Isabel Yueh, Call to Adventure 2015

This camp is one of the camps where you instantly make friends in the car ride over, and your friendships strengthen over all the hardships and troubles and experiences that every person in the group experience. One of my favorite moments was when we found a dead crow and decided to bury it in the sand. We all worked together and made an amazing grave. We didn't even know this crow or how it died, but we felt like it was the right thing to do. At the same time we said good bye to the beach and all the animals on the beach.

This camp experience has changed my future, and I am definitely going back next year. I will never forget my friends that I made on this trip. 

Call to Adventure: The Journey Begins!

We had a great adventure walking along the coast. Originally a co-ed trip, we had a roster with 7 boys and no girls. Tara and Matt helped these big kids learn to pack their bags, tie their knots, and push through the pain of adapting to new circumstances with humor and beauty along the way.

Of our many nature encounters, a notable one is a river otter that loped out of the forest and into the ocean right beside us as we arrived on the beach for the first time. We cooked many of our meals over wood fire, which gave the participants plenty experience gathering wood and tending fire. The days were spent hiking and exploring, and gathering and processing the materials from the land we needed to survive. The evenings were spent in telling stories of our experience and hearing some stories of long ago as well. On the way to the boys' three-hour silent vigil in solitude, as we drew a threshold line in the sand, a juvenile bald eagle landed above us on a leaning fir tree, and soon after we saw the circling of the two parent eagles. We walked past the eagle guardians to the our brave explorers' sit sites, where they spent time in ritual reflection on their journeys. 

After the kids were welcomed back, we gathered as much firewood as we could carry and hoofed the miles back to camp with the precious fuel from the trees we relied on, enough for dinner, and even some hot chocolate before bed to celebrate all we'd accomplished this week.

Submitted by Matt McKinney, Guide for Call to Adventure 2014

Insights from Call to Adventure...rain, rain and more rain (with laughter along the way)

by Graham McLaren, Guide for Rite of Passage Journeys Call to Adventure - June 23 - 29, 2013

The call to adventure of June 2013 brought together 9 intrepid explorers and three adventurous guides. We started off our first day getting to know each other on a long drive to the Lake Ozette Campground. The group arrived with the rain and quickly learned basic fire making skills. A hot dog roast warmed bellies and eased the transition into the new group life experience.

In the morning the group discovered the salmonberries surrounding our site and this added a tasty distraction during the preparations to hit the trail. There remained an air of uncertainty in the group as we loaded and adjusted our gear and packs and even as we approached the trail. However, once we were off the laughter and riddles began. Hiking though the old growth forest to the coast turned out to be an easy first day for this group and we were eager to explore the beach at Cape Alava, our first camping site. We watched the tide roll in as we set up camp and prepared dinner. Bird alarms warned us of an intruder and we caught site of a raccoon in a nearby tree. Later we watched the raccoon sneaking around camp and investigating our bear cans. We held our first council that night creating a safe container to share and learn about our selves and to connect to each other on a deeper level.

The next day was our layover day. At low tide we explored the tide pools all around Cannon Ball Island. We played games on the beach, which were the highlight of the day for much of the group. The afternoon included awareness exercises and activities designed to help us connect with the natural world. We noticed dozens of great blue herons wading in the tide pools. Then we had a sit spot along the beach, which allowed us to watch and then experience a heavy rainstorm rolling in. The rain was truly our partner in this adventure. It rained some (or a lot) every day. That evening students learned that they could put together a skit for the reunion with their parents, and the preparations began immediately. Each day during the trip they practiced and performed new uproariously funny skits about life in the backcountry.

The tides were a significant obstacle this trip and we had to make an early start the next morning. Our goal was to head north and cross the Ozette River in the morning at low tide. We made it across the swift, ankle-high current and arrived at an extremely beautiful campsite. With the culture of leadership roles established camp was set up quickly. When firewood collection was thwarted by high tide we were reminded of how beautiful the ocean scene was. After a time of sitting as a group watching the waves and the seals, we ran with laughter and glee to play in the ocean waves. We saw the ocean push back against the river causing her to rise higher and higher. We transitioned to playing in the river and watched a river otter swimming and chattering just a few yards a way. Then we relaxed, warming ourselves on the beach rocks. During our after-dinner sit spot on the beach and we saw the clouds break and we got our first glimpse of the sun as it began to get low in the sky.

