Chuckanut Wilds # 2 - 2015

On the first day we all met in a Summer drizzle at Whatcom Falls Park. A large Maple and Douglas fir provided Shelter as we all gathered and prepared for the day. We started off with a quick name game and then headed across the parking lot and down toward the creek and the woods that lay beyond. We hiked for a while on the main trail hoping to move deep enough into the park to find a place off trail to play games and explore. Soon we found a deep valley with dense sword fern and fallen trees, perfect for a game of Spiders Web. After establishing the food source and web we chose a spider and began playing. As the game finished the sun began to break through the cloud cover and we unanimously agreed to head down toward the creek. We found a great stretch of creek with a series of deep swimming holes connected by cascading waterfalls. There was an osprey nest just above us and we had excellent views of the large birds coming and going. We spent the rest of our afternoon exploring this spectacular stretch of creek.

Our second day was and exploration of 100 aker wood. This patch of forest has long been a staple of Wild Whatcom programs and offers numerous opportunities for wandering and discovery. With many winding and forking trails this forest is also the perfect place for the boys to practice their navigation and group decision making skills. Our day went quickly with some good focused carving time and a couple rounds of Spiders Web 

For our third day of camp we met at the Bakerview Mud Flats, an infamously fun and dirty outing that is always a favorite among the boys. We had a quick opening circle in the logs just above the high tide line,now the start to the deep mud, and made our plans for the day. We decided first to head West down the beach to the meeting of the Nooksack River and the ocean. As we walked down Tim and I had the boys stop and place a blindfold over their eyes. We then had the boys form a long line, each grabbing on to the pack of the boy in front of them. The leader had no blindfold and led the boys through the muddy landscape. Every few minutes we would switch leaders. What had started has an exercise of relying on our other senses besides eyes quickly morphed into an excellent exercise in group dynamics and communication. We spent the rest of the day building shelters, swimming in the nooksack, building sand cities, tracking coyotes, and exploring the intertidal life.

Our Fourth day marked the beginning of our overnight at Larrabee State Park. after loading all the overnight gear into the car we circled up to figure out how we wanted to spend our day. From our location at Larrabee the options are endless. After much discussion the group decided to head up into the Chuckanut Mountains and toward Fragrance Lake. Along the trail we played Hide!, looked at the wildlife along the trail, and steadily climbed toward the lake. Soon enough we were distracted by a pile of sandstone boulders, We all dropped our packs and ran over to look at them. All the boys had fun as they scrambled up and down one particularly large boulder. After an hour or so of playing we called the boys back in so they could decide if they wanted to keep moving up toward the lake. The boys had little focus in this circle and found it very hard to make a decision. This was a good lesson in how much time making these decisions can take if everyone isn’t focused. With our day running out we made it up to the view point and decided this would be our turn around point. 

Back down at Larrabee we performed the basic chores around camp of getting tents set up, a kitchen organized, and all of our gear put away. They boys all showed a lot of leadership in making sure that all of these things were completed. 

After dinner we headed down to the big field just above the bay. Some boys played soccer, some of us sat and chatted in small groups, and others lay down on the cool grass relaxing from our long day. As the light grew dim we all layed on the grass to watch the bats and emerging stars. We all reflected on the camp and shared memories from the past week as the darkness really settled in. for our walk back we decided to spread out a couple hundred yards from one another for the short stretch through the forest. Many of the boys were apprehensive and nervous about this, but we all agreed to try it. Once on the other side of the walk we circled back up and everyone relayed their experience. All of us had positive things to say about this. These boys stretched their edge in confronting the nervousness of being in the woods at night and did an excellent job growing from this.

It was a wonderful five days with these boys, exploring and playing, learning and growing. It was a pleasure to spend this much time with them and i look forward to working with each of them more in the future. Thank you explorers for you enthusiasm and ever positive attitudes. Thank you parents for your support and sending your boys out with us. Be sure to look through our photo gallery for more pictures from the camp!