Closing out the season on Clayton Beach

Spring is hitting the Pacific Northwest in spectacular fashion.  Everywhere you look there are birds flying and flowers blooming.  The forests are once again green and full.  We have had some rain, but these hot blue-sky days are surely getting us ready for summer. 

Hiking to the ravine

For their final outing of the Explorers Club season, the Black-Tailed Deer ventured to Clayton Beach.  Clayton Beach is magical place to experience spring in all its beauty.  The beach itself is amazing.  There are so many exciting, different, and weird creatures and processes to discover.

The morning drop off was incredibly chaotic.  There was a mountain bike race in the Chuckanuts, and the Lost Lake parking lot was closed off.   After bit of scrambling, some super efficient vehicle exiting/gear gathering, and a safety first mindset, we were able to make it across Chuckanut Drive and into the woods.

Exploring the waterfall

The hike in to the beach comes with its own majesty and wonder.   The forest is big and lush and green with all sorts of nooks and crannies to investigate.  Instead of heading straight for the beach, we decided to explore some of this forest.  Directly down from the trailhead, there is a ravine with a little creek running through it.  This area is a perfect place to set up a basecamp for a more in-depth free exploration and a very challenging game of spiders web. 

Waiting for the tide to go out

The later half of our day was spent on the beach.  From the ravine, we followed the creek all the way to the bay.  We hit a couple of dead ends, and had to do a bit of bushwhacking and scrambling, but we ended up on a cool little beach with some really interesting rock formations.  It was a great place to get a snack, watch the tide go out, and enjoy the sun.

Finding hidden beaches

When the tide is high, the bay washes firmly up against the sandstone cliffs.  As the tide was going out the Black Tailed Deer soon discovered the “secret” beaches that opened up with the retreating water.  There was so much excitement and wonder in this discovery.  The explorers laughed and ran up and down this new sandy beach.  We finished off the day and the season with a game of otter steals fish and some nature art.  Finally we closed with a nice respectful reflection on the day and memories of our adventures past.  Thanks Black tailed Deer for an incredible year. To view the rest of the photos click here.

A great end to the season

Black-tailed Deer Engage in Healthy Competition and Carving at Lookout Mountain Forest Preserve

The Black-tailed Deer arrived for their first ever exploration at Lookout Mountain Forest Preserve. The group circled up and the mentors nominated a leader of the day; their job is to gather the group’s collective focus and pass out jobs. Once everything was in order the mentors informed the Explorers that they knew of a great spot to harvest some Western Red Cedar for carving material that was roughly a half-hour up the trail. After some deliberation the group’s plan for the day was to harvest the cedar, continue working on their chopsticks projects and knife skills, and play a few rounds of Spider’s Web while seeing what this new location had to offer.

Before heading out one of the mentors passed around an object that looked like a piece of fruit leather and felt like suede. He went on to explain that the object was called tinder fungus. “Fomes fomentarius or Horse Hoof fungus is a polypore that grows on Birch tree snags. The name, Fomes fomentarius means, ‘to use as tinder’. It is extremely flammable, but has a nice slow burn, which makes it excellent for starting fires”.

Elaborating the mentor explained that in 1991 hikers found the preserved remains of a naturally mummified man who lived between 3400 and 3100 BCE in a glacier in the Otzal Alps between Austria and Italy. Ötzi the 5000-year-old “Iceman” was found with a similar polypore fungus in his pocket. He is thought to have carried the mushroom to preserve fire, use as insect repellent, and as bandage. How exciting to think that in harvesting, processing, and practicing the technique of using tinder fungus as fire starter we’re carrying on a tradition that is at least 5,000 years old. Connecting the Explorers to natural history and stories behind Earth skills brings meaning, relevancy, responsibility, and an element of sacredness to learning this knowledge.

