Every trip has that seminal moment where you realize what makes it unique from others. This holds true for our last Cottonwood Institute adventure to Sanborn Western Camps in Florissant, CO.  The sole purpose of this weekend excursion was to reach out to military families in the Denver/Colorado Springs area and provide a relaxing, fun, and meaningful weekend with their children exploring nature.

This trip started out like many of our other Cottonwood Institute trips, with instructors and participants standing in a circle playing name games and getting to know one another.  Now fast forward to the end of the trip- before we were to go home, we as instructors wanted to take some time to make sure the kids fully appreciated the experiences they had so we circled up one last time. One by one, we went around and took a brief moment to discuss what we were appreciative of when we were reminded of a simple yet dismal truth. While we were all enjoying the outdoor environment, and various games, activities and delicious meals, a good portion of these families had friends and/or relatives who were still active duty, and fighting to protect our liberties at that very moment.  What a good reminder to be grateful for the people in our lives and the rights we have living in the U.S.  And again, why these families, more than ever, may need this weekend getaway to de-stress from life!

After a fun-filled first day including sixty minutes of bow drilling, two bowls of pizza rice, and one (or three!) S’more(s) later, we were all tucking ourselves in for a good night’s sleep.  It had been a long day, and we were exhausted. The lively, energetic youth we had become accustomed to, were now drifting pairs of weary eyes, and rambling mouths that yawned after every other syllable. Just a few minutes prior they were crawling through the campsite, and imitating their favorite predators as they tried to sneak up on the adults who were conversing around the mesmerizing fire.  It was clearly time to rest.  But not before taking some time out to admire the twinkling stars of the night sky over Sanborn Western Camps; simply awe-inspiring.

The next morning we all wiped the dew off of our tents, and packed our belongings into the vans as soon as we woke. After a light breakfast, we took some time to participate in our second community service activity of the weekend.  These opportunities really help to enforce the idea that we all need to take ownership of our surrounding environment. It was impressive to see such dedication and stewardship from the kids, as we picked up an obscene amount of glass shards around a historic house at our campsite (which was built at the turn of the century completely out of stolen railroad ties).

Our last stop was the Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument. What an amazing learning opportunity! Did you know that 34 million years ago there were 200 foot tall Redwood trees in Colorado? There was also a horse the size of a house dog called the Mesohippus. How incredible is that? We were continually blown away the more our gracious tour guide spoke. But it didn’t stop with the tour. After the tour we got to use microscopes to examine pieces of shale in their outdoor learning lab, where we discovered some ancient insects. We even got to dig up some bones of our own! Don’t believe us? Then check out the pictures here! Maybe you might decide to join us next time…

Many thanks goes out to Patrick Perry at Sanborn Western Camps for graciously hosting us, Scott Harper for providing us a wonderful tour at Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument, and Enterprise Holdings Foundation and the Colorado National Guard.

Written by: Michael Geddes, CI Instructor