We thought it would be safe to avoid snow and bad weather. After we got out of the bottom of the Grand Canyon we drove down the mountain to lower elevation to Winslow and stayed at a free camp site. If you know the band The Eagles they talk about Winslow being a mighty fine sight to see. Now it is in shambles and half the places are out of business and rundown.
We then decided we wanted to have a warm and great rest of our trip. The field staff and Jeremy had a deal with us; If we drove back to the desert to lost Dutchman, where we camped the first night we got A.Z. when we got to Lost Dutchman and did one day of school and a half day, we could go to the Recreation Center. The first time we stayed there we thought it would not rain so we did not used tents but it did rain and we all got soaked. We were all talking about how it might rain again but people said it would not and not to jinx us. I said, after dinner when it was dark that it would rain because it looked like it. I remember stuff from a summer class in grade school about weather. That night it rained and we got soaked in our tents. The wind was hard and people said at times it blew well over 50 miles an hour. When we got up we packed up our tents and sleeping stuff as fast as we could and went to a Laundromat to dry our tents and other wet stuff and to change and eat breakfast.
Afterwards we went to the cool library to do school. After school we went to the a covered awning, part of the Recreation Center building, to eat dinner and do nightly meeting and nightly stuff so we did not get wet even though it was still raining. That night we had to go back to that camp site even though it was raining worse than it was the first night. Just to let you know, we always try to wear rain-gear in the rain.
When we got to camp we got out really fast of the big Black Beast, that’s what we call the van, and as fast as we could we set our tents up in the rain. It was so windy and wet we had to use rocks to hold all of the tents down. Isaac Inglis and my tent blew away and Ben and A.C. caught it in the air. Even though it was raining everyone was laughing and making jokes while we set up the tents. The staff helped us set up our tents to make it go faster so we did not get as wet. When we woke up it was raining so we packed up and went to the Laundromat again and the library like the day before. After a half day of school we went to the Recreation Center, had fun, and took showers. When we went back to camp that night it was pretty dry so we had a good night sleep and we woke up early to go the airport to go back to N.C..
Friday, January 29, 2010
Hiking in the Grand Canyon
By
Ben Sacks
There is always one main activity in every expedition. The main activity is hiking in the backcountry. On this expedition, we, the Nothing but G’s, did a 3-part, 16 mile hike in and out of the Grand Canyon.
Part one of this 3-part hike was the easiest. Even though it was 8 miles (the longest), it was downhill the whole way. Unfortunately, there always has to be a catch; this one was ice. A few sections of the trail were covered with ice. Some were so bad that a few of us slipped and fell. Since all of us were bored and really wanted to pass the time, A.C., Ricky, Wes (one of our expedition staff), and myself decided to have a competition to see who could fall the least amount of times until we stopped for lunch. The results were as follows from least to greatest: Ricky-0; Andrew-0; Ben (me)-0; Wes-0; A.C.-1; Laith-1; Suzanne (the other expedition staff)-3; Isaac-5. About 3 hours later, with around 1.5 miles to go, there were two obstacles in the way. The first was an enclosed tunnel which was extremely dark. It was almost impossible to see anything until we reached the end. The second was a cable bridge named Black Bridge and bisected the Colorado River. Once we passed both the tunnel and the bridge, the campsite, Phantom Ranch, was only 100 yards away. We arrived at around 5:30 PM. With one part down, we had two more to go.
After breakfast the next morning, we started to prepare for the 4.5 mile uphill trek towards Indian Garden Campground. Once we packed our gear and stretched, the hike began. About 300 yards into the hike, we came to another cable bridge. The name of this one was Silver Bridge. Isaac and I really liked this bridge because it rocked back and forth as if it were a rope bridge. As we walked across, I started singing, “Rock the bridge. Don’t rock the bridge baby. Rock the bridge. Don’t tip the bridge over…” Then Isaac joined in. We had a grand old time. Some other people, however, didn’t enjoy walking across the bridge as much. Ricky and Laith were absolutely terrified, and voiced their concern at regular intervals. A little later on in the hike was a few streams that we had to cross in order to continue the hike. Crossing the streams was fun because of the rocks that we needed to hop on to get across. It also showed how agile everyone was and how much balance everyone had since the 30-45 pound backpacks were still being worn. The main part of the hike was the switchbacks. I have to say that going down switchbacks is a lot easier than going up. By the time the campsite was reached, our legs hurt. Luckily, we knew that 75% of the backcountry hike had been completed.
