Navigation Skills Day at Stimpson Reserve: 3-25-17

It was a beautiful, soggy day at the Stimpson Family Reserve as the Ospreys set forth on their Navigation Skills outing. Here are some highlights from our super-packed outing!

Signs of Spring!

• We collected cottonwood buds and talked about the magical properties of Balm of Gilead- Ask your Explorer if she can describe the smell to you!
• Components of Navigation
• Reading Maps
• Cardinal Directions
• Learning to use a compass
• Local Knowledge
• Which way is the ocean?
• Which way are the N. Cascades
• On this outing, Nali was our local trail guide as she lives right next to the Stimpson!
• We practiced our awareness by playing Talbot's Game
• Songlines Map was our way of tapping into Ancient Aboriginal skills of storytelling through maps. The girls divided into two teams and each made their own descriptive verbal maps. We traded them and each set forth on new adventures!

Mottos: Be Prepared, S.T.O.P., Let That Quiet Voice Inside Be Your Guide, Build Bridges Not Walls, Connect to Protect, Safety First

Woodstock Farm Service 3-11-17

The Chickadees and the Ospreys gathered in the muddy, busy parking lot of North Chuckanut Trailhead for another day of service at our adopted site, Woodstock Farm!

We hopped onto our trusty bus, Merkel, and zipped up Chuckanut drive. At our Opening Circle, we checked our preparedness, as the weather called for a tricky day of low temperatures, high winds, and LOTS of rain. The Ospreys are well on their way to owning two of the most important EC mottos, Safety First and Be Prepared.

We also talked about why we are serving today, and reviewed another motto, Our Cups Overflow. The Chickadees agreed that people are not the only ones whose cups can be empty, and that today we would be filling the cups of the cedars, firs, ravens, fungi, ferns, eagles, rabbits, deer, maples and more of Woodstock Farm. The girls pointed out that even though we "pour our overflowing water" into other's cups, our cups are not really emptying, but in fact, filling!

With that magical aspect in mind, it was time to get to work! (After a few rounds of cup-filling, body-warming rounds of Spider's Web though). The Chickadees and Ospreys buddied up and broke into three groups with the common task of removing Holly, Stinky Bob, and English Ivy! 

An epic example of Chickadee and Osprey collaboration: the girls identified this Holly TREE, persevered for 45 minutes to remove it, and then carried it out to the bus because it obviously wouldn't fit in the trash bins.

With a good chunk of service done and many native plants left free to breathe and grow, it was time for lunch!

The sideways rain and noisy wind led us to take shelter on the porch of the Gates' old family home, and then it was time for more Spider's Web, fairy house construction, mouse funerals, running, and exploring. Soon enough it was time to walk back to the bus with our GIANT bag of invasive plants, and meet up with families and friends.


Enjoy the shared slideshow from the day here!
Mottos especially alive today:
Be Prepared
Our Cups Overflow
Safety First
Widen Your Circle
Walk Your Talk
You See It You Own It
Attitude of Gratitude