PROGRAM PHOTO ALBUM
TIME CAPSULE LETTER
Written by Amy & the Utah Team
Hello everyone,
We hope you enjoyed the rest of your summer and that the start of your school year is going well. Now that we’re a few months out, we wanted to take a few moments to reflect back on the 10 days we shared together in Moab and on the Colorado River. Do you remember arriving into Grand Junction and stepping outside to the blistering 105-degree day? I think we all were surprised by how hot it could feel in the desert! As Nick and I were reminiscing about the trip, these were some of the memories that stuck out in our minds that we hope you still cherish as well:
Remember the drive along the river, through castle valley, and up into the La Sal Mountains as we headed to our first day of service work? How beautiful it was to wind our way along the river we would soon be rafting down? The stunning mesas, the haribo gummy bear. And finally getting an escape from the heat as we arrived to Warner Lake, having ascended 5,000 feet on the drive. The hike into the Whole Enchilada Trail seeing the aspens rustle in the wind, the beautiful array of wildflowers, the cows wandering alongside us. The feeling of accomplishment after having groomed the section of trail that is so important for the local economy and for mountain bikers and tourists from around the world. It was such a privilege to get to work alongside and learn from the US Forest Service and give back during our first few days on the program.
Following our service days, we had the opportunity to visit the renowned Arches National Park. Another stunning drive getting to view the unique geological formations, learning from Brett and other CFI guides about how they were formed and how old each layer of sediment was. Then taking off on our own hike to see three of the arches: Landscape, Partition, and Navajo. Getting to relax and stare out at the expansive views through the arches will desert critters crawled by. While our visit to Moab was short, I do remember how refreshing that first bite of shaved ice was after a very warm hike.
Then finally came the day of everyone’s rosebud: rafting! Remember showing up, getting our safety talk, rigging the boats for the first time, unsure what the river and next 5 days would bring? Going from learning how to paddle, proper techniques, setting up a camp kitchen, cooking meals, rigging a boat, setting up a tent….just slowly learning how to thrive in the backcountry and in this tough environment. We got to experience our first sunset atop our Cottonwood campground and start to really get a sense of where we were and how small we are in this world. While we all struggled, battling the mosquitos, we won’t forget that first moment, looking out at the wilderness and embracing these moments together.
Then came the moments of real trial- lightning storms, tent poles breaking and tents attempting to escape us, skating around the newly formed muddy clay in our campsite, discovering a potential fire in the distance. We survived that night with much laughter, not aware that the real challenge was coming for us the next day while at Black Rocks. Remember the adrenaline pulsing through our veins as we saw new plumes of dark smoke billowing above the canyon walls, helicopters flying overhead preparing to scoop out water from the river nearby to help fight the fires, quickly loading up the rafts as we evacuated from the potential fire coming towards us. We were all hoping for more time on the water and this unexpected situation allowed us a magical afternoon/evening float as we passed by new plumes of smoke in the distance. We arrived into our new campsite at Westwater to a gorgeous sunset and although y’all were bargaining to head to a hotel, we knew that we couldn’t wait for the next day, the day we were all waiting for, when we’d get to raft through the rapids of the Westwater Canyon.
Westwater Day! The most thrilling day of the trip. Remember waking up that morning, the excitement building up as we charged towards our Class II, III, and IV rapids. We didn’t really know what to expect but were ready for some action. As we approached the canyon, we noticed the landscape change, the walls becoming steeper and more jagged, the river narrowing. We worked as a team, navigating the gnarly waves and features of the rapids, getting soaked and splashed from all sides. I know a highlight for one boat was almost tipping the raft and watching as Chase, Tyler, Marjory, and Alexander swam down the Sock-it-to-Me rapid. Coming out of the rapids and arriving at our final campsite – remember that last evening? The beach, the sunset, the laughs, hanging out on the rocks together, truly taking in our last moments together on the river and in the beautiful canyon. We finally admitted that although the week had many challenges, we were grateful for the opportunity, the experiences we shared together, and the magic of being on the Colorado River.
We’re so thankful that you all decided to join us in Utah this past summer and hope you look back on in with smiles and happy memories. I know we do.
We wish you a wonderful next year and hope you enjoy more time in nature, giving back to your community, and finding more adventures that bring you joy.
-Amy, International Director & Nick, Mentor
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
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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.
