The Barred Owls traverse Whatcom Creek; 9/18/16

The Barred Owls traversed Whatcom Creek on Sunday, from below Civic field to Bloedel-Donovan park. In doing so, we got up close and personal with 2.2 of the 4 miles that the creek covers from Lake Whatcom to Bellingham Bay. After Saturday's rain and clouds, we were thankful to see lots of sun and temperatures warm enough to temp many of us into the creek, not once, but twice!

Whatcom Creek is emblematic of Bellingham, as the place where the native Lummi fished for hundreds of year before European settlers saw the advantages of settling where the creek empties into the bay. We focused on Whatcom Falls Park, where the stream loses much of its 350' elevation loss. 

David Sobel (an education writer who has contributed to the philosophy of place-based education) said: "If we want children to flourish, to become truly empowered, then let us allow them to love the earth before we ask them to save it." Mentors Joey and Brian (and wonderful Explorers Club Apprentice Logan) set the table for this nature connection by guiding the group through forest and stream; this beautiful place did the hard work. 

The allure of the creek was strong. We hadn't gone very far when the boys decided they needed to get down to the water. 

A little further down the trail found several boys in the cold water.

After our first dip, we found a forested spot for games of Hungry, Hungry Marten and Spider's Web. We also played several rounds of Hide! Looks like this explorer needed a break from the fun.

Cooking up some mischief!

Check out the dappled sunlight. What a glorious day!

It took a few tries, but we found the swimming hole we were looking for!

Why crawl along the long spanning the swimming hole? Because it's there, of course!

They were interested in the dam that regulates the creek's flow. We were interested in the lineup of packs along the rail.

Wild Whatcom isn't alone in feeling that it's about the journey, not the destination (motto). And Sunday's outing was living proof. We packed effort, laughter, excitement and appreciation of the land into a scant 2.2 miles. The Barred Owls are in a good place right now. The boys enjoy each other's company; they approach our outings with energy; they welcome new members openly (as they did on Sunday) and they care for and help each other. Thanks for affording us the opportunity to work with them through Boys Explorers Club.

We took more photos, of course. Our next outing takes place Sunday, October 16th at North Galbraith Mountain. It should be a perfect time to focus in on our skill for the fall - shelter building. We look forward to seeing you then.

Barred Owls make a splash at Squires Lake - 6/4/16

Spring is nature's way of saying, 'Let's party!' Robin Williams

It was almost like we had a few different outings last Saturday at Squires Lake. Early on, the group struggled to make decisions. Then a little somewhat fractured time as several boys explored the creek bed draining from the beaver pond while others had lunch or worked at re-engineering the flow of the water. Then, well, let's leave that for a minute....

The decision making was challenging. Should we take the longer, potentially more interesting ridge trail or stick to the more direct but hillier lakeside route? Our multiple decision circles alternately featured collaboration, conflict, impatience and compromise (see Mottos - Collaborate and Compromise). Oh, and there were sticks...more than a few sticks. Our tribal elder earned his stripes this day! 

Compromise won the day as they decided to take the lake route to the beaver pond and the ridge trail on our return. 

Re-engineering

Before long, we dropped into the creek bed as a more interesting route to the beaver pond. The going proved tricky; before long, we stopped to rest, have a bite and explore.

Decision-making takes a lot out of a guy

A scouting party reported that the beaver dam wasn't in place, so we decided to turn our attention to the lake. A short walk later, we arrived at a great swimming spot and the energy level went through the roof! 

SPLASH!

So much wildlife!

The relevant motto here is Connect and Protect. "If we want children to flourish, to become truly empowered, then let us allow them to love the earth before we ask them to save it." –David Sobel

And love the lake they did! This is pure Mark Twain/Norman Rockwell stuff!

We wrapped by talking a little about our spring season. We found the Rock Trail interesting - love those caves! - but wanted the space to play more games. Our hike to Lizard Lake was rewarded with carving practice and more cave exploration, but it was quite the hike! Our service outing showed once again that hard work is necessary to care for our environment, and last Saturday the lake was just pure fun. We're grateful for the many places to experience nature’s splendor and to practice behaviors that will soon define us as 21st century men.

Click here for the rest of the photos from our outing.

Thanks from your mentors for your support through the spring. Hope to see you in the fall!