October 3, 2012 - Jeremy Naberhaus

I awoke the morn under the empty sky’s, the smell of sage still strong on my hands. Who am I you ask? I am the hunter. What do we hunt you ask? My tribe and I hunt for information and knowledge. Today we hunted for information on the National Parks and how to interpret. My tribe and I hopped on the white stead, we named it Ford E 350, and it had power of many horses. Our first hunt was a bountiful one. Full of facts, advice and information. The best part was we did not have to ride far on our stead to get there. This was good for the stead was pulling a heavy wagon. The tribe and I went to continue the hunt for interpretation. But before we did we had to change the stead’s oil. The tribe and I had to go to hunting lands that we have never been to before. The tribe’s elder has told some tales of this hunting land before, but when the tribe asked specifics , the wise one would say; “what do you think?” the new hunting land was a strange and beautiful place. We found our prey for interpretation it was found in the form of Stephen. The tribe knew from the beginning that this prey would be weak and not fulfill their interpretation appetite due to the fact that his name was spelled with a PH instead of a V. After that we hopped back on the stead, and picked up the wagon and went back to camp. At camp we had a meal that tasted as if the gods themselves made it, and for deserts we ate cake of cheese made by the small funny talking one of the tribe. After that the tribe had a meeting then went to bed in the wig-woms Jeremy Naberhaus.

October 2, 2012 - Cody J Presny

Let’s talk about the desert for a moment. Top to bottom, there is no greater setting. A place where the coyote’s howl breaks the midnight silence, and the hallow wind sweeps and slithers through the cracked earth below. The feet of the prowling fox silently stalking a desert hare. Creeping closer, mindful of each footstep, careful not to cause a sound, careful not to misplace a stone, lest she lose a meal, and return to a den of hungry pups. For centuries, sages and shaman have traveled to these places. Release the clutches of ego before you enter. Free your mind, and I promise, your body will follow. Take off your shoes, feel the soft sand between your toes, it’s like nothing else in the world. You can take the forests, the oceans, the Plaines, the jungles, the snow, the sleet, the ice, the rain. I’ll keep the deserts and sit atop them. On amber cliffs that rise to see the heights and horizons from years and years ago. Where the sun rises over the eastern ridge and casts shadows longer than the rocks have lived. With a sudden burst, and last calorie burned, the mother pounces. With one fierce strike, her jaw wraps around the now helpless hare. Victoriously she raises her head, prancing, one paw in front of the other. Desert dawn and the land is awake. Find shade, the sun can be cruel this time of time, she will take everything from you and return nothing. Respect and don’t take for granted the desert, the desert, the desert.

October 1, 2012 - Jessica Sauer

Our group woke up this morning to a delicious breakfast prepared by Jeremy and Jon. It was liked so much that some people even went back for sevenths and eighths. After we all got the sites cleaned up we packed the van and trailer and we were on our way to Colvig Silver Camp. After many twists and turns down beautiful farm roads we made it to our destination. Right off the bat Jamiee, our tour guide for the day gave us a better introduction than we could have asked for. Giving us pamphlets and charts, and answering most of our questions before they were even asked, I felt well educated on the way Colvig Silver was run. The biggest part that stood out to me in her introduction was that the camp was privately owned and I was curious to see if that would make any significant differences. We started our tour around the 650 acres of land and it was one of the coolest summer camps that I had ever seen. The layout of the camp was open and hilly which had to give the campers and staff and great workout each day. A few people seemed like this could be a possible summer opportunity to help build up resumes while enjoying the beautiful wilderness around them. As we said out goodbye’s we headed towards Durango to spend some much needed time in the library. After lots of typing, searching, and printing our time at the library was up and we had to continue our road trip. We had a slight change of plans, and the LOWs decided to drive straight to Hovenweep National Monument. The climate changed once again and I do have to say, it was very nice knowing that I wouldn’t be waking up to frosty grounds. The desert was warm and dry and it seemed like everybody loved it. After a great cowboy stew and cornbread dinner followed by debrief, I prepared for bed eager to wake up and learn about the next portion of our journey.