Monday:
Today we went to Galisteo River. We played name games and went over the Mountain Kids rules before heading off. Once we got there we hiked to our special spot with a tee pee. We did some tee pee building and enjoyed playing in the water. We decided on our group names for the week: the Ant-Lions (Bigs) and the Earthworms (Littles). It was great to play and talk about the rocks and clay all around us. After lunch we hiked through the river and had ‘superman’ races running around and getting very muddy. We made a rock maze, played maze of life, camouflage, and caught a small frog and other insects. We collected dirt and made clay to build pots and make clay sculptures. We also had some quiet time, doing sit spots and a closing circle. The day flew by and we had an amazing time together using the earth as our playground!
Tuesday:
This morning we played some ice breaker games as a group and then learned about all types of rocks. Heather brought rock samples from her time spent all over the country working in parks. After snack and circle we headed to the Ski Basin for the day. We brought jars for collecting bugs and all the kids searched for grasshoppers. We made Andy Goldsworthy statues with branches and rocks and made up a funny story about meeting Andy and catching flying sandwiches. We played camouflage, flash flood, dead bugs, built a dam in the river and painted rocks. We collected rocks, finding the most beautiful rocks we could. We hiked a lot and played a lot! At the end of the day we had story time and then each of the kids decided on one thing they were thankful for. Many said the mountains and the bugs and the rocks – what a great day!
Wednesday:
In the morning we had a presentation on compost and how to make a compost pile. After our snack we headed to Aspen Vista and hiked. The Bigs hiked up and Littles hiked down to Big T.
The Bigs painted their rock boxes, threw some seed balls (we discussed seeds) and Mahko made up a game based on the maze of life which we all played. The boys caught bugs for some time – twelve in all – mostly grasshoppers. We played lots of games: Bob the Weasel, Dead Bugs, Robots and Blob Tag. We made mud huts and played “Meet a Rock” (the kids sat on a log blindfolded, felt a rock then they were handed several different rocks and they had to figure out which was their original rock).
The Littles collected precious rocks and read books about rocks. We found shady spots and wonderful shelters made from fallen branches. We counted butterflies and beautiful moths. We played in the river and played games as a group. The hike was long, but the weather was perfect. It was a wonderful day!
Thursday:
Today we went to Nambe Falls. After playing games, reading about soil, and having a snack we headed out. The Bigs hiked to the viewpoint first and then the waterfall. We took out the rock box and examined the different rocks, and then we used the magnifying glass to check out other rocks in the area. We played a game of camouflage, told another funny story during lunch about flying turtle. We headed down and hiked to the waterfall. The Littles hiked to the waterfall right away. The water has changed from clean and clear snowfall run off to silt infused rainwater that is much more like the Rio Grande. It was exciting to have so much water and hike through a river rushing and splashing by. At the waterfall all the kids jumped right in to play in the water. We were sure to have adults in the water at all times given that there was so much water. After playing we got out to get dry and eat lunch. We hiked back and had time for more games and songs about rocks. We changed into dry and clean clothes and headed back. It was a perfect way to end a great week. I am sure there are a lot of happy and tired campers!
