What a Weekend!

Just got back from Outdoor Rec staff training and it was rad! We went over to Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area (or something like that) to car camp, practice skills, etc. Saturday was good. We discussed and demonstrated some skills like stove maintenance, water filtration, etc. We also did about 6mi worth of hiking - some good overlooks. We also ate very well at our campsite. I think I had four s'mores after my chicken and rice and peppers and bananas and curry and peanuts and raisins dish.

Sunday though - whoa! In order to practice our skills and to have some fun, we had a miniature adventure race of sorts. We had our map with checkpoints (orienteering flags). The first ~5mi consisted of hiking to a couple points. Then we got to the river, grabbed our PFDs, and rappelled off of the bridge! Into the river! It was great. From there, we paddled and portaged down the river to grab two checkpoints and finish. After a little direction confusion and lack of proper orientation, my partner and I battled from 4th place to 2nd when we rapped. From there we powered down the river in a fight for the finish with the 1st place team. We passed them and had a couple hundred meters coming into the boat ramp. Unfortunately, though, she and I both had trouble tying our canoe on the trailer which allowed the other team to not only catch up but finish at nearly the exact same time as we. Ultimately, we called it a tie and shared the prizes. I took home a new Petzl E+ headlamp - sweet.

It was an awesome weekend. I look forward to getting to know the other staff throughout the semester and doing some awesome trips! I LOVE NATURE!

Plus, the 11+ mi of hiking, plus paddling and other activities gave me some good additional time on my legs. Only doing 12mi on Friday - albeit a grueling 12 through the rain - turned out to be very wise (kudos to my running partner). One more thing: I used my Brooks Cascadias for the entire adventure race including the canoeing (which meant they got very wet). For a good bit of the paddling section, I was out of the boat, pushing it over rocks, then diving in as I got it going. They showed no sign of giving in and felt good. I can't comment on the draining, but they are atleast diversely usable.