Camping

Sedimentology and Formation of Punchbowl Falls The following essay will focus on Punchbowl Falls, one of the thirteen waterfalls located on the Eagle Creek hiking trail in the Columbia River Gorge approximately 24 miles from downtown Portland, Oregon. The hike to Punchbowl Falls is a modest 4.2 miles with a slight elevation gain of 400 ft. While hiking the trail to Punchbowl one can find a variety of interesting rock faces and vast vistas overlooking Mt. Hood national forest. Punchbowl’s unique…

The Discovery It was a warm, but windy day on the campgrounds of Island Park. The birds were chirping and the leaves rustling. It was my family's one week annual trip to Island park on 4th of July weekend. We go up there every year to watch the fireworks over Henry's Lake and hangout in my camper. The day before the fireworks show, my sister and I went on a walk. We walked about two and a half miles back into the woods. What we found was groundbreaking….. and it would change the history of the…

On my one and only vacation last summer, I got the privilege on going to my first Younglife camp. The camp name was Carolina Point in Brevard, North Carolina. At the camp they had many activities: swimming, go-carting, disc golf, mountain biking, zip-lining, paddling boarding, and hiking. My favorite part about this trip was the day we took a whole camp trip to hike the nearby mountain. At the camp they had some kids with disabilities that couldn’t necessarily get up the mountain by themselves.…

During my last two years of high school my locker was across the hall from the special education room. Every morning before I went to class two girls smiled and waved at me as I headed to class. One of those girls was Rachel. Rachel is a non-verbal individual with limited gross motor abilities, but she is one of the happiest people I know. At the end of my senior year I even became one of her respite providers. The other organization that provides respite for Rachel’s family is Camp Courageous.…

It was a cold November morning with a slight breeze blowing. The limb where Jeff was sitting was like sitting on a cloud. All was warm but his hands laying on the cold metal that was his rifle. Hunting in West Virginia was better and more dangerous than anything else. Trees ain’t the safest place to be when hunting bear. They could join him in the tree if he didn't hit it in the correct spot. The spot is just up the front legs and right behind the shoulder bone. If he didn’t hit the heart,…

Earlier this summer I went to Cimarron, New Mexico on a high adventure backpacking trip exclusive to the Boy Scouts of America. I backpacked for 14 days through the desert, stopping at unique and interesting camps every day. It was an amazing learning opportunity for me, testing my endurance and putting me through some hard challenges. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience. The crew left in June, starting in Colorado for the weekend so we could acclimate to the time difference. While in…

On this weekend, our leader Mario had selected Red Box Canyon which is situated on the West Fork of the San Gabriel River. We were headed for The Valley Forge Campground. A round trip hike of around six miles in and out. We had planned to stay over night and pack out on Sunday. We had a full group with us, besides ourselves, there was Ralph and his brother, Kevin, Jim Spencer and his son Tim, and Mark Cook. This is an excellent trail shaded by a forest canopy of oak,spruce, and alders.The trail…

Beaver Bend and Toledo Bend My family likes to take trips during the summer. We have been to many places, and done crazy things. I have always loved traveling with my family; even though, they can be very annoying. Since I was thirteen my dad would always plan a summer trip. Out of all these places though, my favorites were Beaver Bend and Toledo Bend. (Thesis) Preparing for the big trip to Beaver Bend, Oklahoma. (TS) Rushing around the house, trying to figure out what I need. (STS-1)…

The summer after the ninth grade I decided to volunteer at my church's summer camp. It was my first time volunteering as an animator, camp counselor, and I was very nervous. The camp had a certain schedule like a school. First we would start off with breakfast. Next would be house time which was a time where the kids would get together by age and they would play games and learn chants. After that was all camp, which is where all the kids would mix together and play a game. Then we had activity…

Our day started every day around 4:00 – 5:00am with take down and folding the tent to carry in our backpack, filling 4-5 liters of water to prepare for the long hike during the day, putting all personal belongings in the backpack, cleaning the fire pit and the campsite using leave no trace techniques. We then hiked 4-12 miles every day depending on the itinerary. When we arrived at the campsite at the end of the day, we participated in the activities we had signed up for. We would then set up…