The last hike was slightly easier and, at the same time, slightly more annoying. The distance of 4.5 miles was the same as before except for one thing, the ice was back. It was somewhat difficult to keep our footing, but not as difficult as the last time because slush was also present. Like every other hike, the main chunk of this one was switchbacks. Fortunately these weren’t as steep as the previous ones. There wasn’t much sunlight until there was about a mile left in the hike. Once the information center was in sight, we knew that the home stretch had come. The whole group was finished at around 12:30, which was perfect timing because we were hungry. After having a victory lunch of peanut butter and jelly at one of the bus stops on the South Rim, we boarded the bus and returned to the van, a great conclusion to a great backcountry trip.
Ben Sacks
There is always one main activity in every expedition. The main activity is hiking in the backcountry. On this expedition, we, the Nothing but G’s, did a 3-part, 16 mile hike in and out of the Grand Canyon.
Part one of this 3-part hike was the easiest. Even though it was 8 miles (the longest), it was downhill the whole way. Unfortunately, there always has to be a catch; this one was ice. A few sections of the trail were covered with ice. Some were so bad that a few of us slipped and fell. Since all of us were bored and really wanted to pass the time, A.C., Ricky, Wes (one of our expedition staff), and myself decided to have a competition to see who could fall the least amount of times until we stopped for lunch. The results were as follows from least to greatest: Ricky-0; Andrew-0; Ben (me)-0; Wes-0; A.C.-1; Laith-1; Suzanne (the other expedition staff)-3; Isaac-5. About 3 hours later, with around 1.5 miles to go, there were two obstacles in the way. The first was an enclosed tunnel which was extremely dark. It was almost impossible to see anything until we reached the end. The second was a cable bridge named Black Bridge and bisected the Colorado River. Once we passed both the tunnel and the bridge, the campsite, Phantom Ranch, was only 100 yards away. We arrived at around 5:30 PM. With one part down, we had two more to go.
After breakfast the next morning, we started to prepare for the 4.5 mile uphill trek towards Indian Garden Campground. Once we packed our gear and stretched, the hike began. About 300 yards into the hike, we came to another cable bridge. The name of this one was Silver Bridge. Isaac and I really liked this bridge because it rocked back and forth as if it were a rope bridge. As we walked across, I started singing, “Rock the bridge. Don’t rock the bridge baby. Rock the bridge. Don’t tip the bridge over…” Then Isaac joined in. We had a grand old time. Some other people, however, didn’t enjoy walking across the bridge as much. Ricky and Laith were absolutely terrified, and voiced their concern at regular intervals. A little later on in the hike was a few streams that we had to cross in order to continue the hike. Crossing the streams was fun because of the rocks that we needed to hop on to get across. It also showed how agile everyone was and how much balance everyone had since the 30-45 pound backpacks were still being worn. The main part of the hike was the switchbacks. I have to say that going down switchbacks is a lot easier than going up. By the time the campsite was reached, our legs hurt. Luckily, we knew that 75% of the backcountry hike had been completed.
The last hike was slightly easier and, at the same time, slightly more annoying. The distance of 4.5 miles was the same as before except for one thing, the ice was back. It was somewhat difficult to keep our footing, but not as difficult as the last time because slush was also present. Like every other hike, the main chunk of this one was switchbacks. Fortunately these weren’t as steep as the previous ones. There wasn’t much sunlight until there was about a mile left in the hike. Once the information center was in sight, we knew that the home stretch had come. The whole group was finished at around 12:30, which was perfect timing because we were hungry. After having a victory lunch of peanut butter and jelly at one of the bus stops on the South Rim, we boarded the bus and returned to the van, a great conclusion to a great backcountry trip.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Highlights of Arizona
Hi there I am A.C. Berry and I am going to be talking about the highlights that the team nothing but G’S had in Arizona.
