Daylight was still on our side as the Red Tail Eyases met at Whatcom Falls Park for their first exploration outing. With foundations of service and exploration and camouflage skills already entrenched in our psyche, we took the day to explore, play games, and wander.
Explorers organically piled the multitude of Bigleaf Maple leaves scattered about the ground. With a huge pile, we coerced Matt into it and then buried him! Also, on this day we had Christian join us. He is a member of the Firestalkers and a budding mentor in the Explorers’ Mentoring Apprentice (EMA) Program.
At this point we were ready to get train our awareness skills. We began to harness the power of Owl, whose eyes are incredibly sharp and attuned to motion in the forest. Though we can move our eyes around in our eye-sockets and owls can’t, they make up the deficiency by being able to spin their heads nearly 360 degrees around.
That said, we learned about keeping our heads and eyes still and using our peripheral vision to notice changes in movement and motion. We played Head Honcho, a game that tests an Explorer’s ability to recognize patterns, shifts in behavior, and changes in motion. All Explorers practiced “Owl Eyes” in participating or in guessing who the Head Honcho was.
After this introductory activity, we had opening meeting in a small grove of Western Redcedar. We took jobs so that we could explore safely. Our Scouts were prepared to lead and sweep the group and account for everyone. And our Hunter Gatherer had the snack!
Explorers enjoyed the raging Whatcom Falls; the roar made it difficult to communicate with people standing next to us. We crossed the bridge and were then faced with the first big challenge of the day… which way to go?!
Steve, Matt, and Dave stepped back to let the Explorers decide for themselves. It was a crossroads (literally and figuratively) as the boys were pressed to come to a consensus together. In this test of leadership, group bonding, and decision, the boys wisely used a resource in Christian. They looked to him as a mentor who could give them another viewpoint of each trail.
From the vista, they saw that the trails led to the same place… toward the water. Some of us played on the upper slopes while others played near eddies of water. Good thing we had boots! We safely explored the area above the falls and even got in two rounds of Hide! It was a good way to practice the art of camouflage which definitely came in handy later.
We marched down the trail and up a big hill to an open field. While there we learned the rules of Spiders Web. In this “capture-the-flag-esque” game “flies” worked together as a team to retrieve the flag. Only one lowly spider defended the flag, but Explorers had to consider many strategies for retrieving the treasure! Some rushed into the forest, while others crept along the forest floor. In the end, Explorers learned about the natural world: some felt the energy of deer moving slowly and others have a new appreciation for the hiding opportunities provided by Sword Fern.
When we left the forest to prepare for our first sit spots, we saw two deer in a clearing. Without hesitation, Explorers started to creep toward them stopping whenever the grazers looked up. Though we scared away the deer, our Spiders Web skills immediately transferred to a real-life scenario.
We had an opportunity for a 10-minute sit spot that would help us connect to the natural world on an individual level. It was a new experience for nearly everyone. The sit spot is an important part of Explorers Club because it epitomizes our practice of awareness that we foster in games and explorations. We can connect deeply with the natural world and with the self in this short amount of time with the appropriate focus and dedication to that time.
We had the perfect amount of time for snack and a Circle of Thanks before walking back through the woods, over the falls, and to the meeting spot. To practice the Explorer’s Club motto, Attitude of Gratitude, thanks Explorers for your effort and a successful exploration. And a big thank you to parents for your support and energy.
Please check out more outing pictures at thephoto gallery. And Be Prepared for next outing!
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