Thought it rained much of the trip, the next day it really rained. And it rained. And it rained some more. We had a tough morning getting going and a tough hike along the coast. The sight of ravens flying off brought our attention to a seal carcass. We marveled at the whiskers, flippers, size and overall beauty of this animal, and then we noticed the eagle tracks in the sand. We made it back to Cape Alava. But when we tried to push on further south to our goal of Wedding Rocks, we were stopped by the high tide and couldn’t go any further. And so we decided to stay at Cape Alava again. In moments the adventurers had their tarps set and were underneath warming up in their sleeping bags, joking and laughing. It was amazing to see how quickly this group learned new skills, and adapted to the environment and each other in creating a nurturing group experience. After dinner we sat around the fire and took turns telling stories of significant events from our lives and it was clear the safety and bonding each of us felt in that moment.

The next day was mostly dry and we hiked to wedding rocks to look for petroglyphs. The group was high energy this day and moved quickly all day. We had heard of a whale carcass from other hikers and found it. We guessed it to be 20 feet long and that was only the pelvis and some of the ribs and vertebrae. It was amazing to see the skeleton of an animal whose ribs were taller than any one in our group. Further down the beach the group also stalked up close to observe a mule deer walking the edge of the beach and grassy slope. After singing our farewell to the ocean we hiked back through the forest to Lake Ozette. The laughter and singing of the group could be heard throughout the campground that evening and in the morning as well. We had all grown through the challenges, responsibilities, and by connecting with each other, the natural world, and ourselves.

Call To Adventure 2012

As Stan Crow (founder of Journeys) says "The Call To Adventure is a call to release the daredevil in each of us, to reach out for the next stage of our lives.  The call is the mysterious and intoxicating voice that calls us from the sleep of our routine lives - a charismatic call from within to risk and discover what comes next".  

Well, it just so happens 9 intrepid adventure's and 3 brave mentors heard this call, what followed was a trip along the Olympic Coast that will remain in their hearts forever.  This trip tested us on many levels, conjured up deep belly laughter, and allowed us all to connect to ourselves, each other, and the natural world around us in meaningful lasting ways.

Long arduous walks through old growth forest covered with mighty giant Sitka Spruce's, Doug Fir's, Cedars and Hemlocks.  Beaches with hundreds of tide pools to explore, Bald Eagles flying overhead, juveniles swooping down gracing us with their presence, jagged rocky shorelines, the ebb and flow of the tides, and one solid group merging together as a cohesive unit to marvel at all the wonders the coast had to offer us.

Starting at Lake Ozette our tribe headed out with our heavy packs carrying everything needed for our week long adventure.  Bear cans filled, water bottles topped, and 12 people trying to defy the law of gravity and rise towards the sky as our packs pulled us towards the ground.

Our first night was spent at Cape Alava, the quintessential campground along the route, a campground and area that was once inhabited by the coastal Indians who flourished there with the bounty and beauty of the sea.  What filled our nights?  Cooking simple (now stretch your imagination and shrink your taste buds) .......and delicious back country meals!  What's more...... campfires, songs, stories, games, laughter, fun, and camp chores filled our evenings.

Cape Alava

As the week progressed our incredible group of  9 daring adventurers continued to trek along the coast, carrying their lives on their backs and believe it or not having fun without the use of electronics or other modern conveniences!  Most of our days were spent moving along the coast with many breaks along the way for exploring, resting, and playing games. 

 Our week was filled with all kinds of sunshine and all kinds of rain.....in fact we made up a verse to a song we sang "Rain Rain Rain Rain, when I dream I dream of rain,  drizzling, misting, downpouring sideways let the rain come" and come it did!  Our culminating experience was marked with massive amounts of persistent rain which forced us to befriend the rain, become comfortable with being wet AND plan an early departure out of the park to a front country campground where we would spend our last evening as a tribe.  So, 13 wet soakateers  headed back to Lake Ozette.  The only thing between their current location and the van at Lake Ozette was a 5.5 mile walk, sandy beaches, lush forest, and animals camouflaged along the way.

With tired thighs, sore backs, wet clothes, grumbling tummies and ecstatic smiles for real bathrooms we made it back to the Lake and headed to a nearby campground.  

We did it!!

Our last evening together before going back to Songaia was filled with sharing memorable moments from our trip, appreciating one another, laughs around the fire, and two Barred owls talking to us for a good portion of the evening.  Back at Songaia the participants met their families with open arms, smiles, stories, and a poignant song,"Fly Like an Eagle" that kept our spirits lifted as we lived for a week as a unified tribe in the back country and along the coast of the Olympic Peninsula!

Back at Songaia