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| Passing through a clear cut |
Our second outing of the spring season
brought us together at N. Galbraith Mountain Trailhead. Galbraith is
a special forest as it is managed for recreational use (including an
extensive network of mountain biking trails) as well as logging, so
when we explore here we get to see parts of the forest that are in
many different stages of succession. Moving between healthy patches
of forest and clear cuts throughout our day lets us see first hand
the dramatic change that happens when we log forests, as well as
providing a good starting point for conversations surrounding
sustainable forest management.
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| There are also fun tunnels to explore! |
We started our day as we always do with
an opening circle. In this circle we formed a loose plan for our day
(one that could be adapted should other opportunities arise!) and
passed out our jobs. Passing out jobs is a way for us to share the
physical weight of all of the things that we need to bring with us
(field guides, toliet paper, apples, bandanas, etc.) on an Explorers
Club outing. In this way, we all individually get a chance to be a
part of and help our Sculpin community.
We then got back on the trail and
headed toward our first area of exploration for the day. As we walked
along the path, we enjoyed the soft pitter-patter sound of small rain
drops landing on our hoods. We arrived at the dirt jumps with lots
of energy. We dropped our packs in mid stride and took to running and
jumping up, over, and around all of these fun dirt jumps.
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| Lots of fun - even without bikes! |
Having satisfied our desire to run fast
and after exploring an interesting cave on the hillside above, we
gathered our belongings and our packs and once more took to the
trail. As we moved to the next area that we wanted to explore and
play games at, we crossed through a fresh clear cut.
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| Passing through a clear cut |
In one moment we were standing next to
towering cedar trees and sword ferns; in the next we were standing on
a gravel road surrounded by bare earth and burn piles of mangled
limbs over 20 feet high. Some of us formed theories about where the
animals that used to live in this area have since moved to, while
others did some reflection about our own houses and neighborhoods. We
came to the realization that most of our houses are built from trees,
as are most of the others in our neighborhoods. We knew this wood
had to come from somewhere, and we traded ideas about the best places
and ways to get wood with which to build our homes.
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| We did get to count some tree rings, this tree was likely over 150 years old! |
When we re-entered a healthy stand of
cedar and Douglas fir trees, we discovered a stream and were
immediately drawn to it. We all had a blast getting our boots muddy
(some of our shoes got stuck and we had to have our friends help us
fish them out!) and splashing around. The mentors reminded us that
we still had about two more hours of being outside. They explained to
us that we would likely want to stay dry so that we wouldn't get cold
before we had to leave. In our excitement, however, we failed to
fully comprehend what the mentors were saying to us and choose to get
muddy and wet to the core!
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| Muddy is an understatement |
Fortunately, the forest would provide
us with a lesson far more powerful than any words that could come out
the mentors' mouths. After getting out of the mud to eat some lunch,
some of us started to get quite cold. After asking the mentors if
they had brought an extra change of clothes for each of us (they had
not) the weight of our decision to get wet and muddy began to sink
in. We realized that we would stay wet and chilly until our parents
came and got us! Luckily, we were able to play a fun game of spiders
web that warmed our bodies a bit and distracted us from the residual
cold feeling. We were exploring in the front country today, so the
mentors felt comfortable letting us learn our own lesson this time,
but we talked about what would have happened had we been out in the
backcountry, far from heated cars and warm bathtubs.
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| Some flies stuck on the web! |
We ended the day as we always do with a
closing circle and practicing our Attitude of Gratitude. During this
time where we each get a chance to share with the group something
that we are thankful for, many of us mentioned that we were thankful
for the sun's warm rays. We got a taste of these today and we are
looking forward to more sunshine this spring and summer!
To see the rest of the pictures from
todays outing, click here!
