Outpost 193 in Sacramento, California did a weekend backpack trip this last weekend. Six boys(ages 9, 10, 11, 13) and three commanders (one young, two 50+) hiked the trail at Pt Reyes National Seashore that runs from Palomarin Beach to Wildcat camp, about 5.5 miles of some of the most beautiful scenery in the whole world! We saw Alamere Falls, a 40' ocean bluff waterfall, (one of the few in the world) and we saw the sand, the waves, the horizon, five small inland lakes and miles and miles of nature's beauty when we stood on a 300' bluff that projected out into the ocean. There was 20 miles of Point Reyes beaches stretching off into the Northwest as we could see where the Pt. Reyes Lighthouse stands. And we could see about 10 miles of beaches looking to the Southwest toward the town of Bolinas. We could also see headlands and trees and seagulls and pelicans and a fishing boat and an Aircraft Carrier(!) headed North. Some of the boys claimed to see whales out there, but us old coots couldn't make them out. The boys inspected every hole in the ground, looking for wildlife, and were once rewarded with the sight of a critter with a set of beady brown eyes, brown fur and a little black nose regarding them from behind a mound of dirt he had just pushed out of his hole. For five of these boys, it was their very first backpack trip. Of course, they brought too much stuff, and the walk out was tough, but the trip was a superior accomplishment for all of them. I'm so very proud of all of them and my friends (the other commanders) that I tear up just remembering their toughness. In fact, two boys twisted their ankles at some point and never told us commanders because they wanted to continue and didn't want us to worry. And they never showed any evidence of pain until we were about a mile from the parking lot on the way out! It was great trip, and we learned about Poison Oak and wild blackberries and backpack setup and carrying out what you carried in and how to read a topo map. Yes, I know how to read a topo map, I just happened to miss the spot on the map where our trail crossed four 40' topo lines in about a tenth of a mile. *sigh*
If you want to see where we went, go to http://www.nps.gov/pore/ and click on the Camping link and then the Maps link. Choose the park map and zoom in to South tip near Bolinas. You will see a little spot named Palomarin TrailHead. We walked from there to Wildcat camp, spent the night, got up in the morning and walked on the beach to Alamere Falls, climbed the bluff and walked back to the parking lot. Last year, we walked a five mile round trip. This year, we walked an eleven mile round trip. We are trying to work our way up to a serious trip where we can take several days, but with our current age group, we are a few years away from that. Pictures to follow after I get them scanned. ============================================================ Kenneth Komoto mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Office of the Registrar Phone: (530)752-7197 University of California Fax : (530)752-0329 Davis, Ca 95616 _______ Let the Golden Rule be your daily rule. Please pray for your list sponsor: http://eBible.org/mpj/ To unsubscribe, send "unsubscribe rangernet" to [EMAIL PROTECTED] or visit http://rangernet.org/subscribe.htm http://rangernet.org
