Exploration/Hiking Skills Day at Artist Point 8-27-16

The Flying Squirrels gathered together again to seek redemption... Last year at this time, the Flying Squirrels were rained out of the alpine, and brought to Blanchard Mountain. On that day, they experienced truly epic rain, frigid wind, and an overall edge-stretching day.

On this gorgeous, glowing Saturday, we ventured out the winding, wandering road of the Mount Baker Highway up towards the White Watcher herself, Komo Kulshan. On our car ride up, the Flying Squirrels wasted no time in connecting with each other again. We sang songs, from "Hamilton" to "Bohemian Rhapsody", reveling in each other's company. As we wound our way up the final stretch towards Artist Point, I heard some gasps and "Oh my god, look!"'s as Shuksan poked out of the clouds to reveal stunning glaciers, rough rock faces, and jagged peaks. 

View of the gorgeous basin from the trail

We met briefly over lunch in the ever-busy parking lot to review our Leave No Trace Principals. Lauren taught the girls a handy way to remember these guidelines for responsible hiking and camping... Can your Flying Squirrel share any of them with you? We decided to hike in two groups, remembering that we are bound to have multiple hiking paces. The Banana Slugs set out first, and we were quickly caught up to by the Mountain Goats. Man, these girls can hike! We set out into a slightly misty abyss, enjoying time to talk and be together on our walk. 

Goofballs in snack mode

After pausing to keep our group together, sustain our bodies with water and food, we connected about our Roses and Thorns. Each of us have so many Roses, which are the special parts of us that shine, blossom, and bloom. We also have our Thorns, or the parts of us that we can acknowledge and continue working on. As always, it is also good to remind us that we live on a continuum-- Our Roses so often can be pushed too far to where they can become a Thorn. For example: Some of our Squirrels have a large Raven voice, so they are chatty, strong communicators who can organize a group. At the same time, this can go too far to where they can dominate conversations and not allow space for quieter folks to speak. With all of this information, the Squirrels then spent a solid time hiking with a buddy, and sharing their Roses and Thorns together. The girls were deeply engaged in this time together, and quickly made their hike down in this sharing time. 

Splashing in Mazama Lake

We met up together at Mazama Lake. Some people swam, some people waded, we all snacked and it was lovely. We spent a short time in Peaceful Place, and then gathered for an intimate check-in. It is clear that sharing about our lives has become important to the Flying Squirrels, and I appreciate their continual ability to share with openness, trust, and love. These girls are so special.

Sliding through the snowfield

We hiked our way back up, as the mist and rain and clouds came in more seriously. To celebrate our strong trek up the hill, we spent some time glissading down the snowfields, soaking our clothes and laughing loudly. From there, we spent some final hiking time until we reached the parking lot. We calculated about 4-5 miles of hiking, which made the girls feed proud and accomplished. Loading into the bus, tired and delirious, we took another long, winding ride home, enjoying our final hours together. What a strong way to begin our Hiking Skills focused-season!

To see more photos from our outing, click here!