With some inspiration we headed on the logging road in search of our destination. It wasn’t too long before we were side tracked due to large piles of Vine Maple and Salmonberry that were cut in order to clear the encroaching brush back from the logging road. Recognizing the opportunity we stopped to harvest what we could carry. Vine Maple, although common in our forests, is not a plant that Explorers Club harvests in large quantity due to the impact it would have on our local ecosystem. Vine Maple wood is great for carving walking sticks, tent pegs, bows for bow drills, and has also has traditional and practical uses within Salish populations to make sturdy bow staves and baskets, axe handles, and frames.

The mentors informed the group that in order for the natural world to thrive the practice of Earth Skills is not just the search for a specific resource that an Explorer might need at a given time, but it is more the endless search for life giving resources that often results in the land providing just what we need.

Acknowledging an opportunity for the Black-tailed Deer to serve their elder Explorers Club community the group-helped harvest enough Vine Maple to make thirty bows for fire by friction kits. The boys were informed that three elder Girls Explorers Club groups were currently working on this fire skill and had planned to harvest Big Leaf Maple bows from logging lands because of their abundance and quick growth rate, even though they were not as ideal as Vine Maple. The connection between finding the ideal resource, being able to give it as a gift, and a low impact way to glean was recognized by the boys and they were excited to help. Way to go Explorers!

Circling up to revisit our plan the leader of the day took votes and the group came to a consensus that each of the Explorers would harvest enough wood to make a few tent pegs and then find the nearest location to carve, lunch, and play a round of Spider’s Web. Turning off-trail fifteen minutes up the logging road the boys found a quiet patch of second growth Cedar and Douglas Fir and got to work carving after we revisited our safety guidelines. The boys showed great focus and responsibility with their projects and ended up making some usable tent pegs.

After some lunch the group was ready to decompress with a round of Spider’s Web. Setting up the game course on a flat bench laden with a thicket of tangled Devil’s Club and Salmonberries between two steep ridgelines the boys started to sneak and crawl towards the food source. It turned out that the location was extremely difficult for the flies to reach the food source and had provided excellent vantage points from which the spider could hunt with ease.

Coming in covered with mud and bark after well over a half-hour we gathered up for a closing circle. The flies had failed to retrieve the food source. Games have the power to teach children in a way that adults often cannot. A major take-a-way from our game was the boy’s persistence and positive outlook in the face of adversity. The mentors asked the boys what it was like to face the daunting task of retrieving the food source in a hard to navigate location coupled with the ever-watchful eyes of the spider. They talked about how although they were discouraged at times or experienced discomfort their desire to problem solve and improve their techniques in order to best the spider outweighed the negatives and changed their outlook. They also mentioned that they were thankful for the challenge that the games and the spiders provided.

This display of maturity and depth of character is some new territory in the Black-tailed Deer and is powerful to witness. The mentors circled back to a concept that they had talked about in the group’s first year of the BEC regarding the route meaning of competition, “to trade courage”. Trading courage means giving your best to those you compete with. It means playing with honor and character, showing one another grace, compassion, kindness while challenging them build skills and problem solve.

Our mentors are thankful for all the support and encouragement that allows us to mentor, work at skills, and play games along your boys in the natural world. It is a pleasure to witness the group grows through experience in wisdom, connection, and as leaders.

For more pictures from our day together please visit the Black-tailed Deer photo album from the day.

The Black-tailed Deer Check-up on their Earth Shelter at North Galbraith

The Black-tailed Deer arrived at a bustling North Galbraith Mountain Trailhead ready to continue where they left off carving during our last family gathering. Circling up for an opening meeting the mentors shared the day’s plan with the group. First was to have the Explorers navigate their way back to the shelter they built in November and see how it had faired throughout the winter storms. Second was to harvest some carving wood from the logging lands along the way and spend some time reviewing our carving protocols before working on making chopsticks and tent pegs. Lastly take a sit spot for some reflection time.

