Serving Connelly Creek with the Alevin and Grey Fox Kits

The Alevin Explorers arrived at Connelly Creek and quickly ran down the embankment, as they were anxious to see how the site has transformed over winter. Calling the group in the Explorers mustered their strength the carried the tools over to the site. They were excited to continue the tradition of camouflaging themselves from the next group, the Grey Fox Kits, who were soon to arrive. The mentors decided instead to use the time to work on our fire by friction and carving skills while chatting with the group about our upcoming summer backpacking trips.

Before the blog post continues, we’d like to remind everyone about the WE: Wilderness Experiences available this summer to the Alevin Explorers. Grey Fox Kits we look forward to backpacking with you in the summer of 2016. These trips are an investment in a lifetime of leadership and skills; their rewards extend far beyond the three to eight days they take place. Many of our Explorers have found them to be life changing, with benefits and tools for living that are carried and applied for many years to come. Please contact us if you have any questions, thanks!

The Grey Fox Kits arrived and the Alevin retired their skill session and both groups circled in the field. The mentors encouraged Explorers to think back to their last outing to Clayton Beach. The outing held powerful lessons about group decision-making, collaborating and compromising, and inclusion. Today would be yet another opportunity to work together while and serving the land. These boys have been working on this site for over two and a half years; they have developed skill and efficiency in their work as well as intimate knowledge of this sites needs.

Instead of painstakingly going over how to us the tools the mentors simply asked the group to be responsible with them. It is wonderful to have cultivated this level of trust within these two groups. They have continued to show their commitment and integrity with safe tools usage. Their eagerness shows they’re hungry for more responsibility, greater skills, and bigger explorations - the mentor’s bow to that.

Breaking our circle played a few rounds of Deer oh Deer Come and Run through my Forest.  This energetic tag game brought the two groups together and that same energy transferred to our work. Running over to the site the boys quickly lined up. Our project for the day was to walk down the Reed-Canary Grass, spread a giant pile of mulch over the area, and finish up with some blackberry trimming. Forming a long line we stomped down the Reed-Canary Grass. It was a fun way to warm up and release some energy. Turning our efforts to the mulch pile the boys took on one of three jobs: a mulch spreader, carrier, or filler. The group worked cohesively and as an onlooker you wouldn’t have been able to tell one group from the other. Slowly Dave started to develop a funcompetitive aspect where the mulch fillers were trying to keep the buckets filled and the carriers were trying to dump them before they could be filled. This led to an inspiration for a game. Dividing into three teams by birth month, the boys took their positions. Their goal was to fill three 32-gallon cans and move them across the service site where the rakers would make three 4 by 3 foot squares. Their teams would be judged on who could get through three cans the fastest, how they worked as a team carrying the buckets, and how neat their squares were. When the game started the boys burst into action. It was amazing, what fun!  The boys really dug deep giving it their all. In the end every team won in a different category.

Spreading the last of our mulch the Alevin Explorers said goodbye the Grey Fox Kits and broke off for a closing meeting. The Grey fox Kits worked on diligently making a big dent in the Blackberry thicket towards the back of the site. Focused and determined the boys cut, trimmed and bagged the Blackberries and hauled them across the site.  

What fine work these Explorers are doing, they should be proud of their accomplishments here at Connelly Creek. The care they show for the saplings and shrubs they planted last fall and their fellow Explorers is outstanding. In their closing circles the Explorers gave thanks for the opportunity to work with each other, for skills and games, for the ability to give back, for the sense of accomplishment and progress they feel, and for the beautiful sunshine and warmth on our spring service outing.

Parents, please take a moment to track the history of our service at this site by clicking on the “tag links” below: Connelly Creek. You’ll see how the place has changed over time due to thousands of Explorer hours poured into the Happy Valley Park. You’ll also see how your sons have changed over time too. Thank you for the opportunity to be your nature-connection mentors. We truly value these experiences and look forward to each outing with you Explorers and your families!

For more pictures from the day please visit the Alevin’s or the Grey Fox Kit'sphoto gallery. 

Daredevil's Club & Red Tailed Eyas do great work!

Two and a half years of service in the same place. Wow. I haven’t even spent more than two years in the same place! The Daredevil’s Club and Red Tailed Eyas have been doing more service in the same place than they may even realize.

Remember when we started? Himalayan Blackberry taller than us, right at the trail. Car parts, a cat skull, a swing set, a makeup case, countless bottles and cans. For a couple of boys this WAS the first start at this service site. Wherever we start, let’s track our progress over time.

