8th Grade Awash in Nature on the Olympic Coast!

A rare break in the clouds offered this silvery sunset
on the Olympic Coast.

EW students experienced the full force and beauty of nature during last week's spring trips. Meticulous pre-trip gear checks paid off, as nature did not fail to provide fair challenge. On and off during the week, heavy rains inundated the Olympic Peninsula and Puget Sound areas where the 6th, 7th, ad 8th grade spring trips took place.

The 6th performed trail work on Cypress Island in the San Juans, while the 7th graders maintained trails on the Big Quilcene River on the east slope of the Olympic Mountains.

Hiking between 4 and 10 miles each day, in three separate groups the 8th graders backpacked the pristine Olympic Coast between the Ozette River on the North and Rialto Beach on the South.






The 8th grade trip is no "walk in the park." Hiking the rugged Olympic Coast entails miles of rock hopping and scrambling over headlands. Rainfall made for extra slippery footing this year.

Campfires, rope swings, and abundant wildlife
provided fun and surprises.

A doe and her newborn fawn walked the stretch of beach between the surf and driftwood where students sat in quiet reflection, journaling.

Outdoor education remains a central component of Explorer West's mission. These trips take great effort on the part of staff and students, from careful preparation (thanks go to parents for much of this!) to everyone's best intentions and exertions out in the field. Nature the teacher provides a tremendous range of lessons for our students: independence and team spirit, physical trial and accomplishment, self-sufficiency and collaboration, and last but not least, adolescent drama and comedy on the stage of nature.

The only"trace" left by the class of 2008 is now erased by tides.
A fresh beach awaits the class of 2009.