Black-Tailed Deer Explore Clayton Beach

The Black Tailed Deer awoke to a cold, frosty, but clear morning on the day of their last outing of the season. The weather cooperated with us and we were treated to a sunny exploration at Clayton Beach to cap off our Fall season.  We were thankful to have Logan as an Explorers’ Mentoring Apprentice from the oldest group, the Vespula Vetrans, with us today.  We appreciate his dedication to mentoring these younger boys and keeping them safe.

Our day together began as the mentors met the bundled explorers in the parking lot. We had an opening circle in a small patch of sun and discussed to biggest hazard of the day: Chuckanut Drive. We all agreed to maintain a serious focus while navigating this part of our day.  After handing out jobs we carefully gathered at the edge of the road and used our eagle eyes and deer ears to make sure it was all clear before we crossed.  

We followed the trail across the creek and down to the beach.  We knew that we wanted to play a game of Spiders Web today, but decided to save that for later and explore the beach in the sun to keep our bodies warm.  As soon as we got to the beach the boys’ innate drive to explore took over. They quickly dropped their packs and headed for the sandstone rocks and ledges that line this section of shoreline and beg to be climbed.  The rocks had absorbed the warmth of the sun and warmed our hands as we climbed on, across, and over them. 

Steve told us that he knew of a spot that river otters often gather at on a beach just north of us.  Excited, we worked together to find the best path along the ledges and over the boulders to the secret cove.  Reaching the secluded spot we were excited to find LOTS of river otter tracks! We observed their shape and size and formed theories as to what this otter had been doing.  Some of us noted the seepage of freshwater from one of the rocks near where most of the tracks were and we decided that otters likely visit this place to grab a drink of fresh water.

We returned to our home base and decided to have some lunch on the wide, warm rocks in the sun.  Upon our return, we discovered that some explorers in our group had used a charred stick to write two profanities on the sandstone near where we were gathered.  The mentors decided that this was an important moment that we could utilize to discuss respect for others and the land.  We gathered in a circle and the mentors explained to us what happened and how other people visiting this beach my be offended by these words written on the rocks.  We discussed that the woods are a sacred place, and that our BEC motto, Leave It Better Than You Found It, means just that. We went around the circle and each made individual commitments to leaving the places that we explore better than we found them.  As a group, we found some more ash and rubbed out the words.  We knew that a good rain would wash this ash away.  While it wasn't our proudest moment as Black Tailed Deer, we certainly grew deeper in our community and culture through this experience, and for that we were grateful.

After having a bite to eat, we headed back into the woods and moved south to another section of beach.  Here we spotted an interesting dead bird.  We used our eyes and our bird field guide to discern that we had come across a dead loon. A loon is a diving bird that hunts along the shoreline of Bellingham Bay.  After some more exploring on this beach, we gathered in a circle and decided that for the remaining time we would like to play Spiders Web in the forest.

We picked our way back up the trail and eventually found a creek gorge that has come to be known as “The Ultimate Spiders Web Spot”.  The spider provided us with a great challenge and none of us flies were able to reach the food source without being spotted by his eight watchful eyes.

In our closing circle, we gave thanks as usual and also used the time to reflect on our season.  As one of the youngest groups, we have been asked to Stretch our Edges, Widen our Circles, and practice an Attitude of Gratitude.  We have answered these calls with courage and curious minds and we are excited to continue our exploration as the Black Tailed Deer in the spring!

Service outing with the Salamander Efts and Black Tailed Deer

Exploring is what we do in BEC, and the majority of that exploration is off-trail. Exploring off-trail allows a deeper connection to our natural habitat as we share space with all kinds of forest dwellers.  Magical fungi, towering Douglas firs, loud Douglas squirrels and inconspicuous owls are just a few of the beings that we come to know through our romping. Even though we do our best to Leave No Trace, we undoubtedly have an impact on the forested areas that afford us fun, peacefulness, and learning opportunities. Our service outings allow us to give back to the Earth that gives us so much. 

This was a combined outing; the older Salamander Efts took a leadership role and oriented the first season Black Tailed Deer to our service site. In our opening circle, the Salamander Efts demonstrated how to safely use clippers, loppers, shovels, and rakes. We understood the risks that these tools had, but recognized that being intentional with them would allow us to get lots of work done at our service site.

The first of two tasks was clearing blackberries and removing their frustrating root wads. We became skilled at using loppers and clippers to remove the big vines and then used the shovels to dig up their roots. We had fun trying to see who could dig up the largest root.