Giving the reigns over to the Leader of the Day the boys amended the mentors’ plan by adding playing a game to the list. We asked the boys to think back to the first shelter-building day we had at Galbraith. The boys remembered how cold and rainy it was and getting drenched as we moved through the logging clear-cuts. A few of the boys shared how they had taken their parents back to the shelter over the holiday break. Comments like these affirm our work as mentors. These statements demonstrate not only the connections these boys are forming with their environment, but also for the enthusiasm they have for our Earth skills, games, and as a group. Brain Mulligan, a long-term mentor of the BEC who was subbing for Adam on our outing, reflected on the group’s enthusiasm at the end of the day; he spoke about how infectious the group climate was and its ability to add richness and depth to the group’s experience.

Hiking alongside the bike dumps in route for our shelter we stopped to smell the cucumber-like fragrance of the budding Indian Plum leaves. It was unclear to us whether these buds were a little early, but at any rate a much welcomed sign of spring.

Stepping out in the sunshine filled logging clearing the group pulled out their lunch and basked in the warmth of the sun. After the Explorers had fueled up the mentors tasked them with sifting through the immense piles of logging debris for the perfect piece of carving wood. After about a half an hour of searching the boys came back with a diversity of wood and many opinions. Taking a look at what the boys harvested the mentors had the opportunity to discuss green, seasoned, and decaying wood along with different trees’ strengths and abilities to be carved and shaped.

Pulling out a bag of carving creations the group marveled at the myriad of butter knives, chopsticks, tent pegs, spoons, and forks. The mentors encouraged the group to start out carving a tent peg or chopstick as a first project. Chopsticks are a great first carving project because they promote long and steady knife passes, teach the ability to turn an object into a cylinder, and require patience.

Sending the boys out on a sit spot with their piece of wood the mentors asked them to come back with an intention for their project. Having an intention for a carving project not only prevents injury and misuse of knives but also allows the carver to make best use of out of their wood.

After their sit spot and reviewing our Explorer Club carving guidelines the boys spread out and focused in on their projects. Parents, please ask your Explorer what they worked on and the guidelines for safe carving. A few minor cuts and a many wood shavings later we packed up in search of our shelter.

Passing through the logging lands we came on the fringe on an older grove of cedars. The boys honed a trajectory and with some route finding they found their shelter! The group was excited to reconnect with it. Ezra, our Explorers Mentor Apprentice for the outing, was tasked with assessing the shelter for it’s location, strength, and construction. Ezra explained that the shelter had weathered the storms quite well as it was in the same location and no trees or branches had toppled on it. He was also impressed with it’s the strength and construction. The debris piled on top of the shelter had compacted quite a bit but it ended up just needing another layer.

After Ezra’s glowing review the group celebrated with a game of Eagle’s Eye and came together for a circle of thanks. The boys gave thanks for togetherness, for their shelter, for the wood that grew and gave them the chance to carve, for EMA’s and mentors who cared about them and showed them special skills, and for the weather.  What a pleasure it was to be out on the land with the Black-tailed Deer in the crisp clear winter air. Their lightheartedness as a group and zeal for Exploring is infectious and encouraging and our mentors and EMA’s can’t wait join in service with them at Connelly Creek.

For more pictures please visit the Black-tailed Deer photo album from the day.

Black-Tailed Deer Build a Sturdy Shelter at North Galbraith Mountain Trailhead

The Black-Tailed Deer met at the busy trailhead on North Galbraith Mountain looking well prepared for the rain that awaited them mid-day. Doing their best to stay out of the way of the trail runners and mountain bikers the boys found a quiet spot off the trail and settled in for an opening meeting.

Adam prompted the group asking them what they remembered about shelter building from our outing with the Gray Wolves at Stewart Mountain. The Explorers recalled quite a bit of the process, which was refreshing for the mentors to hear. Adam let the group know that our goal for the outing was to find a location off the trail where we could build a shelter to leave to let weather the winter storms until we returned in late February to check up on it.

After passing out jobs and revisiting the role of the Leader of the Day (LOD), we were off. Looking around the forest signs of the recent storm were everywhere and although dangerous in the moment, had provided our group with the resources needed to build a shelter. We could not have been but ten minutes down the trail when the boys called to play a round of Hide and take a snack break.

