Grand Teton Summer Journey

Here We Go Again!

2009-10-26T14:19:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Teton Twenty-Ten! We are very excited to get the team together...registration forms and deposits are due November 20. To submit a registration form electronically, click on the "Student/parent resources" link on the right side of this page and follow the directions given there.

To see pictures from last year's trip, click on this link: http://s656.photobucket.com/albums/uu282/juliebarrett/Grand%20Teton%20Summer%20Journey%202009

Questions? Email David (dbuth@grcs.org) or Julie (jbarrett@grcs.org)

2009-07-09T15:43:00.000-07:00

With only a day and a half left at the Science School, we have settled into the routine of early mornings, full days, and unique experiences.

This morning we filled up on French toast and packed a lunch before heading to the Conservation Research Center to participate in migration corridor restoration. This involved removing fencing - including posts and barbed wire - that have made it difficult for local populations to make it to their seasonal homes. These include elk, moose, pronghorn, and mule deer as well as birds like the trumpeter swan: these can become entangled in the fencing and die of starvation or exposure.

Everyone worked hard and we were very productive, earning a stop at the local Dairy Queen for Brownie Batter Blizzards and banana splits.

Next we visited the National Museum of Wildlife Art, where we viewed works of art by Carl Rungius, Andy Warhol, Gutzon Borglum (who created the Mt. Rushmore sculpture), Theodore Geisel's (Dr. Seuss) original drawings for "The Lorax", award-winning student paintings for the Federal Junior Duck Stamp program, and more.

Through a spotting scope we watched bald eagles on the National Elk Refuge. On the way back to the Science School, we saw baby pronghorn and baby bison in the sage flats.

This evening we are headed to the Oxbow Bend to spend time viewing wildlife, drawing in our sketchbooks, and painting in our journals.

Tomorrow, the Rockefeller Center, Phelps Lake, and closing ceremonies.

Going to the Rodeo!

2009-07-08T15:35:00.000-07:00

We have settled in to the routine here at Teton Science Schools, enjoying full days of programming, beautiful weather, and frequent sightings of charismatic megafauna.

Some highlights:

Monday night at the Murie Museum viewing specimens collected by Olaus Murie - an amazing collection
Tuesday canoeing and hiking around String Lake at the base of the Teton Range; yellow-bellied marmots!
Cow and calf moose sighting at Cottonwood Creek, GTNP
Bull moose sighting at Snake River in Moose, WY (GTNP)
Tuesday evening astronomy program with Sam; we viewed objects including the Ring Nebula, Pluto, Saturn, Cigar Galaxy, and Hercules Globular Cluster
Wednesday morning black bear sighting at Signal Mountain
Hiking around Jenny Lake to Hidden Falls; we used dichotomous keys to identify mule's ears, meadow salsify, sticky geranium, and thimbleberry. We also saw primroses, balsamroot, columbine, elephant head, mountain lupine and many more wildflowers.
In a few minutes we will enjoy bison burgers for dinner and then head into Jackson for the rodeo.

We're There!!!

2009-07-06T16:22:00.000-07:00

After four full days of travel, we arrived at Teton Science School last night at around 10 p.m.

Some highlights from the trip so far:
~good conversations and fun games in the car
~playing a game of baseball at the Field of Dreams
~seeing two grizzlies in Yellowstone
~swimming in Moose Falls
~witnessing Old Faithful erupt
~watching bison cross the road in front of our cars
~participating in bird banding this morning
~beautiful views

Thanks for your continued prayers for safety, growth, fun, and healthy challenge.
We are having a great time and we can't wait to tell you more of our adventures!

Noticing details

2009-06-20T22:10:00.000-07:00

What do you notice? is going to be a frequent question during our time in new landscapes this summer. Even those of you who have been there before - indeed, even those of us who lived there before - should notice things we have never noticed before.

Here's a challenge: I just edited one of the links on this blog because I had written it in with a typographical error which I - embarassingly - hadn't noticed until just now. It's a national monument; I've been there several times; I still wrote its name wrong. Which one is it? What was the change? Does the name of this monument take on a different meaning now?

Why I Am Proud of Summer Program Students

2009-06-20T18:02:00.000-07:00

You like each other. And you act like it.
You are putting in the necessary effort to be prepared.
You eagerly try new things, even scary things.
You are excited to get to know new people in new ways.
You are very observant and very patient.
You draw and paint and write beautifully.
You are excited to develop fresh eyes for landscape and living things.
You are responsible and respectful.
You understand when it's time to take care of business.
You understand when it's time to play.

"I have three rules for leaders in the outdoors: You have to know where the people you're leading are coming from, you have to know what you want to do with them, and you have to love them." -Paul Petzoldt, mountaineer, founder of the National Outdoor Leadership School.