Now we can easily walk into the park. The blackberry border is keeping itself at bay. The reed canarygrass, once as thick and tall as a forest, is now under eight inches of mulch nearly 100 feet across. The maple tree is growing and budding much lower down, now that seven feet of blackberry is no longer trailing upward its branches…

Before the rest of this blog post continues, I’d like to remind everyone about the backpacking trips available this summer. Boys in both of these groups are eligible to go on various summer excursions. These trips were designed for boys of these ages in lieu of day camps. Please contact us if you have any questions about how these trips are incredible opportunities for your boys to capitalize on what they experience during their fall and spring seasons. THANKS!

Parents, please take a moment to track the history of our service at this site by clicking on the “tag links” below: Connelly Creek. You’ll see how the place has changed over time due to hundreds (dare I say thousands) of Explorer hours poured into Happy Valley park. And you’ll also see how your sons have changed over time too:

As the blackberry’s presence shrinks, Red Tailed Eyas and Daredevil’s Club Explorers’ statures have grown. Explorers now transform their boyhood innocence through focused service as they care for the tender, new plants that we put in the ground last autumn. The reed canarygrass has been trimmed way down whereas most boys’ hair has grown out of control!

The Daredevil’s Club has improved their role modeling and showed the Red Tailed Eyas how to work together and do service. They inclusively mentored boys two years younger than them. Some groups might have shrugged off a younger group but the DDC were kind to the Eyas and helpful too. Though they occasionally got sidetracked by birds or adolescent conversation, DDC explorers set a good example. As a group they have improved a lot since last year.

Red Tailed Eyas were keenly watching the older Explorers. They kept a strong work ethic throughout the outing. In fact, in their last hour, RTE boys transitioned from moving mulch to blackberry removal. Instead of waning toward the end of the outing, Red Tailed Eyas found energy reserves and used focused intention to use loppers, hand clippers, and rakes to free a cedar tree branch from climbing Himalayan blackberry vines deep into the service site. Impressive!

In the end, both groups can reflect on the following: Firstly, they might put a lot of road construction workers to shame! The joke is that these professionals spend a lot of time standing around—one person working while four others watch. Though that isn’t necessarily true (only when I drive by :) ) it made for a good reference point. All Explorers were working during the outing. Although some of us were standing around at different times, it is because we moved so quickly that someone was always waiting for the next group in the process.

Taking breaks IS VERY IMPORTANT. In fact, the Red Tailed Eyas played a game and then had a sit spot before going back for their blackberry work. Without these intention rest times and separation from work, we cannot do a good job. I think it’s important to take breaks and to have fun in between stretches of working hard.

Without the rest/work contrast, our work becomes overpowering and I would venture to say that the quality of work diminishes. We adults would be wise to constantly remember about the importance of transitions, breaks, and rest so we can do our work as accurately as possible. And not only in our paid jobs but in our time dedicated to family and community.

You can see pictures from the outing on the website by checking theDaredevil’s Club photo gallery.

We’ll see both of these groups again on SUNDAY, MAY 17TH.

Daredevils Club- we’ll see you on at Samish Woods Montessori so we can board Stubbs and make the journey out to Point Whitehorn!

Red Tailed Eyas- we’ll see you in the “refrigerator of Bellingham” as we explore Arroyo Park. BUT PLEASE NOTE the DROP-OFF point is at NORTH CHUCKANUT MOUNTAIN TRAILHEAD!

Thank you for the opportunity to be your nature-connection mentors. We truly value these experiences and look forward to each outing with you Explorers and your families!

Vespula Veterans and Racoon Kits serve Connelly Creek

Sunny Skies greeted the mentors as they unloaded gear and prepared tools and paperwork for a day of tending the land at the Connelly Creek service site.  Mentors look forward to the service outing for a number of reasons, but above all is a chance to give back to the land.  In both the Explorer’s Club and the Four Shields Program we utilize the land as a teacher.  Our mentoring community firmly believes that our boys learn best when they can leave the trail behind and immerse in the forest or beach.  Inevitably our exploring has impact upon the land.  There are undoubtedly small plants that are stepped on, and birds that are disturbed, but we tread with care and a deep respect and gratitude for the places we visit and the opportunities provided by them.  Our service outings are a way we can say thank you and offer our hard work in exchange for our hard play and exploration.

