An update from student Jacob Brenner:
Greetings from dry California! The backpacking trip was amazing! We split up into three groups, and I was in Sam and Hailey’s group. Despite all of the weight that we had to carry, all of us looked like professionals. On the first day, we hiked into the backcountry and were surrounded by massive trees for most of the hike. We settled at our first campground and ate pesto pasta. On the second day, we hiked over a large ridge but ran into a big patch of snow on a steep section of the hike up. Luckily, Sam used a rope to help support us as we traversed the snow. We then continued to the top of the ridge where we could see for miles in each direction. On the third day, we hiked through Morris Meadows. We also swam in a cold creek, but the river was the closest thing that we had to a shower in 6 days. We were all refreshed and continued on to Portuguese Camp. On the fourth day, we hiked downhill for 6 miles. It was a pretty relaxed day, since we all were used to carrying a heavier backpack. We arrived at our final campground and enjoyed our last night in the gorgeous Shasta-Trinity Alps. On our final day, we woke up early to hike out, unload our backpacks, and prepared for our next activities.
An update from student Madison Bain:
For the past few days, we have been very busy with a variety of thrilling activities. Right after the backpack, we drove to a new basecamp that overlooks Mt. Shasta! There, we settled in and prepared for the next three days of rafting, rock climbing, and mountain biking! We woke up early on Wednesday morning and headed out to Oregon to raft on the Upper Klamath River. We finished the day with a Mexi Cook-off (which is when the three backpacking groups reunite to compete in a food competition). The next day, we broke up into two different groups: one for rock climbing and one for mountain biking, which would switch the following day. Each activity was packed full of amazing views and great bonding time between the groups. Now, we are preparing for evening meeting, including chocolate cake in honor of Jackson’s 16th birthday! Tomorrow marks the beginning of our three-day Shasta summit attempt, which we are all very anxious about. Look forward to some amazing pictures and phone calls full of stories from the snow topped mountain. Wish us luck, and we’ll call you guys soon!