Well the first highlight we all could think of was going to the Grand Canyon. If you have not been there, then you should because it is cool. We got to have the opportunity to go and hike the south rim of the Grand Canyon. The hike down was very slippery at some points. But when we got to our resting points the nothing but g’s thought this was still worth it. During the hike we got to see a couple of wildlife creatures. They are the usual, the squirrel and a raven. Just seeing them in our presence was joyful. The negative about us as a group was we did not get a rest day at all. We had to do seventeen miles in three days. That was hurting all of our legs, but we all loved the sites. That’s what motivated us to keep going.
While we where in Arizona we happened to experience the most rain they have had in years. For school, that was not so good for us. So we found a library. When we went there we got our own little corner in the back of the children section. The positive thing was that the library gave us that space so our work could be done and dry. The negative thing about the children’s section was that they had some kind of castle thing right beside us. That attracted a lot of kids. They where running up and down and screaming. But again we were lucky to have this library to work with so we ignored it. The weirdest thing was a play station three (ps3) inside the library.
Earlier I talked briefly about how the weather was bad, but try setting up tents in this kind of weather. That’s what we had to do. The first time we did it there was no wind or rain when we where setting them up. Around three thirty or four o’clock in the morning it started to rain really badly. So bad, I had a puddle inside my tent. Because of the bad weather, we had to go straight to the Laundromat to dry our stuff that got wet. Then we pack up our stuff and went on with our day. That night was the worst for the group to set up tents. Let me just say the winds where going around seventy-five mph with rain blowing as well. So we were trying to set up the tents as fast as we could, but one almost blew away. Luckily for Ben and myself we caught it in mid air and gave it back to the two that were sleeping in it. The last night we were there it did not rain. That was a really good thing for all of us because we needed to get up at five thirty and drive to the airport for our flight back to Atlanta.
The very last night we had an opportunity to go to a Recreational Center. They did not have a pool. The positive thing was they had a basketball court where we played a game of 3 vs. 3. The teams were Andrew, Isaac and I, and our opponents were Ben, Ricky and Laith. Then both Isaac and Andrew quit in the middle of the game. That was not cool at all. But on the plus side we got two other guys to play with us so it all worked out.
As I wrap up these highlights I just want to say thank you for all of your guys support and care. This expedition was very fun, and I am sure every one agrees with me when I say that the nothing bur g’s cannot wait until we go on the Texas trip.
Blog to you guys very soon
From the one and only A.C. Berry
Well the first highlight we all could think of was going to the Grand Canyon. If you have not been there, then you should because it is cool. We got to have the opportunity to go and hike the south rim of the Grand Canyon. The hike down was very slippery at some points. But when we got to our resting points the nothing but g’s thought this was still worth it. During the hike we got to see a couple of wildlife creatures. They are the usual, the squirrel and a raven. Just seeing them in our presence was joyful. The negative about us as a group was we did not get a rest day at all. We had to do seventeen miles in three days. That was hurting all of our legs, but we all loved the sites. That’s what motivated us to keep going.
While we where in Arizona we happened to experience the most rain they have had in years. For school, that was not so good for us. So we found a library. When we went there we got our own little corner in the back of the children section. The positive thing was that the library gave us that space so our work could be done and dry. The negative thing about the children’s section was that they had some kind of castle thing right beside us. That attracted a lot of kids. They where running up and down and screaming. But again we were lucky to have this library to work with so we ignored it. The weirdest thing was a play station three (ps3) inside the library.
Earlier I talked briefly about how the weather was bad, but try setting up tents in this kind of weather. That’s what we had to do. The first time we did it there was no wind or rain when we where setting them up. Around three thirty or four o’clock in the morning it started to rain really badly. So bad, I had a puddle inside my tent. Because of the bad weather, we had to go straight to the Laundromat to dry our stuff that got wet. Then we pack up our stuff and went on with our day. That night was the worst for the group to set up tents. Let me just say the winds where going around seventy-five mph with rain blowing as well. So we were trying to set up the tents as fast as we could, but one almost blew away. Luckily for Ben and myself we caught it in mid air and gave it back to the two that were sleeping in it. The last night we were there it did not rain. That was a really good thing for all of us because we needed to get up at five thirty and drive to the airport for our flight back to Atlanta.
