PROGRAM PHOTO ALBUM
Thanks for the checking out the blog for this Global Leadership Adventures program!
Here are a few things to know and expect:
- Blog posts are written by onsite program staff and/or students and sent to our Headquarters team who will post the blog on this page.
- We typically receive 2-3 blog posts per week from each program, so please don’t be alarmed if you don’t see a blog post every day – that’s totally normal.
- Blog updates received on weekends may not be posted until Monday.
- Due to many factors such as internet accessibility, program staff aren’t always able to send photos, so some blog posts may contain text only.
Thank you for your patience and understanding, and we hope you enjoy following along on these unforgettable adventures.
For frequently asked questions about the blogs, please visit our Program Blog FAQ page.
-The Global Leadership Adventures HQ Team
Click here to jump down to the most recent post!
BLOG POST FOR JULY 9
Hello from Moab!
We are so excited to welcome everyone to Utah for the next 10 days. All 14 students arrived safe and sound into the Grand Junction airport and we made our way back to our home base for the next 4 nights. The day was filled with several airport pickups, a delicious Chick-fil-A lunch, beautiful views along our drive, a yummy dinner of chicken fajitas, and a little bit of orientation and icebreakers. The early arrival group also got to go on a little adventure to Mill Creek! We’re looking forward to starting out service work together and getting out to explore the area more.
Here are a few pics from today:
BLOG POST FOR JULY 10
This morning we started our day with a yummy pancake, bacon, and hash brown breakfast prior to our adventure up the La Sal mountains to begin our service work. After a beautiful drive along the Colorado River and through Castle Valley, we met with Lisa from the US Forest Service to learn about our project and get trained on the tools we would use. There’s a very popular and scenic mountain bike trail called the Whole Enchilada that was in need of trail maintenance. We assisted by clearing branches and leaves that were growing onto the trail to ensure the trail was safe for bikers as they zoom down the mountain. The part of the trail we were working on was about 1.25 miles from the parking lot so we got to enjoy a beautiful hike through the Aspen trees to get there. We also had a picnic lunch along a stream. After a productive day of service, we drove back down the mountain, taking in the sights of the valley and Castleton Tower from above, and headed back to Home Base for dinner. Gigi, Andy, Miles, and Rien grilled burgers, baked french fries, and put together a pasta salad for everyone to enjoy. We ended the evening with a fun icebreaker, goal setting and community agreement activity. We’re excited for another day of service tomorrow!
Amy, International Director & Nick, Mentor
BLOG POST FOR JULY 11
Today we woke up at an altitude of about 4000 feet and watched as the beautiful sun overtook the mountains. At around 8:30 we left in the van for a scenic drive to continue some trail work at about 10,000 feet. We cleared about 30 football fields of debris and overgrowth off of the beautiful trail and were able to have an amazing impact on the trail. While heading back to Moab, we ran to the grocery store and another store for forgotten supplies and added snacks. When we got back, we had a lot of fun tonight connecting through games: Human Knot and Yeehaw, which ended in fits of giggles on all sides. Unfortunately, Nick’s team won the human knot race, with Amy’s group not far behind. I can’t wait to continue playing these games throughout the next week and continue growing closer to our group.
Thank you for sending your kids. We have met amazing people and it is only day three.
Sincerely, Lotte and Christina (leaders of the day)
BLOG POST FOR JULY 12
Today we went hiking in Arches National Park. We learned about things like erosion of the rocks. We afterwards went into town and got things like shaved ices and noodle bowls. We went over set up for the rafting tomorrow.
-Cameron, leader of the day
Just a quick note – we will be headed to the river tomorrow and will be out of service for the next 5 days, until Wednesday late afternoon. Please reach out to GLA headquarters if you need any assistance during this time. We’re so excited to finally embark on our rafting adventure!
-Amy, international director
BLOG POST FOR JULY 15
Just a quick update from the river — day 3 of rafting turned out to be quite the adventure for us! After a relaxing two days floating down the Colorado River and spending time at various campsites, we made it to our 3rd night camp at Black Rocks. After spending the morning hiking, swimming, and learning about canyons, we were getting ready to unload the rafts and set up camp when we saw smoke in the distance. After connecting with the BLM (Bureau of Land Management), we made the call to vacate that campsite and float about 10 miles downriver to the Westwater Ranger Station campsite.
Along the float, we got to witness helicopters and planes flying overhead, headed towards the fire to help with suppression. While we never saw the flames, we saw some smoke in the distance. We have now arrived safely at camp, ate a delicious dinner, and are headed to bed. We’re excited to raft the whitewater tomorrow in the Westwater Canyon! We’ll be out of service again for this last river portion, but stay tuned for more updates in a few days!
BLOG POST FOR JULY 17
We made it off the river! After the exhilarating day of escaping the wildfire (which has now grown to 215 acres!), we had an amazing final two days on the river. Yesterday we got to finally experience the rapids of Westwater canyon. The crowd favorite was Sock it to Me rapid, where 4 of the group ended up taking a swim! We stopped for the night at a beautiful campsite after the rapids that was tucked away in the canyon with lots of rocks and sandy beaches. The group got to spend quality time hanging out together and watching the final sunset and sunrise on the river, some even sleeping outside under the stars. We rowed the final 4 miles today and then headed to our hotel in Fruta, where everyone was eager to take their first shower in 5-6 days. After a tasty pizza dinner, we did some final closing reflection activities and enjoyed the pool and hot tub at the hotel. We’re sad to say goodbye to our new friends but are so grateful for the memories that we’ve made this week and the experiences we had together.