This outing marks the 5^th season of service at the Connelly Creek site for the Vespula Veterans and the 3^rdseason of service for the Raccoon Kits.  Our eldest group, the Vespula Veterans, arrived at 11:00am and carried the tools over to our site.  After quickly unpacking and organizing them for the work ahead, the boys took the first hour to practice some of the wilderness travel skills they will be using in their upcoming overnight outing at Racehorse Falls (and for some their summer backpacking trip to Olympic National Park).  The boys practiced lighting stoves, and setting up Wild Whatcom’s new Backpacking tents.  Mentors offered insights and suggestions about technique, but the boys took on the responsibility to practice the skills and gain comfort with these pieces of equipment.

After a brief capacity test of the tents, some of the boys decided to have stealth sit spot and see if they could scout the Raccoon Kits as they arrived.  Other Vespula Veterans worked on their fire by friction skills and got a preview of saw skills, which they will be learning on their trip to Racehorse falls.  Once the Raccoon Kits arrived we gathered in a large circle to forge our service team.  Since all had done service at Connelly Creek before we quickly reviewed tool safety and our service goals.

Bellingham Parks department, who overseas our work in the park, tasked the boys with two primary jobs: first to “walk down” the invasive Reed Canary Grass, and second to mulch over it.  In the past we have cut the grass back, however it appears that when it is cut it grows back with even more vigor.  So we set out to trample the grass and spread the mulch.  Last season the Boys Explorers Club planted several alder trees, as well as some small shrubs.  All of them survived our mild winter and appear to be growing.  Currently their biggest threat is getting stepped on by a well-meaning explorer in the midst of doing service.  To reduce this possibility the boys enhanced rings of mulch around these vulnerable plants to make them more visible and to help retain moisture near them as the weather warms this summer.

The mentors were impressed at the boy’s ability to move mulch.  Without prompting several teams emerged and began to move the mulch from the pile to the plants and the trampled grass.  One group shoveled the mulch into buckets and trash cans, another was hauling the mulch, another was spreading the mulch, and yet another was weeding grass around the plantings.  After moving the entire mulch pile, it was time for the Vespula Veterans to say farewell to the Raccoon Kits and have and have their closing meeting.    The Raccoon Kits stayed for another hour and transitioned to digging out stubborn blackberry roots before finishing their day with gratitude and apples at their closing meeting. 

The Boys Explorer’s Club and Four Shields Mentoring Community would like to thank Mentor Jake Ray for stepping in as an alternate in Brian’s absence.  The mentoring community would also like to extend our gratitude to all the boys and their families.  Without all of you we simply wouldn’t be able to do this work and for that we are

Roosevelt Elk Calves and Branch Hoppers do Service at Connelly Creek

The sun was not only shining but also full of warmth as the Branch Hoppers and Roosevelt Elk Calves circled up in the large field adjacent to the Connelly Creek service site. For most of the boys this was their first look at the site since our efforts the previous Fall. We all took a moment to be proud of our work last Fall and recognize the work that other Explorers groups had already done this season. After these moments of reflection and recognition of our work it was time to turn our attention to our task today.

In our large circle we talked about using the tools with intention and keeping in mind blood circles and safety as we worked. After discussing the tools we moved on to talking about what exactly needed to get done today. The main work that needed to be done today was to move the rest of the mulch out over the flattened Reed Canary Grass and continue to cut back the black bearies that seemed to continually grow closer and closer to our site. Despite two other groups putting in many hours of hard work the day before the pile of mulch still stood tall.

Armed with buckets, rakes, and shovels the Roosevelt Elk Calves and the Branch Hoppers got to work on the mulch. While part of the boys shoveled the other part moved the large buckets of mulch out to the places it was needed. This effort took teamwork and planning since each bucket needed; one or two Explorers to fill it, three or four Explorers to move it and another couple to spread the emptied mulch. Both the Branch Hoppers and Roosevelt Elk Calves showed great work ethic and group coordination as they moved the mulch. After a solid hour and a half of work the mulch pile was flattened and we all stood, sweating, as we admired our work.

The boys ran after Steve as he led the way down to Connelly Creek for a refreshing head dunk in the Creeks chilly water. Reinvigorated the boys came back ready for the next task. Our next project was to begin clearing the back part of our service site of the invasive blackberry vines. The boys got to work lopping the vines, stacking the vines and moving them into large trash bags. Again the boys quickly figured out the most efficient assembly line for this task and coordinated it gracefully.

Soon it was time for the Branch Hoppers to leave Connelly creek. After bidding the Branch Hoppers farewell the Roosevelt Elk Calves turned to the task of gathering all the remaining blackberry clippings into piles to put into trash bags. blackberry is an incredibly resilient plant that can replant itself from just one clipping so the job of cleaning up all these scrapes was very important. The Roosevelt Elk Calves buckled down for the last bit of work to clean the service site before we left it.

