WildLink October 2024: Health Careers Academy

Before strapping on backpacks and heading out into the Wilderness, it was important to spend some time preparing and settling in. First, everyone spent an evening on Sunday and one full day on Monday getting to know each other, discussing hopes and fears, and preparing for the expedition portion of the trip. Once everyone felt ready with brains full of new knowledge and heavy packs full of equipment, they were ready to hit the trail.

Tuesday morning involved excitedly packing vehicles for a car ride from Yosemite Valley to the May Lake trailhead where the group would begin their hike to their base camp. The combination of heavy packs, uphill hiking, and high elevation provided many of those valuable challenges that often characterize expeditions in the Wilderness. Despite aching legs, lots of breaks, and a few pep talks, the group continued growing stronger and closer to their destination as they ascended the trail up the mountain together. As they climbed up higher, the views of distant mountains continued to inspire students to imagine what it might be like to one day explore other peaks, which right now they could only barely see towering above far away valleys. Before they knew it, the group had reached their basecamp location at May Lake with a newly found sense of accomplishment. After setting up camp and sharing a meal, they gathered around the fire for an evening of settling into their temporary home under the stars. 

Even on the first night, many students chose to sleep outside, watching the stars traverse the sky as they periodically woke up from sleep in the way many of us do on our first night in an unfamiliar place. By the last night of the trip, almost everyone was enjoying sleeping out under the stars in the clear autumn air. Day two in the wilderness began with Ranger Jacob sharing with students about what it’s like to be a Wilderness Ranger, and the group even had the opportunity to help clean up some campfire rings around May Lake that did not follow Yosemite Wilderness regulations. It was lovely to watch students starting to feel a sense of belonging in this new environment through the process of land stewardship. Caring for a place is often a great way to build a connection with it. When we finished the stewardship project and waved goodbye to Ranger Jacob, the group went over to a beach on the far side of the lake. There they had a reflective beach vacation in the mountains, which even included some cold plunges. This is a testament to the character of this wonderful group of young folks - in a challenging space, they chose to take on even more challenges in the form of submerging in ice cold mountain lake water! The rest of the day wrapped up in a similar way to the first, sharing a meal and growing closer as a team around the campfire.

The last full day in the wilderness began with a vibrant sunrise, greeting the day that many in the group would attempt to summit the biggest mountain they’ve ever been to. The group split into two for their challenge-by-choice day hikes. These high schoolers were impressively self aware in their ability to assess the level of challenge that would be fulfilling to them and choose their group accordingly. One group embarking on a summit attempt of Mt. Hoffmann with Sophia, and the other going with Sarah for a choose your own adventure type of day. Once the Mt. Hoffmann group left, the second group was sitting by the lake waiting to begin their hike, when all of a sudden they heard a splash - a deer entering the lake! The deer proceeded to swim all the way across the widest part of the ice cold lake for seemingly no reason - the group was somewhat stunned to witness this pointless but impressive feat of athleticism by a wild animal. Laughter and so many questions ensued for a good while before the group eventually headed out. Meanwhile, the group of mountaineers were facing an arduous uphill hike, with challenges that were sometimes intensely physical, and sometimes more mental. They supported each other to an impressive degree, constantly checking on each other and encouraging others to hydrate, snack, and care for themselves. With that support and strength of team, each member of the group made it to the top of the mountain, which has a summit elevation of 10,855 ft! Everyone returned from the day feeling proud of themselves and imbued with a newly found sense of confidence that they could do things in their life that they once thought impossible. The campfire that night was both celebratory and sad. There was discussion of feelings of gratitude and accomplishment for this unique shared experience, while also trying to figure out how to transfer these wilderness-based feelings into their life in the city to achieve more calm and happiness in daily life. 

The hike out the next day included a solo walk with quotes and time to reflect on the prompt “what do you want to take home from this experience.” Answers included sentiments of wanting to take better care of yards and gardens for connection to nature at home, understanding in new ways what they are capable of, feeling a sense of accomplishment, and desires to share what they have learned about their relationship with the planet with friends and family back home. Thanks so much, Health Careers Academy, for an incredibly profound trip to the mountains that left us all better people than before, even in a small way. We’re so glad to call each of you a WildLink alumni, and we hope to see everyone back around the park soon!