The second one is easiest. The first one is coming along well. The third, and most important, is happening. I am looking forward to spending a couple weeks on the road with you, and in the mountains, forests, meadows, streams. And I am certain that, at the end of two weeks, I will wish that we had two more. You are a group of exceptional people, and you are an exceptional group. Thanks.

It's almost here

2009-06-01T22:02:00.000-07:00

Our last pre-trip meeting is just a week away (Thursday the 18th, at RCS, starting at 4:00 p.m. sharp). At that meeting, you will receive your art kit, resource notebook, community task groups, field groups, cook groups, and tent groups. You will get receipts to put in all of your financial support thank you notes. You will have all of your stuff checked against our packing list to make sure you have what you need. We will have our first group slackline session. We will learn about event maps, collaborative journals, memoirs, and species accounts. A professional artist will be coming to teach us pen and ink and watercolor technique. We will be singing some of our signature songs. We will be grilling on the same grill that will travel with us through eight states. We will be setting up, taking down, setting up again, and taking down again the tents that will be home all across the country. Bring $6 for dinner. Be excited. 'Cause it's about to go down.

Operation Squirrel- queso, reading, observing, and sleeping

2009-05-13T08:38:00.000-07:00

"May 12 2009 7:10 p.m.

Charlie is up in the tree with me now- just chillin' in the hammock, oscillating in the breeze. Cheryl and Saskia come by with pizza, chips, and queso, and O.J. for the morning. Rob, Lil, Alivia, and Chase come by with bananas and cookies. Nick and Katie are bringing a breakfast burrito tomorrow.

Julie has put on Charlie's harness and is ascending a doubled rope- she's just about made it!

May 12 2009 10:00 p.m.

Julie made it up, sat awhile in the bosun's chair and then in the hammock. She said she thought it seemed secure, like it might even be fun.

I spent a lot of time today rigging the tarp that will hopefully keep me dry tomorrow night. Tomorrow I will rappel to within 10 feet of the ground, clip the bosun's chair to the ascenders, slide into the chair, get off rappel, and teach 8th grade earth science- sedimentary rocks. We'll wrap up rocks on Friday and start the final project. Graduation in three weeks- another year to celebrate.

It's much more subdued tonight- no deer, few cars.

May 13 2009

A salutation from an arriving staff member awoke me from a second night of deep and dreamless sleep. Today is Tuesday and tonight the students have their concert- they are talented performers and I will miss being there to see them shine.

I used to write so much more, and I used to be able to write. I could grift vocabulary, crib turns off phrase, and gain an emphemeral functionality with metaphor, synecdoche, and even irony. But I don't read as much as I used to, even in winter, because I'm always outside, too drawn by opportunities to read the rich text of creation. "Before doors, the outdoors was just called home." And maybe before books, reading was just called listen, wait, empty yourself, observe... and be filled. The kids ask if I get bored the longer I am up here- quite the opposite. I hear the grace notes, the cipher that veils the very stuff of creation is lifted, and extravagance is revealed.

Below me, something is walking around; behind me, a gray tree frog, louder and more persistent; bird song; in four or five varieties, in stereo. I need a Goodwillie fifth grader to identify them all (those kids know their birds).

More people are starting to arrive- time to get out of bed!"

Operation Squirrel-My First Night in the Tree...EEK!

2009-05-12T14:04:00.000-07:00

"Some people helped me set up in the tree, affixing gear to the haul line. Now they have gone.

It's dark and the shadows of nearby leaves look like some of Goldsworthy's holes in the ground 40 feet below. Well, sort of dark- the school's flood lamps burn bright for no one.

It's sort of quiet, too, except for Belding Road traffic. This is how I've imagined living along an interstate must be.

A deer snorts several times, to my left. An owl, to my right. My bedroom may be both darker and quieter, but not so alive. My gear includes a hammock- complete with mosquito netting- strung between an oak and a cherry; 200 feet of tubular webbing fashioned into 15 slings of varying lengths; a 60 meter static line for ascending, anchored at 50 feet, a length of garden hose protecting both rope and bark; a 60 meter dynamic line, anchored at 70 feet, for swinging from tree to tree and for rappelling; 15 carabiners; alpine ascenders with five-loop etriers; a bosun's chair; a haul line; a gear bag, food bag, and trash bag; an ATC device for rappelling; climbing shoes and harness; sleeping bag, inflatable pad, and piece of foam for the cold spots; a dromedary bag filled with 6 liters of water; a small L.E.D. lantern; a headlamp; journal, pencil, and books- John McPhee, Edwin Way Teale.

Another deer snorts repeatedly to my right...the highway traffic noise wanes...my eyes are heavy.

The word of the day is Arbornaut (n): A person who ascends into the forest canopy and remains there for days at a time with no assistance from the ground, using only what can be carried in a backpack and fixing nothing permanent to any tree.

