The whole group, BIGS and LITTLES, stuck together today. In the morning we learned about ants and practiced teamwork. We hiked on the trail, stopped for lunch, hiked over rocks and through the river, and made it to the falls. Everyone was so excited to play in the water and build in the river using driftwood and rocks. We read more books about insects, and then we all gathered together to hike back. It was a wonderful day and a wonderful hike!
LITTLES: We learned about butterflies and practiced our yoga butterfly pose. We explored the old town, saw goats, and visited the blacksmith. We then went by some beautiful cotton woods to read stories, work on water colors, play games, and climb trees. Almost everyone fell asleep in the van home after a very fun and sunny day!
BIGS: We had the best time here collecting big handfuls of cotton coming from the cottonwood trees! We talked to the blacksmith and he showed us how to make an iron fork with a twist in it. He said it takes about four hour to make one fork! We went to the old school house and pretended to be in school. We did cursive practice on the chalkboards.
This location is very special, so if you have not been there here is also some info on the place:
This historic Rancho, now a living history museum, dates from the early 1700s and was an important ‘paraje’ or stopping place along the famous Camino Real, the Royal Road from Mexico City to Santa Fe.
LITTLES: Shidoni Sculpture Garden
We had a wonderful time with all the huge sculptures. The grassy area gave us lots of room for running and playing. We played frog detectives and learned a lot about bees. We all got tattoos with a trout and a message to take care of the river and the Santa Fe National Forest! We all chose a statue to draw and make up stories about. Then we read books about spiders and bees! It was a wonderful, low key day!
BIGS: Base Camp
We got oriented to Base Camp and the started a game of Sardines. We took turns doing archery, shelter building and mountain biking before lunch. After lunch some of us made sunprints of insects while others chose to do more archery and shelter building. As a group we made a really awesome shelter where we had story time to end the day!
LITTLES
We learned about insects. We learned that not all insects are bugs, we just liked to call lots of non-bugs by that name. We saw beautiful blue and red dragonflies. We did an insect scavenger hunt with buddies. We played in the pond and searched for macro aquatic invertebrates and we found some! We had lunch and played games to get to know one another.
BIGS
We hiked around all of the beaver ponds – found fossils and then went on a scavenger hunt for insects and found more than 23 species in less than 2 minutes of looking!
We all began the day with a story about salmon boy – a native American myth – told by Ashley. After snack we headed to Tsankawi for the day.
LITTLES: We had lunch and then began our hike. We talked about mesas and petroglyphs. We went up a big ladder and hiked up to the highest mesa. The view was beautiful. We sat in the shade to rest. Then we heard thunder so we sang songs to ask the skies for rain and hiked back down. We arrived in the shelter and it began to rain! During that time we put together our art books and played and colored!
BIGS: We had a great hike! We stopped at the interpretive signs to learn about the ancestral pueblo people and their two-story buildings, petroglyphs and agriculture. When we got to the caves we stopped for a rest and talked about what life would be like there, and what we would miss about our modern lives. We were blessed by a light rain at the end of our hike – it was so nice to cool down!
Quote of the Day: “This is a big hike, a beautiful hike, a fun hike, right?” -Duncan
We played some games and then had circle where Katie showed us pelts and skulls of local desert animals. It was fun to feel the soft fur of so many animals (ranging from ringtailed cat to mountain lion!).
Afterward we had snack and then loaded up to go to the Wildlife Center. This was wonderful. We had a tour and got an up close look at a Barred Owl, a Red Tailed Hawk, and a Peregrine Falcon.
Afterward, we walked around and saw all kinds of animals. Highlights included a bald eagle, vultures, falcons, a grey fox, bobcats, pygmy owls, and a turtle! We then chose an animal to go and draw, read stories, had closing circle, and played some games!
Today we began with some fun warm up games, buddies and snack. We then headed off to Galisteo where we love to find clay and cool off in the river.
LITTLES: As soon as we arrived there was a huge area of clay and mud. Before we had time to hike the kids had jumped right in and were overjoyed to be splashing and playing in the mud. Once they were sufficiently muddy, we went to the river for them to try and rinse off. It was a challenge to get the sticky mud off!
We had lunch by the river and read a folk tale. Then we went on a short hike both on land and through the river. After more time to get stuck in the mud and play with the clay, we hiked back to clean off, have closing circle and head home!
BIGS: TWe really found a lot of animal signs! We found turkey vulture feathers, fox scat, raccoon scat, coyote tracks, little tiny mouse feet tracks in the mud, mayflies, dragonflies, a toad, tadpoles, water snails, a few birds that had died and been washed into the river, and of course lots of mud! We talked about how the animals come out after the rain and leave their tracks and scat everywhere because they can’t smell any human scent after the rain. It was a fun day in the river at Galisteo!
Today we went to beaver ponds! We began the day making a group contract, where we all agreed to the rules of camp.
At circle we dressed up Serenity and Ziggy as beavers to learn about how beavers live in COLD water, and stay warm, make their homes, dig, chew down trees,etc. They were good sports and looked pretty funny and cute! Each camper got a buddy for the day and they had snack together (we do this every day with new buddies).
At the Beaver Ponds, the LITTLES took a short hike and then stopped for lunch. We saw wild mushrooms, dragonflies, lizards, and butterflies. After lunch we hiked farther to a spot where we played ‘meet a tree/plant’ with our buddies. Then we hiked farther and each camper got an animal assignment for the week. They got a picture with facts about their animal and then worked on a drawing of their animal. After playing a few more games we hiked back to the vans.
The BIGS had a great time at the beaver pond. We found some really large fossil shells, and learned the difference between igneous and sedimentary rocks. We played camouflage in the Chamisa, saw a red-tailed hawk soaring, and had personal sit spot time. Overall, a great start to the week!
Back at the museum the LITTLES and BIGS shared what we had seen with each other.