Discussion Topic |
|
This thread has been locked |
| Messages 1 - 9 of total 9 in this topic |
Slater
Trad climber
Central Coast
|
|
|
Topic Author's Original Post - Dec 8, 2009 - 03:04pm PT
|
I teach middle school English and each year we take about 150 middle schoolers to Yosemite Valley in December (kinda like doing a VI A3+).
I designed a webpage (old school with code and everything!) a few years back that teachers might find useful as a pre-lesson before your school heads up. Hope you find it useful. It's a great trip. Sometimes I even get to see Kauk in Camp 4 while hiking with my kids. He's always polite, but the kids are just clueless. They watch him fire off a V6 and the boys are always like... "I can do that!" WE give an inch and they take a mile and off they go flopping all over Camp 4 to every boulder they can find with instructor and teacher and parent yelling and chasing. Kids always break arms and get teeth knocked out on the ice rink. Great times... Anyway...
If you don't teach, there are some cool Valley pics in there.
http://www.lmusd.org/education/components/links/links.php?sectiondetailid=153&sc_id=1164741266
There are 3 parts. Click on the picture for Part I, II, or III to get to the next page. Then scroll DOWN. Part I has the history and climbing shots. Part II has the flora/fauna, Part III has the school trip.
Anyway, hope some of you find it useful, or at least entertaining.
I wish they did something cool like this when I was in jr. high (Dazed and Confused era- early '80... aka the showers and jockstraps era). Oh man I gotta keep those memories burried deep down, ha ha.
Happy Holidays,
Tom
|
|
BlueDragon
climber
Bay Area, CA
|
|
What a fabulous trip for the kids. In fact, I did it in the mid-seventies in Junior High. We had somewhat of an epic x 2.
First, coming up from SoCal, the weather turned really bad around Fish Camp, the road was very slick, and a truck slid into our bus. I still remember who I was sitting to when the truck slid right into us. We had to spend the night in Fish Camp, which by now had no power. They tried to feed us somehow in the local lodge, which not only did not have hot food but not enough rooms for all of us. So some locals put some of us up, and the teachers went to the houses -- those of us in the lodge were left on our own (4 to a room). When I think back, now that I have kids and volunteer in classes, it must have been a huge hassle and a bit scary for the adults on the trip. My recollection however is that it was a huge thrill.
Our Curry part went fairly smoothly, we had obviously a big winter so we got to snowshoe. I snuck out at night with three of the guys that I used to hang out with -- we are all musicians. We wanted to walk to Yosemite falls (was the layout of the valley different back then? ha ha, these are my recollections though). I remember one of them saying "I wonder if they turn the falls off at night" and I thought he was terribly funny.
Epic #2 came at Crane Flat. We has our cross country day, and took a trail up to the lookout. I was again with my three musician friends. They fortunately realized how bad the trail was, with plenty of places for error. When we were done snapping pictures at the top, the four of us hustled up and followed the first guide very closely on the way down. Others were not so lucky. Some got down with the second guide, quite a ways back, and another group with a teacher spent the night out there after taking a wrong turn. They were found in the early morning hours, everyone was OK, they had burned some skis and apparently were reprimanded for that (huh?).
Anyway, I don't remember much of jr high, but that trip certainly sticks out in my mind. Didn't know I would be climbing there decades later.
Yosemite is such a beautiful place...
Thanks for a great website on this trip, the interspersed questions are good for the kids.
|
|
Wade Icey
Trad climber
www.alohashirtrescue.com
|
|
Valley won't mind... it's made of stone.
You're bringing them all to the Lodge Cafe for breakfast with Werner, right?
|
|
Slater
Trad climber
Central Coast
|
|
|
Topic Author's Reply - Dec 8, 2009 - 04:10pm PT
|
LOL - There is something about Jr. High that is just damn horrific and funny at the same time, and we can all relate! Jocks, stoners, socs, surfers, geeks, etc. You were either being tortured or you were torturing.
We've had to split the busses with the guys in the front half and the girls in the back half for obvious reasons I won't detail. The big no-no is no opposite sex in the cabins.
We had one kid lure a racoon into his cabin with cheetos, then slam the door. The large rodent tore the cabin apart.
We tell them not to bring food into the cabins but they always sneak it in, then come running to my cabin at 3am freaking because something is "alive" and running around in their cabin.
Blue dragon... they burnt the skis!?! Rad. Good thing they didn't eat one of the hikers. Jr. High is lord of the flies for sure.
Our librarian told us a story about how when she went as a younger teacher 15 years back her hiking group got lost also and they had to sleep in a snow cave for the night. Good to know we have qualified YI guide ;)
Breakfast on Werner! Right on! Does he spit in the eggs?
And that cartoon is deadly accurate. Steer clear for sure!
|
|
Maysho
climber
Soda Springs, CA
|
|
Have fun Slater!!! No sorry needed, there will be no protected lands if there are no adults who care about wilderness, many do care because they had a memorable experience when young.
I attended YI when a freshman, I was already climbing in the Valley summers and spring breaks however, so I got to take an evening off and lead my biology teacher up the Nutcracker!
Hey consider Donner Summit if you need another location for school groups! Works really well, our lodge holds 145.
Peter
|
|
miss.julienne
climber
Capitola, California
|
|
This is rad. I am a PE teacher and I am bring my kids to the park this summer for our very first and hopefully annual Yosemite Camping Trip. I am excited everyday to bring them and it is still 6 months away. I want to share my love for the park and outdoors with them. If I can inspire just one of them to be an outdoor enthusiast and spend their lifetime explorring the wonderful world out there I will be the happiest woman alive. I care so much for all my kids and this oppertunity is just as much for me as it is for them. Hopefully they will take a liking to climbing as well!!! And then i can belay them up 5.15 one day!!!
|
|
Homer
Mountain climber
Santa Cruz, CA
|
|
That's cool Slater. We took my son's 6th grade class camping in Wawona and climbing at Swan Slab a couple years back. Super fun to share those experiences with them.
150 8th graders!! No way I'm that brave - glad that you are.
|
|
| Messages 1 - 9 of total 9 in this topic |
|
SuperTopo on the Web
|
Let us know!