The second task was to mulch the newly cleared areas so that no Reed Canary grass would sprout in the blackberries absence.  We learned that Reed Canary grass is an invasive species that grows especially well in streamside habitats. The fast growing grass chokes out slower growing native vegetation such as Nootka Rose and baby Western Red Cedar. The mulch we laid will stop the growth of this grass and allow our newly planted native plants to grow into maturity and shade out the invasive grass on their own. We discussed that we are helping this land heal itself; just get it started and the forest will begin to thrive again.

As we cleaned up our tools and took off our gloves, we recognized the need for play, so the Black Tailed Deer got to play a few rounds of Deer Oh Deer. Even after a day of manual labor, playing games allowed us to tap into unknown energy reserves as we raced around the field trying to avoid becoming a cougar snack.

Of course this is BEC, and the day wouldn’t have been complete without a lesson form the land. This lesson came in the form of an uninhabited paper wasps nest. We got to examine the papery structure of the outside and look at the perfect honeycomb pattern on the inside where the larvae hatch. In deciding whether or not to take this treasure home with us, we decided that since this nest came from this forest, we needed its nutrients to remain in this forest so that they could nurture the plants and animals that live in and near Connelly Creek. Together we separated the nest and spread it about the service site.

To see more photos from the day, click here.

Black-Tailed Deer explore Fairhaven Park and 100 Aker Wood

The Black Tailed Deer began their Explorer’s club career with a classic northwest fall day that included a half-inch of rain in the forecast! As we gathered in the parking lot at Fairhaven Park we all checked our packs to make sure that we were prepared for the day with a good rain jacket.  Parents were met and boys dropped off and as soon as we hit an even dozen, the Black Tailed Deer headed off on our first adventure together.

The rain held off long enough for us to play a good game of Name Tag in the open field, which helped us become acquainted along with running off a little bit of our excited energy, although there was certainly enough of that to last for the rest of the outing.  With the first drops of rain we headed for the cover of the 100 Aker woods.

Once safely inside the woods we found a satisfactory spot for an opening circle and an opportunity to go over some Boys Explorers Club culture.  We were able to highlight some of the more basic mottos and traditions quickly as many of us have had some sort of exposure to Wild Whatcom before.  We had a brief but good discussion about what a community is and what kind of community we want to create as the Black Tailed Deer.  With an understanding that much of the BEC culture is revealed to us as we grow and share experiences as a group, we passed out jobs and were off in a matter of minutes to get started on a full day of exploring together.

Along the trail we quickly went over the rules to Hide!, the most fundamental BEC game, and had a few great rounds of this game in a cool spot that the boys found.  The Tribal Elder for the day then gathered us up and we all decided to set a course for a spot with bigger, more protective trees for us to play under.  

After a bit of rambling and romping we found a great spot to enjoy some much needed nourishment of food and water and a great log to bounce on.  Here we played many rounds of Hungry Hungry Marten that had us dashing about through the underbrush as us squirrels tried to avoid being eaten by the marten.  As a group we felt the urge to once again venture on and explore new tracts of forest. 

We came to another interesting piece of land that allowed us some time for an essential part of any exploration, Free Play.  Some of us did some exploring of a creek, others had a snack, and a few of us even felt the need to combine our strength to scatter some rather large downed logs around our new spot.  After ample free time, the mentors posed a challenge to us.  

While we were playing in the woods, one of the mentors had set up the game Camouflage Gauntlet.  We welcomed this Challenge by Choice and we used our sense of sight to spot hidden targets (colored pipe cleaners) that were placed by the mentors as we walked single file along a transect of forest in silence.  Most of us spotted 8-12, while there were actually 21 hidden along the path! We walked the path again, from a different angle this time and were able to see a few more.  Finally, we moved through as a group and luckily found all 21 of the targets.  The earth skills focus for the Black Tailed Deer this season is “The Art of Camouflage”, and this game allowed us to ponder and discuss what it really means to be camouflaged in terms of color and cover. 

As the sun dipped a little lower in the sky we knew it was time to head back to the parking lot to meet our parents, and to speed up the walk back to our closing circle we played Wolf Stalks Deer, culminating in all of the Wolves having a deer feast.  We had a closing circle and gave our thanks, introducing the fundamental BEC motto Attitude of Gratitude.  

For more photos from the day look here.