The Sephton Family

May 22, 2008
My niece Lois had her first birthday party. It is hard to believe that she is already one. My mom was there for the celebration. I could not make it this year. It is hard being so far away but my sister shows her my picture almost every day so I think she will know who I am the next time I see her. By then she will be running around like crazy because she is already walking. Can't wait until then!





Lois enjoying her ride on the London Eye.









May 24, 2008
Happy 5th Anniversary Hilary and Mark!

California Blue

May 21-25, 2008
Kibbie Lake

It was hard to know what to expect as I left a 5 hour meeting with 20 strangers. The people I just meet were going to be my new companions on a 5 day hiking trip in Yosemite. Bay Area Wilderness Training (BAWT) was something I had never heard of prior to being hired on to work at Camp Tawonga. Because I haven’t gone backpacking in the backcountry in the past two years, it was recommended that I take this course.

It is hard to sum up the experience of hiking in the backcountry. We started at the trail head almost complete strangers, and came back to the trailhead as if we all were extended family members, traveling as a small community. All we had was the land and each other to depend on.

In the history of BAWT, no other group has encountered the weather conditions that we encountered. Past trips have encountered sunshine, a cool breeze and possible a little rain and cooler temperatures. If that happened to us, the trip would have been heaven.

The first day was bit like the latter; the sun rolling in and out of the clouds with a strong cool breeze. As the days went on, more clouds rolled in and precipitation started to form. But not in the form of rain, oh no, sleet was the first sign of things to come.

As the wintery mix came down, we were at the tail end of lunch on the 3rd day. The time to switch leaders had arrived, and I along with a fabulous girl named Marisa was chosen. Our instructors pulled us aside and warned us that the trail ahead was not easy to follow and sometimes even hard to find. As the temperature continued to drop, the time to study the map lasted about 7 minutes.

Marisa took the map to the front of the group and I was in sweep position. Keeping the group moving was very important. After an hour or so the terrain turned into open spaces of granite with very little trail evidence. Marisa did her best but after a while we both knew that we were lost. A fine line had to be maneuvered. Do you tell the group that you are lost or do you just keep going like you know what you are doing?

We decided to stop and take a pack-off break so that Marisa and I could powwow. What I had suspected was true, we were indeed lost, but fortunately we were not far off the trail. The assignment was given for the group to pair up and write a short poem about the beautiful view that we were beholding.

I could tell that Marisa was a bit stressed by our current state, but I truly was at a loss of what to do for her. So I made it my job to make sure that everything was going well with the group so that she could put all her attention on the trail. She left to scout as the group was let to work on their poems

Originally the plan was to save the poems for camp, but with the current delay, I decided to have the group recite their masterpieces while the rest of us looked at the view that was their inspiration.

I love to walk where I feel at home
Among the rock where the boulders roam
The ridge grows strep and the walls grow tall
I watch my feet and the stones look small
When I look up I see the scene
That shows how far my feet have been
-Joshua and Kai


The snow continued to fall and the group began to get tired.
Not long after the last poem, I spotted Marisa off in the distance. All I could think about was running to her and giving her the biggest hug because I knew she had found the trail. We only had to backtrack about 5 minutes before we found the trail once more and soon after set up camp.

The next morning, we were greeted with snow-covered tents and a light snow fall. New leaders were appointed and we were off to hit the trail once again. The cold weather was a major factor on everyone’s minds because we new that today we had to cross two more rivers. Or previous encounters with river crossings were on the first day with all the sunshine.

The idea of having to strip down to shorts and put on water shoes was not a welcoming thought but was something that we all had to mentally prepare for. The time arrived and the leaders did a fine job of finding the best place for a group of 12 to cross. With all of the snow it was tough to know how deep things were going to get.

Waiting for my group’s turn to cross was more torturous than walking though the water. The water temperature seemed warmer than the air outside. Don’t get me wrong; it was still plenty cold. The new challenge after crossing was figuring out the quickest way to dry off. Fortunately the water level didn’t go any higher than my knees.

The transition back into my warm cloths went well for me but others were struggling. For some people, this was their third or fourth time experiencing snow where as I have grown up with these conditions all of my life. Water was boiled to help people warm up internally, but during the wait the signs of external coldness where beginning to show in the form of hands and feet turning white.

Movement was the best solution, so even though we technically had another night to camp; we decided that the best thing for the group would be to hike all the way to the trail head. I could not have asked for better motivation.

