at the beginning of june our stake held a youth wilderness trek. we had told the youth for many months that it was going to be a challenging experience and to prepare themselves, physically and spiritually. matt and i took on physically. we had several fun activities to help prepare them for the trek. we didn't get in as many as we would have liked but taught them about nutrition, did yoga with them and had a survivor type activity in haleiwa! we love our callings!
the youth didn't know what was in store for them. they started at the waialua chapel and were driving to the trailhead to hike up to peacock flats, about 10 miles. they were given lunch before the left and put into families of about 10 kids and a "ma and pa". we had the greatest families!
matt and i did first aid so we didn't hike up with the youth, we got up to camp which was beautiful and set up our first aid station with another one to be set up about a quarter of the way up after a difficult stretch.
then we had to run back to costco to get the remaining food which turned out to be a lot! feeding 150 people for 3 days is no small task.
it was so beautiful and quiet there, waialua on one side and makaha on the other!
we went to set up our first aid station which at that point was the truck filled with first aid supplies and everything we needed to occupy ourselves for the 6 hours it would take for all the youth to pass this check point. we wandered around a little and then settled in to watch a movie on the ipad but it wasn't long before we got calls of dehydration and leg cramps and one of the YW who has a medical condition was passing out so our hang out time didn't last long.
we had 3 patients and a few more that dropped by with blisters. matt gave them an IV and 2 of them recovered but one was so sick and ended up going home. i'm glad i didn't have to do the hike!
the kids all did really great though! the point was for them to help each other, to endure and push themselves. you heard later over and over, i can't believe i made it! they did have stations along the way like stories and dinner to rest for a bit!
the second day was outdoor games and vignettes over a span of 6 miles so we had another first aid/snack station. this time was much more low key and we got to watch our movie on the ipad. this was the easiest assignment we've ever had!
some of the games were the firemans net where you climb out on to a rope and drop onto a net that everyone is holding on to. it looks much easier than it is! there was also a wall to climb over that was difficult but everyone worked together to get everyone over!
a few of the meals were made for them but they had to make the rest, one of the nights they were just given ingredients and had to come up with ideas for dinner. there were some very creative dishes!!
this was at night but they had a banner presentation, they did a great job.
this is the basecamp staff women! awesome ladies!
and the basecamp men, awesome men!
some of the youth
on the last day there was a 2 1/2 mile hike up to where they would have their solo time. an hour to just sit and ponder some questions they were given, to pray alone in nature and reflect on what they need to work on in their life. it is the most powerful experience!! away from the world amazing things happen!
at the top of that hike was another steep hill that we hiked up to see this view.
it was makua valley and was so beautiful.
the theme was remember. remember the pioneers, our ancestors who came before us, the people who brought the gospel to hawaii etc. the shirts had the names of the first pioneer or first member in their family so my name got to be on the shirt!
it was a really amazing experience. it takes a lot to put together and a lot of time but it is so worth it!!
1 comment:
that sounds awesome. I hope I can be involved with something like that one day.
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