Our day ended with some time to just play and explore the site that we had been working so hard on. The hard work is important, but so is connecting with the place your are doing the service work at. Laughter filled the site as the Roosevelt elk calves ran through the creek; jumping along the bank, and sometimes into the creek, to see what was around the next corner. Parents be sure to stop by connelly creek sometime and have your Explorer show you all the work they have been doing, it is really impressive. Thank you Explorers for you hard work this weekend! Be sure to look at our Branch hopper photo gallery and Roosevelt Elk Calves photo gallery for more pictures.    

Vespula Veterans Serve Connelly Creek with the Barred Owlets

Serving the land is a critical component of the Boys Explorers Club.  Service is an act of humility and the land demands that—ask any of the boys who were on our “mellow” backpacking trip to the Lilly and Lizard lake this summer.  In Boys Explorers Club we often use the land more than other folks traveling in our area.  We leave the trail to seek deeper connection to the place where we live by studying the abiotic and biotic elements in the landscape.  We leave the trail to practice sit spot, and play games that teach us to move quietly through the land and pay attention.  Our service outing is a way for us to repay the land and our community for the gentle impacts we do make.

Steve and Greg spent quite some time discussing how to best prepare the Vespula Veterans for working with the younger boys—The Barred Owlets.  Though the age difference between the two groups isn’t vast, they are in very different places in they journey with Explorers Club as well as their broader lives outside.  So when all of the Vespula Veterans had arrived we quickly gathered and headed to the service site.  Steve and Greg presented the work that needed to be accomplished before the Barred Owlets arrived and tasked the Vespula Veterans organize and run our opening meeting.  They quickly dispersed and got to work.  They organized the tools and gathered in a circle to both discuss how they would present tool safety to the Barred owlets as well as listening to Greg and Steve present so background and useful tools on working with the age group that the younger boys were in. 

The Vespula Veterans have become very efficient at group work.  They have a healthy balance of keeping our circles light and fun but also getting the work done and being willing to struggling with things that are more complex or difficult to discuss as a group.  Because of this efficiency the Vespula were able to hide and ambush the younger boys.  This has become somewhat of a tradition at this point.  It provides the older boys with an opportunity to see how well they can camouflage themselves and the younger boys (who arrive an hour later) a chance to see how well they are paying attention to the land.  For the first time the older boys remained completely undiscovered!  It was also a sneaky way for Steve and Greg to disguise a 25-minute sit spot!

With both groups together the Vespula presented how to safely use tools and set our collective service team up for a good day of work.  Our tasks at the service site remain the same as last season.  We are trying to get the Reed Canary Grass under control by promoting the growth of Red Alder trees, and various native shrubs such as Willow, Red Osier Dogwood, and Hardhack to create shade and eventually displace the Canary grass.  We are still digging out Blackberry Roots and spreading much and wood chips to aid in this process.

The Vespula and the Owlets worked side-by-side getting the work done.  This service day was very focused in where we applied our efforts compared to other service days in the past.  The boys were focused and their efforts digging, cutting and hauling were tremendous.

At 3:15 Steve and Greg called the Vespula Veterans out of the service area and we headed to a different part of Connelly Creek a couple of minutes away.  This section had been restored about 10 years ago and is free of the invasive species that are in our service site.  Under the shade of alders we held our closing meeting.  Once the apples were sliced we were able to give thanks and then hold a discussion about the day.  Steve and Greg wanted to hear from the Vespula Veterans about their experience and asked “What surprised you the most about working with the younger boys?”  There were many rich comments.  Some were surprised at the Owlets strong work ethic.  Some were surprised by the inability to ignore the machete that was “off limits” to them.  One sibling was surprised (and apparently relived) to discover the typically rambunctious behavior of his younger brother was not present in Explorers Club.  Our conversation was rich especially given that this has been the first opportunity for the Vespula Veterans to take on their EMA (Explorers Mentoring Apprenticeship) work as a whole group.  At our next two outings Greg and Steve will be making space at our opening meetings to hear and EMA stories or puzzles so that the mentors can continue to support the growth of the Vespula Veterans in their Four Shields Journey.

Our day concluded with a look ahead to our upcoming outing on Sunday, October 12^th.  We will be piling aboard Stubbs and heading to Hovander Homestead Park to meet community member Time Flores who will show us some ancient hunting tools and offer us the opportunity to learn how they work.  If you still have your atlatl from the summer backpacking trip bring it along.  If you left it behind, or accidentally put in the fire like Greg do not fret as there will be many to share.