The hike ended with many of us soaked to the bone and ready for a warm fire and a chance to dry out back at the Cherry Lake camp grounds.

The next day all of the vans were loaded and we hit the road back to San Francisco. We stopped in a little town called Groveland to sort gear, dry out tents, and have lunch. We were lead to believe that our lunch was to consist of any food that was left over from the trip. Instead lunch turned out to be a fabulous BarBQ with tons of fruit and other delicious things that you are usually denied on the trail. Following lunch was the BAWT graduation. Diplomas were handed out along with a commemorative BAWT t-shirt.

I had seen many of the staff wearing the light blue t-shirt with the hiking boot print logo so I knew what to expect. The surprise came when they pulled out the girls shirts that were not light blue. Oh no. Instead they were California Blue. A color that I thought I left in Arkansas. The color of all the uniform shirts that I have had working at the IWU and JBU ropes courses was now following me as a soft reminder not to forget where I came from.

The Mile High City

May 11-16, 2008

I have been to Denver many times before, but this trip provided the opportunity to really get to know the downtown area. I went to Denver to visit my friend Rudy which I hadn’t seen in over two years. She was the one that started the whole chain of events that lead to me being acquainted with the Soderquist Center.


Rudy has always been one that is constantly on the go. Life has not slowed down one bit. She is the store manager of a Starbucks and a soccer coach for the Colorado Rush. Unfortunately she was unable to get anytime off of work. I would go into work with her every morning, and while she was at work I would walk down to central downtown armed with a map and a library card. The library card proved to be very useful. I started a book on the “beach” in SC and didn’t have enough time to finish it. Plus the Central Denver library, which is huge, has internet access.

After the first day, I had finished my book so the next couple of days I set out to do a little exploring. Sometimes, I would sit in the park for lunch or find that unique shop or bookstore to hang out in. This might seem like the days would pass slowly, but after the first day I started to fill my days with things that I found to do like tour the capital building or walk around stores in the 16th street mall.

I have to admit that I have never been in a Capitol Building before and found the experience rather educational. The tour included going up into the gold plated dome to get a good view of the city and a chance to see the every beautiful Rocky Mountains.

When the time drew near to meet up with Rudy, I would walk back to her store. From there we would go to her soccer practice or to a soccer game or just head back to the house to just put our feet up and relax. I found that even though it felt like I was doing nothing all day, I would reach the end of the day feeling exhausted. I couldn’t even begin to imagine how Rudy was feeling having been on her feet all day and then running off to coach or go to a Bradley class. Where she gets her energy I will never know.

Despite the early morning wake-up calls, it was good to see my friend and hear about the transitions that she is going through just as I start to head through a few of my own. Our paths always seem to cross when both of us are getting ready to cross new terrain.

P.S. Thanks Craig and Pricilla for always welcoming me into your home!

P.S.S.

How could I forget to mention that I got to see my old co-worker and friend Bobby Hoffmann and his wife. Bob was once a experiential learning soda fellow at the Soderquist Center. We went to the Old Spaghetti Factory in Downtown Denver. So Good! Congratulations to them both as they are expecting their first baby!

The Tradition Continues

May 7-11, 2008

This trip to Pawleys Island, South Carolina marks the 4th year that Ginger, Lynette and I have gone on vacation together. As is tradition, every year we go to the place where one of use resides at the time until the 4th year. When the 4th year comes around, we go to a location that we all agree on.

Pawleys Island is not a popular destination but there is something there that drew our attention. The first is the beach and the possibility of good weather. The second reason is Ginger’s aunt and uncle have a “beach house” there. Translation: a free place to stay that is a short drive to the sand and waves.

To be honest there isn’t a lot to say about this vacation. I take this as a good sign. Rest and relaxation were the main focus, and that is exactly what we got. The main goal was reached as we all got some sun and read some good books. The weather was warm and the sky was a beautiful blue but the warm breeze had fallen into the wind category. As we were lying out on the beach it was like our skin was constantly be exfoliated as the sand whipped by. Eventually, my hair started changing color because of all that sand that was piling up on my head. So we lasted about and hour on the beach. None of us were stubborn enough to stick it out. Especially, when we could get some rays at the community pool with surrounding trees to block the wind.

We did however pull ourselves away when dusk arrived. We headed up to Myrtle Beach to catch the Cirque show which was fabulous! The strength, flexibility, and control of the human body are truly amazing.

As always, it was a much needed trip that could have been a day or two longer.