WHITE WATER RAFTING DOWN THE ARKANSAS RIVER!

Yup! That's right! A bunch of us did that yesterday and it was AMAZING! I got to sit in the front most the time to paddle and we were having a blast! Many laughs. My team leader Rachel described me as having my mouth wide open pretty much every time we hit a huge rapid! I can't wait to post the pics! Four more work days! I think we get to go home early Friday morning. PLEASE PLEASE! I mean it's been great and all, but I am ready to get back to a bed and showering on a regular basis. I pretty much only shower once a week. I am also coming home to Chicago Aug 22 until the 28 because I just feel the need to be home with family, etc. Then I will be flying to Phoenix to visit my friend Katie Graham for the weekend! Hopefully transition goes by fast and I can get some ISP hours in! 33 more to go! I can't remember if I wrote this last but my next project is in Crossville, TN and I will be working on the Cumberland Trail for 9 weeks! The project ends Nov. 7th I believe and Graduation is on the 19th! So much for that little update.....until then..

Hiked a 14,000 ft. Mt, building campsites and not showering....

Pike's Peak from a far


So let's back track a bit, the SOS kids ended up not coming down to our work site..apparently our director said "NO" so that was unfortunate, but since then things have been interesting and a little bit more rugged. For the last week we have moved from Pike's Peak highway to the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. The nearest town is West Cliff and I am currently visiting another town 57 miles away, Salida. Cute little hippy towns everyone keeps saying. So since we have moved more than 50 tons of rock, and endured the 30 to 40 degree weather at night and in the morning, we have switched to hot days with many many flies and digging lots of dirt in order to build our campsites. We are putting in tent pads, fire pits, and building stairs with rocks leading to the sites. Our tents and kitchen where we stay are much closer together now. The drive up to our site is actually very very rocky and quite amusing while in a 15 passenger van! We even have to cross a creek in the van to get to our campsite and there is no bridge. I payed $5 yesterday to take a shower at the West Cliff Inn. And yes I have been basically showering every week, although last weekend I took a solar shower (still not considered a real shower) since you only have so much water to use. Our sponsor Eric is no longer with us, but Bruce is now kind of like our site supervisor who has been leading us in constructing these campsites. One day I spent a whole morning and afternoon measuring and cutting the timbers we are using to layout the tent pad. We continue to see tons of fat chip monks and dear, but now marmots. Cute little beaver-like looking animals that live at high altitudes. Last Tuesday we took the whole day to hike up to a 14,000 ft. mountain called Humboldt Peak. We have been camping at around 9,000, so you can imagine it was quite a hike. We started at 5:30 am and I made it to the peak by 11:00, left around noon and made it back to our campsite by 3:30ish. I was so sore the next day, that's for sure! And my left knee did not exactly take it well going down the mountain, so I'll be visiting a doctor finally during transition week in Denver...nothing too bad to worry about, it only acts up when I run and hike a lot downhill, which is hard to avoid when you've been doing what I've been doing. A few days ago we also got a new teammate from the fire unit. So now there are 10 of us for the last two weeks of our project. I head back to Denver on the 16th.

Last pic taken leaving Pike's Peak
Approaching the SangresRise and Shine 6:00 a.m. hiking up to Humboldt Peak

Hiking up Humboldt Peak

Team pic at the Lakes before some of us break off to hike to the peak while others stayAlmost there....

At the Peak 11:00 a.m.!
Marmots! So cute!
Alden and I on the Peak