Written by CI CAP Instructor Chelsea Tossing

“Hoot, hoot!” I hollered across the field at Chautauqua Park to gather my students. “Ca-CAWWW” my students yelled back at me in their best bird impressions.

On September 10th, the New Vista High School crew headed out to the Enchanted Mesa trailhead for our first walking field day of the year. With the forecast predicting a cool 97 degrees and full sun, our recent lesson on Wilderness First Aid has us prepared to rise to just the occasion as we prepared to ward off the heat with electrolytes and lots of sunscreen. Luckily, our hydration captains took their jobs very seriously; hardly 20 minutes went by between each call of “Hydrate or Die-drate!”

Once at the park, we sharpened our orienteering skills as students created their own compass courses. Paces and bearings led them under bushes and behind benches to find the secret ingredients for our lunchtime surprise– homemade ice cream in a bag!

In preparation for the trip, students designed their menu and shopped for their own meals; in a stunning display of culinary creativity, they chose…turkey sandwiches and trail mix. After a satisfying (if not particularly innovative) lunch, we headed up the Enchanted Mesa trail, trying to convince passersby that it was, in fact, a “good morning” despite it being 1 PM.

We closed out the day practicing our wood-whittling and knot-tying skills while overlooking the beautiful Boulder valley. Laughs rang out from the tall grass as we reflected on our Roses, Thorns, and Spaghettis for our time together, and the sun shone on our (sunscreen covered) skin as we headed the half mile back to school.

It turns out that you don’t have to go far to experience the magical connection of time outside together.

Check out more photos from the trip here!