As always thank you Vespula Veterans for your hard work helping to restore balance to the land, your compassion for the younger boys and your willingness to take on all the leadership roles we have thrown at you.  It is such a pleasure to work with you and I am glad to joining you again so soon.  Finally thanks again to the parents and families that support all of us in this work.  Steve and Greg feel so fortunate to be working with your sons and appreciate your trust!

Salamander Efts at Connelly Creek: Serving the land and mentoring younger boys

Spitting rain threatened to make our day wet and challenging. Fortunately the smiles that the Salamander Efts brought with them warded away the clouds and the sun came out! The day took a U-turn when Matt showed up to fill in for Greg, who had to take his truck to rescue Steve and the service tools. No wonder it’s hard to remember all of the mentors’ names; we are always interchanging with one another :)

The Connelly Creek site in Happy Valley Park is part of a partnership with theCity of Bellingham Parks and Rec Department. We’d like to thank Rae and Ellen for their hard work guiding us and providing us with mulch, plants, and debris removal. Another important partner is the Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association (NSEA) who provides us with many tools and guidance as well. Thanks Phoebe for helping to coordinate our project days. It’s nice to have a community of groups and people who support our commitment to serving the land!

Explorers learned the tasks for the day: trim reed cannarygrass, dig blackberry roots, and lop away blackberry stems... AND lead by example for the Branch Hoppers who would arrive an hour later.

We decided that the best way to start the mentoring example would be to stalk and sneak up on the younger Explorers! Efts hunkered down while the Branch Hoppers got settled into place. Dave lured them past our hiding spots and we stayed as camouflaged as possible. In the end, very few of us were detected… well done Salamander Efts! You learned from older mentors too; remember how the Firestalkers snuck up on you at our first outing last fall at Fairhaven Park? Who knew that mentoring could come in the form of fun!

Younger and older Explorers introduced themselves to one another and then we were all introduced to healthy habitat on the other side of the park. With that example, we realized that we had our work cut out for us. Explorers, do you remember the name of at least two plants we saw in the healthy habitat? How about the “blue” tree?

We ate lunch while mentors demonstrated how NOT to use tools. It’s a good thing they were joking otherwise they might be a few fingers and teeth short. Then we reviewed how to safely use the tools and we got to work.

These pictures and the photo gallery will tell the rest of this story but the best thing to do would be to revisit the area with your Explorer so he can guide you along the work that he did. The sooner you get out there, the more prominent the changes will be when you return next time. With 10 groups visiting this season, we could make quite an impact.

Highlights include: Removing more car parts, digging up huge blackberry “heart” roots, freeing a tree completely of the blackberry that had overtaken it, learning the names and building mentoring relationships with member of the Branch Hoppers.

Thanks for your great work, Salamander Efts!!! You set a strong precedence for other groups who will be serving this season. Parents, thank you for supporting these Explorers and for giving them the chance to serve the land with us.

Next outing will be the last one of the season… May 17th. We’ll meet you at Clayton Beach parking area for a long overdue exploration! Let’s make it an effort to play Spider’s Web, OK?

Gray Wolf Pups Traverse Padden Creek

On a remarkably sunny spring day the Gray Wolf Pups met up at Lake Padden for their final outing of the season. Our adventure would begin at the south end of Lake Padden and would take us along the shore side trail to the lakes outlet; Padden Creek. We would then follow Padden Creek for a ways, go off trail, and meander our way down to Old Fairhaven Parkway, under I-5, and right to our Connelly Creek service site. This traverse was an Explorers Club first and the Gray Wolf Pups were eager to blaze the trail. Circling up in the field we handed out our jobs for the day that help us explore and keep us safe. Although the boys are so familiar with them, one Explorer even passed them all out, we would need to revisit their purpose a few times later on in our outing.

With too much energy to sit in circle, it was clear we needed to hit the trail. First we checked out the map, planned our course and determined the best route for our traverse. Hiking along the south shore was the most direct route so off we went. Traverses are a fun change of pace for the boys because with all the hiking it gives ample time to chat with fellow Explorers about shared hobbies, interesting things on the trail, or just do their best to get one another to laugh. Of course we broke up the walking and talking with numerous games of “HIDE!” and discovered that even on heavily travelled trails there are plenty of nooks and crannies and sword ferns to tuck away in out of sight.

