Daredevil’s Club Exploration Summer Camp

One week. Five days. Fifty hours. All outside. All engaged. Sunny outings. Good work.

During the Daredevil’s Club week-long summer camp, we delved deep into connection with the natural world. We served the land by lessening the impact of non-native species. We bonded with one another through games and our time spent outside. As a mentor, this was truly an unforgettable experience because Explorers did the work and were fully engaged during all hours of the day and through all activities- both fun and work-oriented ones. The DDC’s level of commitment to each other and to the land is simply remarkable.

First order of business while writing this outing report is to give thanks. Remembering the Boys EC motto,Attitude of Gratitude, we have so much for which to be thankful. For one of the most glorious summers in the past decade and for county parks to explore, I am thankful. Thank you to REI Bellingham for donating the tents for our overnight camping experience. I am also thankful to Stubbs, our mighty yellow Banana Slug Bus who transported us safely to and from all of our adventures without breaking down… until after everyone left on Friday afternoon!

A big thank you goes to our Explorers Mentoring Apprentice (EMA), Asher, who is in the oldest group, the Firestalkers. As members of the Four Shields program, the Firestalkers give so much time to mentor Explorers and share important generational wisdom. Thanks so much Asher for devoting five days of your summer to the DDC!

Thank you to the volunteers that joined us throughout the week: Jake, Alex, Greg. You are good men, and the boys’ experience was much richer because you spent your days with us. Thanks for the good work!

Thank you to parents for being supportive of Explorers Club and for signing your boys up for this mentoring program. Your families are the program; certainly there would be no mentors if there weren’t parents like you that appreciate the value of mentoring. Thanks for making the statement that this work is important and valuable to make our society healthy and strong.

And thank you to the Daredevil’s Club Explorers who jumped in with all of their energy this week. Your excitement, enthusiasm, compassion, and hard work made the camp so successful. It makes me smile to see how much fun you had and how much you learned in only one week outside together. Your huge growth in such a short time is inspirational, and a huge motivation to continue on the mentoring track.

Boys will most undoubtedly have stories to share if they haven’t already. Hopefully this report is a reminder of some of their experiences about which parents should inquire as no amount of text written here will do justice to the week.

From Monday in the 100-Aker Woods we:

Played Hide a lot in order to get comfortable with the location; Learned the Art of Harvesting- including plant identification, asking for permission, taking no more than 25%, giving thanks, and sharing the harvest; Ambushing the Girls EC; Identifying Huckleberry, Oregon Grape, and Indian Pipe; Played Spider’s Web (Remy’s 1st time as the spider); Bounced on a teetering log; Explored deep into the woods; Left little impact; Had a sit spot; Shared stories; Searched for missing items and being forced to ID different trees; Cleaned-up the land. Arrive only one minute late!

Tuesday Highlights from Pine and Cedar Lakes we:

Did group-building activities in the parking lot- Untying the Rope, Asking for help- Standup game; Hiked uphill; Discussed how we are connected to all things, maybe even by little green ropes; Shared stories about the importance of taking care of our gear; Played Hide, Ate lunch toward the top of the climb while sharing more stories; figured out the four cardinal directions without a compass; finally arrived to the lake; Swam; Made a mad dash to get back down the hill; Still managed to give thanks; Arrived only 12 minutes late.

Wednesday Highlights from Bloedel-Donovan Park we:

All participated in the morning mentor meeting; Played Hide; Checked our 50’ pace; Learned which is our dominant leg and how we are likely to curve when walking in a “straight line;” Identified a dozen more plants like—European Bittersweet, Cottonwood, Broadleaf Plantain, Dandelion, Heal-all, Oceanspray, Thimbleberry, Indian Plum, Pacific Yew, (Mint has square stems); Lunched at Derby Pond, Learned about “fatwood;” Made decisions about best interests for group and order of activities (lunch, game, then swim), Played a lengthy and challenging game of Spider’s Web, Engaged in a powerful council discussion in which we responsibly spoke and respectfully listened to others; Hiked back and swam in Lake Whatcom!

Thursday we:

Met in Sehome Haggen parking lot and did an activity called Helium Pole; Bid farewell to Kalifa for a couple of hours until he re-joined us in the afternoon; Drove out to the Fragrance Garden at Tenant Lake; discussed the sense of smell and its importance to the Art of Harvesting; Hiked to the Nooksack River; figured out the cardinal directions again, Considered safety vs. games (heat/hide/ticks); bushwhacked to the river. Played River Otter and Raccoon, Walked to Hovander Park, Did service by taking down Japanese Knotweed in order to free the native Willows, Salmonberries, and Snowberries; Walked back to camp to set up food and shelter; Ate burritos; Took a night hike; Looked at the stars; Lit swamp gas on fire; listened to stories; enjoyed our tents; were compassionate to the mentors and made space for them in the tents after the mosquitoes bit them for hours!

On Friday we:

Packed up camp; Drove to Point Whitehorn Explored more plants and trees in the forest like- Black Birch, Black-capped Raspberries, Grand Firs, Sitka Spruces, and many other reminders of the plants we had identified all week. Walked down to the beach; Explored the intertidal zone; Built forts, Discussed guns as tools and weapons; Gave thanks during closing circle; Arrived to our parents exactly on time!

Thanks again everyone for a great week! Please look at the photo gallery for many more pictures from the Daredevil’s Club Exploration Camp. See you in the fall :)