Advanced Professional Short Course
Wilderness Education Association
Sierra Nevadas, California
August 2004

I felt a little trepedation about this trip, since I would be taking a class with six other wilderness education professionals while on a ten-day backpacking trip. There were nine of us total counting the two instructors.

We all met in San Diego, since SDSU's Aztec Adventures was sponsoring this course. After eating dinner together we all met in the morning and drove to Sequoia National Park, where we registered, got our permits, and checked out some BIG trees.

Jim hooked us up with a fantastic meal at the Montecito Sequoia Lodge that evening. Then we went to find ourselves a camping site next to some obnoxiously loud people.

The next morning we had a couple of lessons, ate, and packed up the gear. We took bulk rations rather than having a meal plan. Below is the food for all of us for the entire trip (and all the group gear is next to it).

We were all anxious to start hiking, and finally we were able to get moving.

Our camp that first evening was a gorgeous spot to keep a journal.

The next day was one of our longer hikes. It took us to the top of a mountain and down the back side, with stops for classes and activities on the way.

The that evening we camped by another lake. The following day was perhaps the longest - we were travelling in two groups and the groups got seperate. Then, after a lengthy hike, we had trouble finding a campsite that we could agree upon. The site we eventually ended up with worked out well though.

The next evening found us at yet another lake. We arrived early and were able to get cleaned up and catch up on 'homework' assignments before we had more classes.

It was a steep hike out of that basin the next morning. We did, however, finally make it to the saddle. This would be our highest elevation of the trip. The scenery was spectacular.

This was a relatively leisurely day. We spent some time at the top of the saddle, and our camp was just down the other side not too far from another lake. We were able to lounge a bit here, catching up on our writing and taking it easy.

The sun rose birghtly once again the next day. The entire time we were out there was no weather to contend with other than a chill in the evenings and early mornings. We took off for a short hike to a new lake.

The next day we repeated the routine that by now was pretty well established - hike to a bequtiful lake and set up camp there.

The last full day in the wilderness was a long one. Lots of hiking and an unsure camping location at the end. We almost camped near a cattle-infested stream, but this seemed a bit too nasty so we searched and finally found a better spot. Being our last night, we all needed to catch up on our assignments.

All that remained was the hike out. Then we ate again at the Montecito Sequoia Lodge before heading to a very crowded campsite for the night. Then back to Sand Diego the next day and a flight home the day after that.