The Cave Dwellers Traverse Up Whatcom Creek

The Cave Dwellers kicked off their 2017/18 year of Explorers Club with a traverse from Civic Field to Bloedel Donovan. Utilizing the tremendous Interurban Trail system we cruised along beside Whatcom Creek, following it upstream to Whatcom Falls Park. During the first part of our outing we paused at a bridge over the creek to discuss which creek we were following, where the headwaters were and where it ends, and what the significance of this creek was to the residents of Bellingham. We found a good location under a stand of spruce trees to hold opening circle and play a few games of HIDE. Another interesting thing we discovered in the early portion of our outing was at least four separate rodents that had presumably been run over by bikes. This seemed like a strange thing and was a good murder mystery for us to ponder while we walked along the trail (be warned the Cave Dwellers requested photographic evidence of the crime scenes so be prepared when you look at the photo album!).

Looking downstream above Whatcom Creek

Gathering for opening circle

Following Whatcom Creek we soon arrived in the ever magnificent Whatcom Falls Park. It is always astounding how such a beautiful expanse of forest is able to remain in the middle of a bustling city, but we are forever grateful for those who had the foresight to save this gem of nature for future generations. However, due to the proximity to urbanization, we continuously found ourselves stopping to take care of our jobs as Earth Keepers by picking up litter as we found it. Although we are careful to avoid any hazardous trash like broken glass, dog poop bags, etc. we still managed to fill two grocery bags full of trash and even then had to stop picking up garbage as we no longer had a way to carry it out. We did however figure out that the further we got away from roads, trails, and the perimeter of the park, we found substantially less trash. This was good news for us as it was time to play Spider’s Web!

A lone fly stuck on the web waiting to get waved off

Finding a nice valley full of Sword Ferns, Vine Maple, Red Huckleberry, and even a stand of Devil’s Club, we had the perfect arena for our game. Despite a strong effort from a predatory spider that cruised around the playing field relentlessly, the flies made a strong push to get the food source. As the game drew to an end, the flies got the food source back to within 50 yards of the web before the game clock ran out. This was an impressive feet for the flies, and a strong showing from the spider who tried to win instead of settle for a stalemate.

Taking a dip in the creek before heading to Bloedel for pick up

With our game out of the way we pushed along the trail to find a place to go for a swim. Despite the fall weather, this group was set on getting in the water. Luckily the sun came out and offered some warmer weather as we splashed around in the creek. Some of the group who decided not to go swimming took on the mission of catching a crayfish. After being unsure how to accomplish this, ingenuity and creativity prevailed as a spindly Snowberry branch with a bit of pepperoni stick tied on the end proved to be an effective crayfish catcher.

Gathering around to try and catch the crayfish

Success!

Time for a close up before letting the crayfish go back into the creek

Finally, with our time running short, we gathered for closing circle sharing thanks and apples. We had to hoof it back along the trail to make it to Bloedel. Despite being a bit late, parents were happy to see the Cave Dwellers return with smiles on their faces and plenty of fond memories from this day. Although we didn’t get to our Earth Skills focus of learning how to properly gather water and treat it for drinking, we managed to have a great time. It was great to see the Cave Dwellers get back into the rhythm of exploring together, playing games, and making the most of the opportunities presented to them. This was a strong beginning to the year and we are excited to see what else we have in store for the fall.

Make sure to check out the rest of our photos from the day here!

