There was a lot of excitement, and a little bit of nervousness, as we gathered near the trailhead to Hoag's Pond. We began in a circle formation and introduced ourselves. We kept a kush ball traveling around the circle in a game format to learn each other's names. After some very concentrated effort we packed up and headed out for some exploring.
Our day would unfold with many circles: talking about Hoag's pond, EC mottos, coming together to plan what the next activity would be, sharing gratitudes and words of the day. There were many eating circles as well, and smaller circles as we built landscapes and houses and play structures.
The favorite activities for today were most definitely sketching, snacking and games. Ask your daughter about the owl eyes activity, and the game where's my hedgie?
Here are some photos that capture our time together.
Words of the day: Hiking, building, playing, making new friends together in the woods!
Day 2
We spent day 2 at Bakerview Beach, with views of Bellingham, Mt.Baker, and what seemed like miles of mud and sand bars. Once we were down on the beach we established a "basecamp". Call this mini organizational camp! I am certain you know of what I am speaking.
We set off west; towards where the Nooksack River flows into Bellingham Bay. Along the way we challenged ourselves by walking the many, many driftwood logs. The idea of stretching our edge becme real when stepping into something a bit uncomfortable for us.
The water was calling the girls and most of the rest of the day was spent playing in the water; exploring mud, building cities and rivers, and lots of giggling.
We finished our afternoon with 20 minutes of peaceful place; a quiet time of reflection and enjoying nature.
Day 3
Our final day together was spent exploring around Lake Padden. We began the day with some fun name games. We spent a few minutes talking about LNT principles, and then framed our day of exploring. Once on the trail we met the mighty Douglas Fir and Cedar. The girls talked about similarities and differences between these two common PNW trees. A couple of girls spotted a decomposing mushroom covered in slime under a Cedar! Lauren gave an informative lesson on slugs as decomposers.
We went a bit further and met stinging nettle, demystifying it's sometimes negative reputation. We talked about meet before you eat as we walked past huckleberries and thimbleberries. One of us was surprised to see a millipede wriggling out of a huckleberry; reminding us all to make sure and look closely before popping the berries in our mouths!
The day was bright and warm and the girls definitely wanted some water time. So we set off to a small section of grass near the lake. The next hour and a half was full of play and laughing and eating together. We saw Mallard ducks and a Great Blue Heron, got our toes to our belly buttons in the water, and created a mermaid maze amongst the Bullrushes.
The time really does go so quickly in these camps and this day was no exception. It was time to change clothes, pack up and head to the gorge area. That all takes a bit if time!! We shared some of the history of Lake Padden; once the water source for the town of Bellingham. Then we moved back into the trees along the gorge trail; passing slugs on their way to nowhere, listening to birdsong and the trickle of the creek nearby. Our last stop would be for peaceful place.
One last chance to just sit and enjoy nature and solitude.
We came together for one last circle to share as we had each day; something for which we were grateful, our learnings for the week, and our words of the day. This is one of mentor's favorite moments because your children really share from their hearts. They take so much in and speak with great emotion about what they care about. All three of us commented on how much the girls remembered throughout the three days.
We invite you to go through this blog, and the photos, with the intention of helping your kiddo remember and share with you the experiences and learnings from camp.
For photos click here
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