The very last night we had an opportunity to go to a Recreational Center. They did not have a pool. The positive thing was they had a basketball court where we played a game of 3 vs. 3. The teams were Andrew, Isaac and I, and our opponents were Ben, Ricky and Laith. Then both Isaac and Andrew quit in the middle of the game. That was not cool at all. But on the plus side we got two other guys to play with us so it all worked out.
As I wrap up these highlights I just want to say thank you for all of your guys support and care. This expedition was very fun, and I am sure every one agrees with me when I say that the nothing bur g’s cannot wait until we go on the Texas trip.
Blog to you guys very soon
From the one and only A.C. Berry
Nothing but g’s going to the rec center
Nothing but g’s went to lift iron at the rec center on Friday night. The rec center was 30minutes from Phoenix A.Z. We played basketball first to have fun. Then we went to the game room where we played pool and guitar hero3 co-op mode. Co-op mode is two-player mode. We got to play through the game together. After the group played, we went to take showers in the locker room. We worked out until we were hungry so we got our food out of the van to cook. We ate elbow macaroni, beef, green beans, and Prego sauce. Then we did our nightly meeting on the side of the rec center. Nothing but g’s were tired after their work out it the rec center.
Written by Andrew Berry
Written by Andrew Berry
Pelted With Worst Storm In 35 Years
On January 20, 2010, the South West SOAR group headed to Apache Junction to avoid the snow and cold of the Grand Canyon; little knowing of the trouble they were heading into. They knew that there was a forecast of rain and wind, but not on the scale they experienced.
They arrived at Lost Dutchman State Park with a few dark clouds on the horizon. The rain started around 11:35 that night as a light sprinkle, but within minutes, it had turned into a torrential downpour with high winds. Weather experts marked it as the worst rain in 35 years and the highest winds ever recorded in Apache Junction, reaching 76 mph. A tornado was even spotted a few miles from Apache Junction.
Locals, even with the fierceness of the storm, were relieved to see the rain. It was a great help to the dessert, due to the months without rain besides the very short show it had received a few days beforehand, and was welcomed by all except traveling visitors like the south west group, their group name being “Nothin’ But G’z”.
Locals were also filling sand bags and setting up barricades to protect themselves against the floods. The weather even cut off power for 15,000 residents of the valley. Despite all this, Isaac Inglis, one of the Nothin’ But G’z, has this to say about the ordeal, “It was an exhilarating, frightening, and extraordinary experience to be there for such a large event.” The storm may have been great for the locals and nature, but it took a heavy toll on group equipment.
The storm caused severe problems for the Nothin’ But G’z. The setting up and taking down of tents was a difficult process with the high winds and rain Ben Sacks, another member of the group, has this to say, “I have mixed feelings, annoyance in the morning due to wet sleeping bags, excitement in the setting up of tents in the storm which I enjoyed.” The winds caused tents to go flying before they could be set up or even staked down, not that stakes would have helped, the group was so wet and soaked that stakes just popped out within seconds of being placed in.
The weather also made it difficult to eat and do nightly meeting. So, to overcome this problem, the group would eat breakfast at the Laundromat, lunch at the library, and dinner underneath an overhang at the local Rec-Center. The nightly meeting was also done underneath the overhang, as it was a convenient place. Then there was the condition of the gear to deal with.
Often, in the morning, gear would be soaking wet and impossible to use if left that way. So, every morning the group would take down tents, pack up sleeping gear, and head over to the local Laundromat. There they would dry sleeping bags, bivi sacks, and tents so they could be used again that night. Laith Saffo had this to say about the events, “I thought it was funny because we had to catch run away tents and go to the Laundromat in the mornings to dry sleeping bags, it was fun.” Even in those terrible conditions, the group stays positive. This group is one tough cookie.
So from these events we can see that the Nothin’ But G’z are an amazing SOAR group to be able to be stuck in such terrible conditions and pull through, stronger than ever. This group is very lucky, because they had the chance to experience such a rare event and look at the harshness of it, laugh, and charge on right on through. Truly, this group has the potential to achieve great things this semester.