Raccoon Kits Learn the Art of Shelter

Fall is here at last! The Raccoon Kits kicked off their Fall Season on a foggy Saturday afternoon at Lake Padden. As the boys were being dropped off one by one near the dog park, it was clear that these boys couldn’t wait to get the gang back together. When about half of the boys had arrived, the mentors tried to get a game of Otter Steals Fish going to pass the time until all the boys had been dropped off. Much to the mentor’s surprise, the Raccoon Kits were much more intent on standing around in a small group and catching up with one another like a group of old college buddies while trying to figure out which of their fellow group members had yet to arrive. But, before everyone could get there, one of the boys arriving took note of a green playground ball sitting nearby and had an overwhelming urge to kick it as hard as he could. Before you could blink an eye, we had a runaway soccer game on our hands. It turned out that the ball actually belonged to a mom of a boy who had done a summer camp with Explorers Club, and she was coming over to say hello before the outing began. We learned two valuable lessons in that moment: the concentric ripples of Boys Explorers Club are felt throughout our community, and eight year old boys are drawn to playground balls like moths to a porch light.  

Alas, the rest of the boys showed up and it was time for our first fall exploration. We began by trekking up into the horse trails of Lake Padden revisiting our “crow call” to get the boys to come together, and introduced a new “chickadee call” that the boys used to alert the rest of the group of walkers, joggers, bikers, and others we shared the trail with. Once we were up into the woods one of the mentors hollered out “HIDE!” and without skipping a beat the boys were bounding off looking for a nurse log to crouch behind or a nice patch of sword fern to nestle into. A few rounds of Hide later and we approached our initial opening meeting location only to have to leave right away because one of the boys discovered the log he was playing on was already the home of a hornet, wasp, or other stinging/biting insect.

We worked up off the trail to a nice level area under a beautiful cedar tree and had our first opening meeting. It took the boys a little while to remember how to listen respectfully when someone is talking to them, but soon we had our “jobs” handed out and were eager to begin learning The Art of Shelter. First off the boys were tasked with finding a natural shelter that would protect them from the elements. As the boys scampered off to tuck into tree trunks and cozy up with conifers one explorer noticed a hornet land on the ground and crawl into a little hole. Right as the explorer notified a mentor of his discovery, another explorer fixated on finding shelter stepped right on the whole and, like magic, one hornet turned into thirty. The mentors got the boys to their packs and down to the trail just in the nick of time. Luckily, the hornets must have been drowsy from the chilly morning because, except for one sting on one explorer, the rest of the group made it out unscathed.

Relocating again, and mustering up the courage to go off trail despite the possibility of encountering more hornets, the boys scaled up a steep hillside to inspect some very promising sites to start building a shelter. The first sight was an impressive downed tree caught up in the branches of a massive Big Leaf Maple, but the boys quickly took note of the hazardous widow maker above the shelter site so we continued our search. We soon found a much smaller downed tree that was situated perfectly for a debris shelter. The boys fine tuned their shelter building skills by helping one of the mentors construct a miniature debris hut. Then, it was time for the real deal.  Some boys collected sturdy sticks for the ribs of the shelter, while others scouted out more shelter building resources. After a couple hours of work, the boys had constructed the skeleton of the structure. Now it was time for the debris, and where things got really dirty. But before the boys could finish getting sufficient debris on the shelter, it was time for closing circle. The boys now have a much greater appreciation for the time and dedication it takes to not only make a sound structure, but how much debris it really takes to sufficiently insulate it as well. Before closing circle, each boy took a turn crawling into the debris hut and appreciating all the hard work they had done.

In closing circle we reviewed what we had learned about building debris huts, and discussed some of the challenges we faced building the shelter, as well as on the rest of our outing. All the boys gave thanks and appreciation for what they enjoyed during their day and even got a chance to show gratitude towards others for things the other boys did that made the day a success. With closing circle over, it was time to scamper back down the hill, sliding down a dirt embankment just for good measure, and meet a parking lot full of loving parents. We may have thought our hazardous outing was over, but while boys were reunited with their parents a couple of dogs had a disagreement and in an instant there was a snarling, snapping, whirlwind of teeth and fur. Fortunately none of the boys were in the area, but it was startling none the less to some of the boys, parents, and mentors alike. Although our outing had a few harrowing moments, there were ever more moments of playfulness, joy, teamwork and comradery; all together a most excellent outing indeed.