Looking across the woods the boys spotted some freshly made bike jumps. The mentors could see that the group wanted to run them, but it was an important time to talk about being respectful trails users and staying off the jumps. Adam let the group know that if we were to run the jumps, especially when they were muddy we could cause divots, which would throw off the bikers when using them. The boys marveled at the jumps’ construction and the amount of dirt that had been moved to create them.

Following alongside the trail the group came to a clearing, which had been recently logged. This came as a shock to some of the group and one Explorer expressed that he wished that no one would log the forest. This led to a great discussion regarding our give and take relationship with the land. In the end the boys recognized that given our current methods of constructing houses we did need to log some areas of the forest. The mentors also let the boys know that the way this forest had been logged was not sustainable and damaging to a majority of our native species and waterways.

Hiking along further we came across a young opossum that had been hit and killed by a logging truck. The tragic end to the opossum’s life provided us the opportunity to take a close look at its fascinating feet and teeth. Entering the forest on the other side of the clearing we circled up to focus on our task for the day.

The mentors let group know that the skill of shelter building could saves their lives if an emergency situation were to arise and invoke the needed to spend a night out in the forest. The group thought back to the young mountain bikers they witnessed flying off the jumps earlier and said that one day they might be engaging in similar activities without the supervision of their parents. The mentors went on to explain that the risk of injury is very high with these activities and it is important to act preventatively, but always be prepared for the worst.

After sharing a personal story and some lore about Earth shelters, the mentors handed the reigns over to the Leader of the Day and the boys worked through a decision deciding to spend an hour building the shelter and then use the rest of their day to playing Spider’s Web and Eagle’s Eye.

The group went out in search of location to build the shelter and with some mentor direction the boys found the ideal spot that was: close to building materials, had a abundance of leaves to gather, and would be safe from environmental hazards like falling trees and pooling water. Gathering around a fallen Big Leaf Maple the mentors worked individually with the Explorers to cut sections of the tree using a pack saw. The Explorers really took to the challenge and used the tool with respect and care.

Once the Y poles were in place, our ridgepole was set, and the ribs were put on the sides of the shelter the boys started collecting leaves. This was the perfect task because it had been pouring rain and the work provided us the opportunity to generate some heat under our jackets. After a solid hour of work the group had created an impressive Earth Shelter with two feet of debris on top. The boys climbed inside and low and behold it kept the rain out and was quiet warm.  Nice job Black-Tailed Deer!

Circling up back at our packs we debriefed the experience commending the group for picking an excellent location to build their shelter, which turned out to be the driest spot in the forest during the downpour. Looking around the circle a few Explorers were getting cold and it was an opportunity to revisit how our clothing layering system worked and pass out some extras gear to those who needed it.

Checking in with the LOD, the mentors let him know that it was important to revisit our plan to see if it still made sense given the weather. A leader, the mentors explained is constantly assessing the situation and adjusting the goals of an outing to fit the needs of the group. Checking in with his peers the LOD discovered that some group members were too cold to play a slow moving game like Spider’s Web and decided to go with playing Eagle’s Eye and eating some food under the shelter of a large Western Red Cedar.

We ended our day with a few fun rounds of the game and powerful circle of thanks. Parents please make sure to tell your Black-Tailed Deer thanks on behalf of the mentors for their engagement and focus on our outing and for their part in contributing to strong first half to their third year in Explorers Club.

Before we headed out we reminded the group that we were tracking their behavior to assess when they would be ready to use knives.  The way the BTD used the pack saw during the outing showed us that they were ready, but their use of sticks and minding their blood circles while building the shelter gave us pause. Our aim is for the group to begin to use knives by the last few outings of Spring 2018.

Parents please watch the Knife Skills and Safety video with your Explorer(s) and ask them to explain our motto, The Difference Between a Tool and a Weapon is You and how to maintain a proper Blood Circle. Thanks for your support, trust, and encouragement for the work we do!

For pictures from our shelter-building outing please visit this photo album from the day.