Tuesday Morning: Voices wake me from a deep sleep- Sharon has brought me hot cocoa and a cinnamon bagel. I have accrued a pantry of food- sent up in a kitty litter bucket- that I can't finish in a week, and I have only two more days.

The deer last night rose like a mist from the ravine behind me, and advanced like an army- they had me surrounded! While I couldn't see them, I felt there must have been dozens- and they were tense, curious. If I rolled over to peek toward them, they would bound off but return in minutes."

Operation Squirrel- An afternoon of God's creatures ( Including kids!)

2009-05-12T14:36:00.000-07:00

May 12, 2009

"22 hrs in the tree and everything is going well. Beautiful sunny afternoon- but people keep coming to tell of the forecast for tomorrow. Some seem to tell tall tales- "Severe thunderstorms, high winds, 80% chance- no 90%!"

I just ate a snack of nutter butters, blueberries and strawberries- veggies and hummus are next. Last night my mom brought a steak sandwich. I have popcorn for a late-night snack; also prosciutto and dark chocolate.

I hear rustling leaves, chattering red- belled wood peckers, melodious rose-breasted grosbeaks, the humming of distant propeller planes, and- deep in the forest- gray tree frogs singing. Red winged blackbirds ride rushes in the retention pond.

The kids keep bringing questions- most commonly "How do you go to the bathroom?" No one has asked-yet- if I've seen oriole or heard an owl. They are under the impression that this location is well- populated but I have yet to see one.

Mrs. Winn's class is making bird feet- perching feet, climbing feet, catching prey feet- out of pipe cleaners and attaching them to branches. The kids are 2nd graders and clearly know different avian functional groups."

Details for May 1-2 campout

2009-04-30T14:40:00.000-07:00

Schedule:

Friday, May 1:
3:20 dismissal from school
3:45 - 5:30 Set up for Saturday's Expo/practice pitching tents/gear check. We are running the kid's club, plant sale, face painting, etc. at the Expo.
5:45 travel to Camp Roger from RCS in parent vehicles, Buth and Barrett's vehicles.
6:00 head off into the woods toward our campsite. Set up camp and start dinner prep.
7:00 eat dinner, clean up
7:30 solo time, journaling
8:00 Capture the Flag
9:00 Campfire
10:30 Quiet in tents for the night
Saturday, May 2:
6:30 prepare breakfast/break camp
7:30 hike to Townsend Park
8:30 devotion/reflection/solo time
9:30 leadership roles exercise/team challenge
11:00 picnic lunch at Townsend Park
11:45 travel from Townsend Park to RCS
12:00-4:00 attend assigned posts at Expo. (about 8-10 students are signed up to help; if some who are not signed up would like to be, there may be spots available. Responsibilities include selling plants, watching kids, painting faces, selling concessions)
Equipment list:
Set of comfortable clothes. Warm clothes for evening/morning. Rain gear (jacket and pants; poncho) Current forecast is 60s/40s low to moderate chance of rain.
Supportive shoes you can hike in/run around in; extra pair of socks
Sleeping bag, sleeping pad, pillow (or just roll up your sweatshirt)
Personal care/hygiene items/medicine as needed
Mess kit (the ones we handed out at the March 28 meeting. If you need one, I'll have them available on Friday)
Water bottle
Journal/pencil/bullet: I will provide these for each student. We will make journal covers later.
Small Bible
Backpack: school backpack/daypack. If you have a larger, backpacking variety pack, you may bring it. You will be asked to carry some group gear (food, water, stove, cookpot, etc.)
Bandanna: it's a cloth napkin, a cleaning tool, a sunscreen, a hair-tie, a filter, you name it.
Other needs:
Parents willing to help out with Expo until the students arrive to take over (9a.m.-12p.m.). We need at least four.
Camp stove: we could use one more, to boil water
Tents: four have been offered. I'd like two-three more just to be safe

Journal entry about the May 1-2 campout

2009-05-03T20:53:00.000-07:00

After a cold and rainy week the skies cleared up just in time for our campout. I was curious to see what kind of group we had and how we would respond to each other and to adversity, competition, solo time and personal responsibility. I also wanted to see if we could just plain have fun, if we could laugh we each other and get a little crazy. On all accounts, I was pleased. I think this group is awesome!

We spent some time making journals (which may need some maintenance...) and practicing tent pitching (dang, we are good) and stove starting (again, check) before heading off to Camp Roger.
We trundled our gear off into the woods and set up camp on a high spot with a view of Pickerel Lake, in a grove of red pine and oak.

After setting up and gathering firewood (and pine pitch for torches), we went to the sandy wash for some dodgeball. In four games, the downhill side won each time. There were head shots, amazing catches, impressive arms, against-all-odds comebacks, and not a few screams. Frankly, I thought watching Christie - on her own - defend Team Even's honor was almost more fun than playing.

