Continental Divide

Today was a great day! After filling up on oatmeal, we hiked to the work site. We continued digging the trail, which is starting to look really good. We ate lunch with Tim Brown and Chris Peck from the the Forest Service. What great guys! Chris has so much energy and Tim knows everything. In the afternoon we went swamping, which means we cleared fallen trees from off the trail. The girls showed the guys up with our muscles! In the middle of the service project we had an enormous snowball fight. It rejuvenated us for the rest of the work that needed to be done. In the afternoon we hiked back to camp, where we got in our bathing suits for a dip in the river. It was very cold, but definitely worth it! Tonight we had pesto pasta for dinner. Afterwards we built a fire, and all told our high and low points of the day. Now we're cozy in our tents and exhausted from a long day! - Erica and Amanda

Sea Kayaking on Yellowstone Lake

We had an awesome time sea kayaking on Yellowstone Lake. Sea kayaking was a nice way to get away from the trail and see the park from a different perspective.  We had spectacular views of the Absoraka Range and we saw tons of wildlife. We wathed bald eagles and osprey soar, saw otters, goldeneye ducks, and deer.  For lunch we pulled our kayaks up onto the sand and ate along the shore. Before getting going again, we tossed around the frisbee Jimmy brings everywhere with him. Nick, Sarah and Alexander went for a swim. The water was freezing and we got some really funny pictures of them rushing out of the water.  In the afternoon the kayaking specialist, Caitlin, designed a race for us. We had to paddle, and then half way to the finish line make a 360 degree turn in our kayaks and switch paddles with our partners. Once we reached the finish line, we had to chug our water bottles before being able to win. Kate and I won, but Lilly and Nick weren't far behind!  We're getting excited for climbing. Unfortunately, the trip is coming to an end. It has been amazing trip.
-Pete

Climbing with Exum

We awoke this morning excited and filled with anticipation. We ate breakfast and jumped in the van to begin our day of climbing. We met our Exum guides at their office. We were given helmets, harnesses and ropes. Our guides, Matt and Evelyn are so cool! We all loaded up on the ferry and crossed Jenny Lake to start our hike. We hiked a couple of miles then stopped to put our helmets on and go over other rules for safety. Throughout the day, we learned how to tie knots, belay one another and then climb! It was a blast! At the end of the day we were all so exhausted, but excited for another day. Tomorrow we climb Cube Point. I think we're ready!
-Julia

Rafting the Snake River

It's hard to believe that this trip is almost over! Twenty-Two days ago we all had just met and the day of rafting on the Snake river seemed a long way away. Now it's over and it was the best way to end the trip. We got up this morning and ate a great breakfast of chocolate chip pancakes since we had a little time before hitting the river. Once we arrived at the put in, we met our guide. Walker was so funny and gave all of us nicknames. After we were all positioned in the raft, we learned how to paddle together to make the raft move around. At first the river was pretty calm and the scenery was amazing. We were all laughing and splashing each other, re-telling our stories from the different sections of the trip. At one point they even let us jump in! Then the river got exciting and we started hitting the bigger rapids. Our guide had told us about the "Big Kahuna" rapid and it was even bigger than I expected! We all got soaked! By the end of the trip we were all laughing and having a blast. The only sad part is the trip is almost over. I'm excited for our final banquet tonight. It's our last meal together as a group!
-Jacob