My Backyard Basically

September 30, 2009

Since I arrived, I have yet to know what it is like to work from the Outdoor Education Center (the OEC). It has been interesting to watch our apartment become the temporary OEC. Some days I will walk in to find a stack of first aid kits or tubs of gear or stacks of papers.

All of this really being no surprise as the OEC is basically in my backyard. It has been a little frustrating at times. With the OEC under construction and the finish date out of reach, a portable office has become the fashion. Once the OEC is finished I imagine it will be absolutely wonderful having the office just outside my door.

Just yesterday I was introduced to another part of my “backyard”. On Southern’s campus there is what is known as the Goliath wall. When I came for my interview, I was shown this rock face. It wasn’t until yesterday that I got a chance to climb it.

Still there is more of my backyard to be explored. I have yet to go into the cave on campus and there are ten miles of trails just beyond the challenge course that just happens to be in my backyard.

Beyond the Job

September 29, 2009

I have realized that being here almost a month and a half now; I have talk very little about my life beyond the job. To start with, I live in a 2-bedroom apartment with 3 other girls (Top to B): Lauren (my roommate), Kelly, and Ann (a fellow GA). This may seem like a recipe for disaster. I can’t say that we haven’t faced some challenges, but for four almost complete strangers from diverse backgrounds I would say we get along great. After all, dull moments are few and far between.

I have learned to expect the unexpected in our apartment. Example: one day while working from home, Lauren walks in to greet Kelly and I. In her hand is a pillowcase that had something in it that was definitely not a pillow. Soon a 6ft snake emerges from the pillowcase. The snake was being used for an event and needed a little “handling” before it was to encounter students.

Another example, while Lauren and I were watching a movie, I noticed a bug scurry across the carpet and head behind the TV. I proclaimed what I saw to Lauren. Neither of us really wanted to take care of the situation, as this was becoming a regular occurrence due to the fact that we practically live in a basement. Then suddenly, my brain computed what I saw. I sat up quickly and said to Lauren, “Was that a scorpion that just ran across the floor?” Immediately, we both jumped up and ran to look behind the TV. What I thought I saw was confirmed to be a reality. We had a scorpion in our house. This in turn caused some mental gymnastics. Currently, I sleep on the floor. Well, I sleep on a mat on the floor; but still there is no gap between me and the floor. I was dipping into some strong mental power reserves as I fell asleep that night.

As you can probably imagine with 4 girls, our place is filled with different aromas, as we each like to cook and bake different things. It is rare to have us all in at the same time as three of us being GAs during this busy season and Kelly being a nursing major on the road to graduation in December. Even so, I am sure more memorable moments will arise as my time here progresses.

Get Dirty with SOAP

September 28, 2009

One of my main responsibilities this semester is to assist with the Southern Outdoor Adventure Program also known as the SOAP program. As mentioned before, I was inducted into the SOAP program through the epic Nickajack trip. Hoping to get a better handle on leading trips here at Southern, I was given the opportunity to lead two more trips this month: Whigg Meadows Camping Trip and a combo trip to bike the Virginia Creeper.

I co-lead the Whigg Meadows trip with a fellow GA and apartment mate, Ann. Our personalities and work styles complimented each other well. The biggest challenge was keeping the masses at bay. This trip was a popular choice, but learning from my previous experience, I stayed firm on keeping the cap at twenty-two. Overall, the trip went swimmingly with great weather and fellowship.

Fast forward to this past weekend. I still have yet to find the word that best describes this trip. Epic would suffice, but I feel that word is being overused as of lately. This… monumental event was truly inconceivable. The kick off point began with only 4 out of 7 people showing up to go on the trip. This made my co-leader Jeremy and I question whether we should even run the trip.

In hindsight, we probably would have been better off to stay home but then I wouldn’t have a story to tell. So we left for Virginia with 4 students, 2 to hike Mt. Rogers with Jeremy and 2 to bike the Virginia Creeper with me.

