During our natural art project week, clay, grasses, flowers, leaves, and rocks were our featured materials. The week’s adventure started with a last-minute location change, when our original location was infested with stealthy mosquitoes. The Galisteo Basin Preserve proved to be an excellent alternative, and the kids enjoyed collecting clay, which they then turned into little pinch pots. Tuesday was spent keeping cool at the Beaver Ponds. After discovering a particularly deep spot in the river, we all enjoyed taking a dunk before heading back to work on nature collages. On Wednesday, surrounded by croaking frogs and soaring dragonflies, we made grass headbands, bracelets, and rings by the pond at Las Golondrinas. We ended our week flying our handmade kites and painting flagstone with rock paint. The hummingbirds made beautiful natural creations all while enjoying the splendor of the outdoors.
Looking at skulls, pelts, and tracks, the Hummingbirds learned about the amazing animals of New Mexico. On Monday and Tuesday, the heatwave pushed to the shade of trees, while we got to look at real animal pelts! Wednesday was beaver day, where we dressed up a counselor and brave volunteer as beavers to learn about the many adaptations beavers have that help them survive. Then we headed to the Beaver Ponds, where we learned more about how beavers impact the environment around them. Thursday was a special treat, when we got to visit the Española Wildlife Center, a place that takes in injured animals and rehabilitates them before re-releasing them to the wild. We got to see a number of birds, including a Red-tailed Hawk, Burrowing Owl, Osprey, chatty Magpie, Turkey Vulture and a hybrid Goshawk-Peregrine Falcon. Several of the kids got a treat when a handler took their Bald Eagle out of its cage, and were able to see it spread its wings. Once we finished at the Wildlife Center, we ran to Shidoni for a quick dip in the river to cool down before heading home.
With their spears, bows, rabbit sticks, and deadfall traps, the Eagles have the tools to survive in the wild! On Monday and Tuesday we constructed our hunting tools. Lead by Matt Brummett, the eagles carved their tools and learned how to properly handle them. Using bagged hay targets, the Eagles practiced using their tools and even tried out Matt’s personal atlatl and bow and arrows. On Wednesday, the Eagles had the tools they needed to survive an overnight in the woods, and, in the evening, we learned how to make deadfall traps, enjoyed a game of capture the flag, sang songs while roasting marshmallows, and listened to stories about magnificent animals. On Thursday, after a hot oatmeal breakfast, we hiked to nearby caves and explored the dark caves with our headlamps. After this week of Mountain Kids, the Eagles have the tools to hunt for a scrumptious rabbit dinner!
Mountain Kids participated in an Earth Exchange project! Since we often adventure to many healthy and alluring places in our neighboring wilderness, Mountain Kids took the opportunity to give back to the earth by creating beauty in a wounded area. On Friday June, 19, we went to the Frank Ortiz Dog Park. The Dog Park has a scarred history. In the 1940s, the area was used as a Japanese Internment Camp, and later it became a landfill. Today, trash can still be found around the park. Collecting the found trash, from old tires and cans to bricks and wire, Mountain kids constructed a trash bird. We named the bird “Freedom to the Land” in hopes that this wounded land will one day soar with great beauty once more. This project was a reminder to us all to treat the earth with love and respect.
The Eagles enjoyed a week of bugs, hiking, and capture the flag! On Monday, we explored the Beaver Ponds, finding numerous fossils and making hematite face paint. Back at Fort Marcy, we set up our bug traps in the arroyo. Deer Creek was our destination on Tuesday, where we swam in the pools and scrambled up rocks. On Wednesday, we enjoyed a hike through the trees. We practiced our orientation skills, using a map and compass and by identifying landmarks. Bug week ended on Thursday with hiking to a gushing waterfall, identifying poison ivy, making cone and stick boats, and playing in the mud.
Bugs, bugs, bugs! The Owls dug in the mud and scavenged through grasses, spotting many spiders, beetles, flies, and butterflies. On Monday, we explored the Beaver Ponds, and we made potato and cup bug traps, which we hid in the arroyo next to Fort Marcy. Every morning, we checked our bug traps to see what we caught. Commonly we caught many ants, but some managed to catch ground beetles. On Tuesday, the Harrell House Bug Museum and Science shop shared their collection of bugs with us. In the collection, we saw living black widows, tarantulas, vinegaroons, and many more. Wednesday was our mud day as the Owls dug into the moist dirt, finding many worms. We finished our week hiking with gnats, spiders, and moths. Our week was Bug-tastic!
The Hummingbirds had lots of fun making bug traps and exploring nature and bugs in their own habitat. On Tuesday, Wade Harrell from the Harrell House Bug Museum and Science shop shared his collection of bugs with us. In the collection, we saw living black widows, tarantulas, vinegaroons, and many more. We got muddy in the creek on Monday, explored the Beaver Ponds on Tuesday, hiked all the way to the pools at Deer Creek on Wednesday (wow!), and had a blast playing in the trees on Thursday! All in all it was a buggy and dirty week of fun!
This Week the Eagles used their Eagle eyes peering through camera lenses to capture and share the beauty they found all over New Mexico. On Monday we hiked through an Aspen Grove and played games along the way. On Tuesday we mustered heroic persistence for a long but beautiful hike . The magical, misty, wide open view was worth all the complaining on the way up and hail/rainstorm on the way down. On Wednesday we donned our camping gear and headed out to Abiquiu Lake for a camping trip. As the rain clouds cleared we spent the day working on out photo transfers, swimming in the lake, and learning about its history from the park rangers. Once night fell, we shared stories, songs and s’mores by grandfather fire. The next day we had the opportunity to hike Chimney Rock at Ghost Ranch and cool off in the lake, before heading back to Fort Marcy filled with vitamin nature, cameras of artfully composed photos, and lots of great memories.