A rousing game of capture the flag followed dodgeball, and was dominated by a couple terrifically agile and sneaky guys. They used a combination of sheer speed, on-the-fly reasoning, and thorn bushes to achieve success.

For dinner, pizza pita pockets, cooked right on the fire. Mmmmm. Next time, we'll have fewer mushrooms and more pepperoni! After dinner, we headed off for some No Group time. Under a last quarter moon and incipient starlight, with a chorus of Canada geese, spring peepers and grey tree frogs, we soaked up God's creation with few distractions.

At campfire, we had s'mores and then some more s'mores. Then Jake's mafia game (with the evil nurse) and Andrew's mafia game (the plot twists!) had us all laughing uproariously. If we ever become hopelessly stranded somewhere, we'll at least have entertainment!

In Council, we listened to everyone else share their idea of a great summer Saturday, and then something about themself they were proud of. People listened deeply, listened for understanding, and valued other's thoughts enough to put their own internal dialogue away for awhile. It was one of the most impressive things we did as a large group.

In the morning, we pondered a great oatmeal experiment before deciding we didn't have time, and we set off on our hike loaded down with apples, oranges, trail mix and dry cereal. We walked through the Pickerel Lake preserve and on along Ramsdell Avenue to Townsend Park. Along the bike path we saw mayapple and swamp buttercup in profusion.

We stopped along the path to talk about - and remove - garlic mustard, and how it isn't really part of the plant community as God intended it: it is an invasive species. We split up to spend some time with our journals, trying to introspectively find our own invasive species. What subtle things creep into our lives and rob us of our chance to continue becoming what God created us to be?

We were called in from solo time to find a traverse set up across Bear Creek. The challenge was to get the entire group across the rain-swollen creek without anyone getting wet. The way everyone accepted the challenge, encouraged others, and did the little things necessary for the group to succeed was impressive. With the exception of Hannah's hood and the top of Lucas's head, we all arrived dry.

Once we were all on the other side, we piled into cars and headed back to school for sandwiches - hand made by Torie, Hannah and Audrey - fruit and Sun Chips. At the Expo, we made some money for the trip by painting faces and selling plants. Some of us wandered out to see the boys play baseball...it was a picturesque afternoon, with blossoming trees and cumulus clouds spangling the green grass and blue sky.

As we drifted off to sleep later that night, some of us thought "it doesn't get a whole lot better...."

Pictures!

2009-05-07T15:19:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pictures from our camp out last weekend.

Click on this link to see more pictures from our camp out and the April meeting at the Mustert's house.

http://gs109.photobucket.com/groups/n48/H63J1C1PH0/

Operation Squirrel starts Monday, May 11!

2009-05-07T15:55:00.000-07:00

Operation Squirrel will begin Monday after school and continue through Thursday morning (depending on how much more money is raised). I will be ascending into the tree around 4:00 on Monday and descending around 9:00 on Thursday. Students exceeded the goal by several hundred dollars and in total more than $6300 was pledged. Great job everyone! Pledges may be solicited and collected indefinitely, but the number of hours in the tree is based on the pledges made so far.

Erika H. and Christie C. will be blogging my notes from the tree twice on Tuesday and twice on Wednesday.

Reuben L. will be running POOPS (Post Office for OPeration Squirrel). He willing be selling suckers for a quarter each - the suckers come with a special notecard - with a squirrel on it - which can be used to ask questions of the squirrrel. Reuben will send/receive notecards twice on Tuesday and twice on Wednesday. The best questions will receive prizes.

Scholarship Essay

2009-05-07T16:00:00.000-07:00

Scholarships will be awarded to summer program participants on a competitive basis using the following writing prompt:

"People often return from summer camps glowing with the peace, joy, and kindness that results from time spent outdoors with close community, encountering God with few distractions.. Unfortunately, this can fade quickly when they return to the routine back home - the overly busy schedule, the sometimes negative influence of peers, the lure of unhealthy habits - and suddenly God, creation and community all seem distant and sometimes even undesirable. How will you use the opportunities given to you on the Grand Teton Summer Journey to be a better caretaker of creation, a better member of community and one who avoids distractions so (s)he can walk more closely with God after you return home?"

Deadline: June 15. This allows you some time to finish up the already busy month of May and gives us enough time to read them all and give awards before July 2, when we leave for Wyoming.

Format: Narrow margins, Times New Roman 12 pt, headed with a title and date but no name, submitted to the Rockford Christian School office, in an envelope, with a 4-digit PIN to identify the author. Head your paper with the title and PIN number only.

A conventional five paragraph essay is recommended, but other writing genres (such as poetic, lyrical, dialogue, story, etc. are acceptable (and tend to stand out).

Awards: A committee of GRCS staff members will read the essays and each will rank their top three. They will then collectively decide award recipients. Awards will be a minimum of $200, $150, and $100 and some award will be given to each student who submits an essay.