When we arrived at our campsite, it was raining. Not a hard rain by any means, but we set up camp and made a fire. The next morning looked promising as we woke up to an overcast sky. Being the Sabbath we took our time getting ready to go.

As the bike team pulled out of the camp ground to make our way to the trailhead, the rain started. Slow and steady the water fell, as we tried to navigate our way through the county roads in a 12-passenger van with a trailer in tow. Many times we had to turn around. At one point we came upon the Virginia Creeper trail, but unfortunately it wasn’t the trail head. I decided to pull into the parking lot of this back country, roadside convenience store to ask for directions.

When I pulled into the parking lot, I immediately regretted it. On any other day, I wouldn’t have given it a second thought. However, with the rain coming down heavier and for over an hour this grass parking lot what not a good choice. Nevertheless, I hopped out of the van and ran in to inquire about the trailhead.

After being informed that I needed to take road 76 in the next county only a few miles away, I informed them I was most likely stuck in their parking lot. My situation was confirmed as I returned to the van. I was followed by the man from the convenience who so graciously informed me that he made a phone call to a man up the road who was going to bring down his tracker to haul us out.

Not more than seven minutes later, we were back on the road in search of the same road we were on but in the next county. After a bit more searching, out mark was finally found. With bikes unloaded, we hit the trail for our 17-mile ride.

17 miles might seem like a lot especially after getting such a late start in the day. The beauty of the Virginia Creeper trail is that from Whitetop to Damascus it is all down hill. Two and a half hours later, we were riding into Damascus completely soaked and speckled with mud from riding though 17 miles of saturated gravel and dirt.

Damascus seemed like a ghost town due to the ever-present downpour of rain. We rode to the first bike shop I knew of to inquire about their next shuttle. To my dismay, they didn’t have any more shuttles running that late in the day. I was advised to try anther bike shop down the road which ended up being closed when I got there. Further down the strip I went and finally found a place that would run a shuttle for us (for a nice hefty fee or course). With my only other option being to hitchhike at this point I went for the shuttle taking my fellow bikers with me.

In transit back to Whitetop, the driver informed us that he heard on the radio it was predicted that by the end of the day they would have accumulated more rain that day than the amount of rainfall for the entire year thus far. I could only laugh as I recalled the moments on the trail when I could hardly see because of all of the water shooting into my eyes.

Trying to avoid another episode, I told the driver where we were camping and asked if he new the shortest way back. A vision of the gas gage encroaching on E flashed before my eyes, so I asked him where the nearest gas station was as well. His experience proved to be an asset as we found our way back without a problem.

As we rendezvoused with the others who were just as soaked as we were, we came to a consensus that we would head back to Tennessee instead of staying another night. We arrived back in Collegedale at 1:30am. I was tired and in disbelief of what had occurred in the last 36 hours. My clothes were still damp, and I still was finding bits of dirt on my face. Only then did I truly understand the tag line of the program: Get Dirty with SOAP.

It Just Doesn’t Stop!

September 6, 2009

The craziness and the insanity continue to be part of my GA world. With another trip down the Hiwassee, then the Ocoee, the design and completion of the Southern Outdoor Adventure Program (SOAP) catalog, and leading the Nickajack trip for SOAP. I was voted as the leader of this trip because I had been before, once. Originally we were only going to take 24 people; eight canoes with three people in each.

In a whirlwind I still can’t understand, the trip ended up with 51 participants making it more epic than I was prepared to handle. By the time everything got organized, we arrived with the sun setting over the horizon. With a shortage of gear due to the masses, not all of us got a seat in a boat or raft. Instead we walked to the platform by the cave entrance while others gathered on the lake. As those in the boats began to sing praise and worship songs, those of us on the platform watched the full moon

rise over the surrounding hills. A reminder of the greatness of God and a view that only the group of us on the platform got to witness. It was like God was saying “Heather, it was worth all the effort. Enjoy.”

