbed over boulders and into caves. 

The hike to Lizard Lake was a demanding one. It began on a logging road that rises gently through forest and salmonberry bushes, with pastoral views of Skagit County farmland near Alger. We then turned West into the woods and up switchbacks toward Lily and Lizard Lakes. I had anticipated that we would take time for games along the climb, but we mostly pressed on as the boys were eager to get to the lake.

Log-walking to the far side of the lake

Once there, the Alevin immediately scattered into a frenzy of free exploration. They’d been here before and wanted to revisit prior exploits. The mentors had planned to begin by asking the group to prioritize our planned activities, but decided instead to follow the wisdom captured in our mottos for the day - “It’s about the journey, not the destination.” and “Be here now.” 

The forest was wet this day, as is not a surprise in the Chuckanuts. And, as if to eliminate any doubt about the subject, a shower passed through as the boys were transitioning to lunch and we gathered to plan the day. Unfortunate, given that our skill for the season is fire by friction.

Undaunted, we gathered our tools and our resolve and began with the purest of fire making

Mentor Conor lead the hand drill effort

techniques - the bow drill and the hand drill. Thanks to mentor Conor’s skill and passion for the hand drill, that soon took center stage. Before long, a determined team of four explorers and Conor was generating smoke off their fire board. The attendant excitement proved short-lived, however, as the team actually penetrated all the way through the board a few times without generating the necessary coal to ignite their nest into a sustainable flame. No doubt, the excessive dampness was to blame. 

Ah, but we have more options. Flint and steel was tried next. Again, repeated efforts went unrewarded. Our tinder seemed dry, but stubbornly refused to respond to the spark. By this time, we needed to succeed more than we needed to master backcountry skills, so we pulled out the “Strike anywhere” matches. They proved true to their name as were we quickly able to ignite the nest of twine, fat wood shavings and twigs. As if to validate the challenge the explorers faced on this very wet day, however, we had trouble building the fire into a sustainable inferno even now. 

Frustrating though is was, this effort exposed tangible signs of maturation among the Alevin. They embraced the challenge of mastering a difficult skill under punishing circumstances; they were determined and focused in their work; they were flexible in their approach; they were sanguine in the face of mixed success. Important life skills all! 

It was time for a change: the land offered an excellent option in the caves. When last this group

No Lizard Lake Legend here

clambered over and around these behemoths, they spied porcupines, dared their peers to slither into impossibly small openings and, wait for it…..discovered the reclusive “Lizard Lake Legend”! Of course, it wouldn’t be reclusive if it showed its conglomerated form at each visit, so the legend was strengthened by its absence this visit. Next pop in?

Energy levels waned as we hiked back down the trail and out along the logging road. We held our closing meeting at one of the view points, which made giving thanks a little tough. It can be hard to decide from among the myriad blessings of this land, but the Alevin rose to the occasion before returning, wearily, to their respective rides.

You can find more pictures from our adventure here. Our next outing is coming up pretty quickly. We meet on Sunday, May 15th, from 9:30-1:30pm for our Spring service outing at the Boys E.C. Connelly Creek Restoration Site, Happy Valley Park. Click here for the schedule details.

The Alevin's First Exploration of the Rock Trail

Driving up Cleator Road to the Cyprus Gate Overlook the mentors discussed the possibility of a road closure due to downed trees. Sure enough, pulling up to the upper Fragrance Lake Trailhead there was a gate across the road where we could see a large Douglas Fir blocking any vehicle from passing.

As the Alevin arrived we gathered and explained that our hike to the Rock Trail was going to be extended by a mile or so. The mentors asked the group to track back to Wednesday night and think about the powerful windstorm that had battered the Pacific Northwest. The boys talked about the sound of the wind and a few trees that had fallen near their houses.

Our plan for the day was to have some free exploration on the Rock Trial, being that it was the group’s first ever exploration here, and to find Lost Lake with the intention of having a sit spot and some tea on it’s shore. Revisiting our skill for the season, a continuation of fire by friction, the mentors asked the group if they still had their fire kits from last season. We were pleasantly surprised when most of the boys answered that they still had their materials. Alevin, nice work hanging on to these materials over the winter; they are not that easy to harvest! Next outing we will be headed to Lizard Lake where we will be able to build a proper fire, so make sure you bring your fire kits!

As we hiked up the logging road towards the trailhead Brian let the group know that there were two ways to navigate there. One was to follow the road all the way to the top and the other was to take what he coined “Brian’s Shortcut”. After a little group decision-making the boys decided to try out “Brian’s Shortcut”, which involved leaving the logging road and hiking off-trail directly up the mountain.

The boys sweated and strained as they battled their way up the mountain. Upon reaching the top they decided to never again take “Brian’s Shortcut”. They acknowledged that the cold and chill they were feeling in the parking lot had all but absolved by our route.

Looking to our left we found a healthy Stinging Nettle patch and filled our pot with leaves with the hope of tea by the lake. As we made a final push to the trailhead the group marveled at the sights and smells of spring: the bright colors and rich aroma of Salmonberry and Indian Plum flowers, Big Leaf Maples buds, new leaflets on the Huckleberries and Ocean Spray, and the saucer like fruiting bodies of the Usnea Lichens.

The view of the bay from the Cyprus Gate Overlook was awe-inspiring. As a group we worked on identifying landmarks: Clarks Point, Mud Bay, Lummi Spit, and Locus Beach. The wind over the water made uniform swell lines across the bay. As the clouds sailed by over our heads sun breaks would hit the bay, lighting up the shallow water like a tropical reef.

Proceeding down the Rock Trail signs of Wednesday’s storm were everywhere. Broken Douglas fir branches blanketed almost every part of the forest floor. Arriving at the first staircase the group marveled at the steepness of the wooden steps as we descended down next to a sheer wall of Sandstone that was over forty feet high.

Passing through the seemingly endless sandstone cliffs and ridges we couldn’t help but immerse ourselves in the topography. Stopping to eat some lunch, we found a series of small caves on a cliff-side. A few were big enough to climb in. The group spent some free time climbing around exploring the location. Once we had had our fill we headed down switchback after switchback, eventually arriving at the lake.

Passing through a maze of young Doug Fir and Salal the group navigated to the Eastern outpour of the lake. Following the drainage the group found a thirty-foot waterfall that was really flowing! Feeling the call the boys spread out over the land and settled back into the moss for a sit spot next to the falls. The sounds of cascading water filled the valley as the boys sat still and quiet.

Meanwhile one of the mentors harvested some water and got a pot of nettle-peppermint tea boiling. Calling the group back in from their sit spots we shared apples and thanks as we watch a few Eagles soar over Lost Lake.

Gathering our strength the boys made a huge push back up the rock trail. As we crested the top of Chuckanut Mountain the cool breeze acted like air conditioning, refreshing us all. The boys laughed and joked as we hiked down the logging road towards the gate. The mentors trailed in the back discussing one challenge we’ve faced with the group that we’d like to work on this season. The Alevin’s challenge comes in their ability to recognize transition times between silliness and play and times where we need to bring our focus together. Throughout the season Brian and I will aim to offer the boys more leadership opportunities to experiment with these transitions and model them amongst their group.

The mentors are thankful for a powerful start to our fall season and for the spirit of exploration these Explorers bring to our outings. We look forward to every opportunity to get outside with the Alevin!

For more photos of the Alevin’s Rock Trail outing please visit the photo album from the day.