- Written Jan 25th 2010 by Isaac John Inglis
They arrived at Lost Dutchman State Park with a few dark clouds on the horizon. The rain started around 11:35 that night as a light sprinkle, but within minutes, it had turned into a torrential downpour with high winds. Weather experts marked it as the worst rain in 35 years and the highest winds ever recorded in Apache Junction, reaching 76 mph. A tornado was even spotted a few miles from Apache Junction.
Locals, even with the fierceness of the storm, were relieved to see the rain. It was a great help to the dessert, due to the months without rain besides the very short show it had received a few days beforehand, and was welcomed by all except traveling visitors like the south west group, their group name being “Nothin’ But G’z”.
Locals were also filling sand bags and setting up barricades to protect themselves against the floods. The weather even cut off power for 15,000 residents of the valley. Despite all this, Isaac Inglis, one of the Nothin’ But G’z, has this to say about the ordeal, “It was an exhilarating, frightening, and extraordinary experience to be there for such a large event.” The storm may have been great for the locals and nature, but it took a heavy toll on group equipment.
The storm caused severe problems for the Nothin’ But G’z. The setting up and taking down of tents was a difficult process with the high winds and rain Ben Sacks, another member of the group, has this to say, “I have mixed feelings, annoyance in the morning due to wet sleeping bags, excitement in the setting up of tents in the storm which I enjoyed.” The winds caused tents to go flying before they could be set up or even staked down, not that stakes would have helped, the group was so wet and soaked that stakes just popped out within seconds of being placed in.
The weather also made it difficult to eat and do nightly meeting. So, to overcome this problem, the group would eat breakfast at the Laundromat, lunch at the library, and dinner underneath an overhang at the local Rec-Center. The nightly meeting was also done underneath the overhang, as it was a convenient place. Then there was the condition of the gear to deal with.
Often, in the morning, gear would be soaking wet and impossible to use if left that way. So, every morning the group would take down tents, pack up sleeping gear, and head over to the local Laundromat. There they would dry sleeping bags, bivi sacks, and tents so they could be used again that night. Laith Saffo had this to say about the events, “I thought it was funny because we had to catch run away tents and go to the Laundromat in the mornings to dry sleeping bags, it was fun.” Even in those terrible conditions, the group stays positive. This group is one tough cookie.
So from these events we can see that the Nothin’ But G’z are an amazing SOAR group to be able to be stuck in such terrible conditions and pull through, stronger than ever. This group is very lucky, because they had the chance to experience such a rare event and look at the harshness of it, laugh, and charge on right on through. Truly, this group has the potential to achieve great things this semester.
- Written Jan 25th 2010 by Isaac John Inglis
Monday, January 25, 2010
Connections made at the bottom of the Grand Canyon
When the SOAR group, Nothing But G’s, stayed at the bottom of the Grand Canyon connections and friendships were made. As we reached the bottom of the Grand Canyon everyone was out of water and had to use the bathroom. After we had setup camp at the shelter, people went to the bathroom one by one. After everyone was done, we started our letters’ home. After A.C., Ben, and I were done with our letters’ home, we started an event we like to call the galactic rap battle. This is when A.C., Ben, and I had rap battles with each other and soon other people started to join in. When dinner had been made, a group of hikers came by and gave us some food. After dinner and evening meeting, we continued our rap battle until bed. All of these connections led to new friendships and brought the Nothing but G’s group closer together.
Written by: Ricky Diaz
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Welcome to SOAR Spring 2010 Semester!
A new year... a fresh start... That is what this semester hopes to be for everyone! Welcome to the SOAR Academy this spring semester 2010.
This blogging site will be used by every student this semester to write an article. That article may be about their travels, something important that happened, or just something important to that student. This will be another means of communication between students, and their families. This site will be used more like a newspaper. Giving updates to the families and letting them see pictures and hear about what is important to their child and child's peers.
We look forward to communicating with you!
Let the adventures begin!
This blogging site will be used by every student this semester to write an article. That article may be about their travels, something important that happened, or just something important to that student. This will be another means of communication between students, and their families. This site will be used more like a newspaper. Giving updates to the families and letting them see pictures and hear about what is important to their child and child's peers.
We look forward to communicating with you!
Let the adventures begin!
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