Learning to Fly

August 19, 2009

I have heard the expression many times before “you have to hit the ground running”. When I have started some of my jobs in the past, I have been part of that expression coming to life. My first few days as a Graduate Assistant (GA) in the Outdoor Leadership department at Southern Adventist University have surpassed that expression which I didn’t know was possible. Right now I feel like the expression has turned into “Hit the ground only to run a couple of steeps because you will never catch up running; you have to fly”.

The easiest way to explain this would be to give a play by play of my first three days in Tennessee.

Friday, August 14, 2009

4:30am: Leave for Collegedale, TN from Marion, IN

12:45pm: Arrive at new apartment. Start moving stuff in.

1:20pm: Call new roommate to tell her I have arrived. She asks me to come over the office to meet everyone.

1:30pm: This little meet and great has turned into a meeting

3:00pm: Leave the meeting with the knowledge that in three hours I will be helping lead a canoeing trip on Nickajack lake to go view bats coming out of a cave at sunset.

10:45pm: Return to Collegedale ready for bed.

Saturday, August 15, 2009

Find time to start unpacking

Sunday, August 16, 2009

10:00am: Head up to the Water shed to load boats for a white water rafting trip.

11:00am: Leave for the Hiawassee River.

9:00pm: Walk through the door of my apartment after returning from the river. At this point, still trying to comprehend the fact that I just guide a raft down Class II & III rapids for the FIRST TIME IN MY LIFE. Yup. Zero experience with the driving stick. INSANE!

Made Possible by Tetrus

August 13 2009

Ta-Da! As an avid packer, I consider this my greatest accomplishment thus far.

Will it All Fit?

August 12, 2009

Transition time has arrived once more. My summer at week as support staff; a role I gladly accepted after an intense, non-stop Cheerio Adventures wrapped up with two summer. Some photo highlights:

I find myself now back in Marion, IN staying with mi amigos, Aletheia (pictured) and Kara. I have come to collect my things to make yet another move. I found that the transition from camp to civilization has been harder than I expected. Life all summer has been outside. The only time I ever went into a building with 4 walls was to go to the bathroom or the rare number of times I slept in the staff cabin. Meals were even cooked outside. When I arrived at Lynette and Matt’s house, I found that I couldn’t handle being indoors for a long period of time. Never expected this reaction.

Now I look toward the next adventure to come: Grad School in Collegedale, TN. In two days I will be back on the road with everything I own in my car….well at least that is what I hope. As I look at the mountain of stuff with my name on it in the top of Lynette’s garage, I begin to doubt. I have done it before, true. But since then, I have added little things here and there making me question. Question my packing abilities and what will go if it doesn’t all fit. All will be answered tomorrow.

Camp Thunderbird

July 18, 2009

Here I am, three days after returning from Wilmington being blessed with another day off. This time, the majority of the staff decided to accept an invitation that has been given several times throughout the summer. Camp Thunderbird is another YMCA camp located just across the South Carolina border south of Charlotte, NC. Over the course of the summer, Camp Thunderbird has brought up groups to go climbing or caving. Almost every week we have encountered a group from Thunderbird.

Camp Thunderbird is happily situated on a lake that opens up activities that Camp Cheerio or Cheerio Adventures can’t offer. So today was filled with good times in the water.

Water skiing, tubing, water slides, and the Blob were all experienced on a perfect, beautiful day. This was the first time in a long time when the staff got to just chill, talk, and hang out without having to concern ourselves with kids. Such a great feeling! With a stop at Dairy Queen on the way back, I could not have cooked up a better day off if I tried.