Coming to the outlet of the lake, we turned down the Padden Gorge Trail that meanders just beside the depressingly small trickle of water that is Padden Creek. This was a great reminder that we indeed had a warm winter and though the rain has filled our aquifers, the snow pack that should have been melting in the hot sun and supplying our lakes and streams with cool glacial water is just not there this year. Also beside the trail we discovered a bouquet of flowers that someone had picked yet mysteriously left on the side of the trail. Curious, the mentors and some of the boys inspected the flowers as the rest of the group who was a bit ahead kept trekking along.

As we inspected the flowers, both mentors quickly took note of the small cluster of white flowers, purple-speckled stalk, and carrot-top like leaves and advised everyone not to touch this plant. Yes, someone had picked a bouquet of Poison Hemlock! We inferred that they likely picked the highly poisonous plant unbeknownst to them only to get contact dermatitis and set the plant down to avoid any further irritation. This was a great learning opportunity for some of the Explorers to ID one of our deadliest plants and learn from another’s mistake which is certainly preferable than learning from your own.

We quickly caught up to the rest of the group and cut off the main gravel path to follow a deer trail that the mentors had scouted days before. Trekking ahead, the boys in front yet again managed to outpace the boys in the back. Generally this is when the Front Scout takes note and has the group stop to allow the back of the group catch up. However, the Front Scout was keener to adventure than keep the group together. Along the way some of the Explorers who had studied the Poison Hemlock shared their newly gleaned knowledge with the others. To their surprise this information made a handful of the boys who had scouted ahead very nervous. (SPOILER ALERT TO SAVE PARENTS FROM WORRYING: No one consumed Poison Hemlock or came in contact with it!).  In fact, as the mentors began investigating their sheepish behavior they learned that a couple of the boys had found a plant they thought looked like “tobacco” and in a humorous effort took a little nibble of it. This action rarely if ever happens and in BEC we make a very, VERY strong emphasis around NEVER consuming any plant until you have a one hundred percent positive identification. This is in fact one of the few topics mentors can become incredibly stern on the boys over due to the severity of it. However, a few boys managed to let this notion slip their minds. We quickly found the plant in question and made sure it was not Poison Hemlock. Using our Plants Knowledge Keeper (aka Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast by Pojar and McKinnon), we identifyied it as Palmate Coltsfoot which is not poisonous. In fact, the Quinault used it to cover berries in steam cooking pits and it has even been cultivated by Japanese immigrants as an early spring vegetable (Pojar p.294). There is no doubt these Explorers learned an immense lesson from this experience and even admitted to being a bit rattled from the thought they could have consumed Poison Hemlock and required a trip in an ambulance to get their stomach pumped at the hospital.

After getting too spread out along the trail and having a scare with consuming plants we hadn’t first positively identified, it was clear we needed to have a talk. Upon circling up the mentors emphasized the importance of awareness; tracking the landscape, the plants, the animals, the weather, the season, the group, and yourself. How are your actions impacting others? How are your actions impacting the land? How is the land impacting your actions? How are your emotions impacting your actions? Etc. We must be vigilant in our awareness to ensure our personal safety, group safety, and the safety of the land. Our actions ripple throughout our own lives, the lives of those who are close to us, and even the lives of those we are unaware of.  Luckily we escaped the day without any harm done, but there is nothing like a close call to truly learn a lesson. The mentors also emphasized the importance of making mistakes in life, that it is inevitable, and that instead of dwelling on what could have been it is important to learn everything you can from the experience and move on with greater wisdom and the confidence of knowing how to avoid similar mistakes in the future.

We took a moment to decide as a group how to spend the rest of our day; carve then hike, hike then carve, or hike then carve/play in Connelly Creek. The Gray Wolf Pups showed an impressive level of group cooperation and decision making though they still needed a little nudge here or there from the mentors. The decision was made to hike all the way to Connelly Creek and maximize our free time there to carve, play in the creek, or just explore a place we usually spend all day working at. Once we navigated the thick salmonberry, sunny hillside of the old housing development, and navigated across Old Fairhaven Parkway, we finally made it to our destination.

At Connelly Creek the boys relaxed after a long hike in the sun. Some Explorers carved, while others went down to the creek to build boats out of sticks, grass, and leaves and race them down the creek. This quickly turned into a full on creek exploration where boys discovered crawfish, broke up stick dams that were clogging the creek, and just got lost in the moment of it all. It was wonderful to see these boys getting to enjoy the very creek they work so hard for in their service. It was a fitting end to a great day, and a great season, where much was learned and many fond memories were formed.