At the Halfway Point

July 15, 2009

Over the past two weeks, I have reached the halfway point at Cheerio Adventures. Exhausted is the only word that comes to mind. Having already co-lead two trips in 27 days and only having one day off was beginning to take its toll. For week four I was assigned to be on support staff. What this meant was that I would work with any contract groups that were coming throughout the week. In my mind I was thinking, “Yes! I will finally get a little break. My work load should be a little lighter.” Well, by the end of the week I was working with two different groups each day and then found myself getting ready for a 3 day/2 night Parent/Child backpacking/rock climbing trip.

Having a little variety during the week was a nice change, but by the end of the backpacking trip I just wanted to fall over and not get up for days.

Salvation came this past week in the form of days off; 3 whole days to be exact. The timing could not have been better. So Andy, Carlie, and I hopped in my car and set our sites on the Atlantic. Along the way, we stopped at Ginger’s house for the first night. Being in a house again felt like I was walking into a foreign land.

The next day we made it to Wilmington, NC with cloudy skies and consistent rainfall. Our visions of lying on the beach, basking in the sun were beginning to diminish. Instead we sought shelter on the U.S.S. North Carolina., a battleship that fought during WWII.

After a mosquito infested, warm, muggy night; our hopes were lifted as we woke us to a beautiful morning. The sky was clear so we decided to head to the beach first thing. There we stayed for the rest of the day soaking in the sun and playing in the salty waves. Feeling satisfied with our day in the sun, we decided to start heading back toward camp stopping at my friend Alicia’s house for a great night’s sleep. Before giving way to exhaustion, we discovered that the basking in the sun turned to baking for some of us as Andy’s back had the same coloring as marinara sauce. Still we made it back to camp the next day feeling rested and ready for the next 3 weeks.

Seekers

June 21-July 4, 2009

Seekers was the name of my latest trip. 2 weeks of jam-packed activity. My Adventure Challenge partner and I were reunited for this adventure. The challenge of this new adventure began before even the kids arrived. Nate started the first week off with a fever.

I sat and watched him fade in and out of awareness wondering if he was going to make it through 4 days of backpacking in North Carolina with 8 teenagers. Overwhelmed can hardly begin to describe how I felt as I tried to remember every

thing that I was hearing about the days ahead, the markers we need to look for, places to find water, and stories of years past where everyone got lost.

As the first week came to a close, the group gelled. Our first 4 days in the wilderness brought memories of spectacular scenery, wildlife sightings, swim holes, and moments of pure joy as we reached an end goal we never thought we would get to. Caving in Tennessee sealed the halfway point of our two weeks.

The next portion of our trip took us to the water. It started off with an overnight canoeing/kayaking trip on the New River about 12 miles up the river from camp putting us back in the state of North Carolina. By this point Nate was back to his normal, crazy self lifting some weight off of my shoulders. After a great day on the river, we stayed at a campsite that was only accessible by boat. Being the week before 4^th of July weekend the place was packed. With no sites available we ended

up pitching our tents in the field known as the overflow section centrally located and surrounded by all other campsites. Before the night was over, our group turned over a new leaf. How the craziness began, I can’t even recall. All guards were let down as we wrestled, laughed, ran around, and played all the while entertaining our neighbors and creating one of my favorite memories thus far.

After that night our group changed. We no longer were just some random group of people passing two weeks together. Instead, we were more like a family with some of the kids going as far as calling me Mom. The rest of the last week was filled with a little

whitewater canoeing through an easy Class III rapid followed by whitewater rafting the Lower New River in West Virginia taking our state count to 4.

At the beginning of the last three days, challenges began to rise once more. Fatigue was beginning to set in with everyone (not just the Old Folks). The mountain biking portion of our journey was beginning. We encountered some schedule changes, physical set backs, and equipment setbacks all the while testing my mental, physical, and emotional limits.

Our two weeks together came to a close. As we sat and talked about our time together, both Nate and I were awestruck by what we heard. The night started with an activity called Positive Vibrations and ended with everyone coming to an understanding that these past two weeks were not a normal camp experience. This Seekers trip was a milestone in all of their lives, a staple that each would never forget.