The Short-Tailed Weasels Explore Group Dynamics and Skills at Stewart Mountain

The Short-tailed Weasels arrived at Stewart Mountain to find the Cave Dwellers group already there. Looking around a few of the STW’s recognized some members of the other group from outside of Explorers Club. After playing a fun ‘get to know you’ game the mentors talked about their plans for each of the groups’ outing. A few of the boys recognized that both groups would be working on similar skills during the day and asked about running a joint outing together.

Nominating a Leader of the Day to help facilitate the discussion the boys quickly realized that there were strong opinions on both sides and the decision was going to be a difficult one. The process was made more challenging by some members of the Short-tailed Weasels who had become overwhelmed and bored and as a result derailed our discussion by either drawing attention to themselves or talking over those who were trying to actively pursue collaboration and consensus.

After a solid fifteen minutes of discussion the group decided that even though they were working on the same skills and were only a year apart in age, it was better that they played a game a of Spider’s Web together and then went their separate ways. It was disappointing for the mentors to watch the boys come close to inclusion, knowledge sharing, and togetherness, but in the end for them to feel like their groups were in different places. However, one of the joys of Explorers Club is that we learn experientially over many outings and it was our role as mentors to hold to their decision.

Brian let out a crow call after setting up a game course in a dense grove of second growth Western Hemlock and Cedar and the boys disappeared in the ferns.

The game lasted for about forty-five minutes and provided just the right amount of challenge and redirection. The two groups followed the rules with honor and got caught up in the spirit of play. Calling the game at our allotted time we circled back up to debrief.

The mentors highlighted how the power of play had brought us together. To further reinforce this concept a mentor shared a story about the Northern Ireland Conflict where Nationalists (mainly self-identified as Roman Catholic) and Unionists (mainly self-identified as British or Protestant) waged guerrilla warfare against one another over differences in whether Northern Ireland should belong to Ireland or England for nearly thirty years. 3,500 people were killed in the conflict and many neighborhoods and families were left with deep scars and hatred for one another.

An Outdoor Professional from the region started a surfing program for children from both sides of the conflict. Through a medium of play and adventure they created strong friendships and goodwill amongst the younger generations. The boys seemed to internalize this mentoring message and the STW waved goodbye to the CD as they circled up to make a plan for the rest of their day.

Turning to the Leader of the Day the group needed to decide how to fit in eating their lunch, finding a location to work on some knife sharpening and tarp shelter making skills, and also provided a container for some free exploration. Once again some of the Explorers started to derail the group using sarcasm and humor about the process along with interjecting other subjects that were off-topic and disruptive. The boys were looking for the mentors’ edge and had found it. Getting triangular with the group the mentors asked the boys why they thought their behavior was appropriate and if they really wanted to participate. The mentors also let the group know that we purposefully choose to engage in this work bringing intention and care to each outing, and we expect the boys to be present and engaged.

With their plan in place the boys headed down to Lake Whatcom to eat their lunch and then hiked up the Chanterelle Trail in search of a quiet place off-trail to engage in skills. Taking out a knife sharpening kit and the resources to make a tarp shelter the STW’s energy calmed down and the mentors were able to get strong focus from the group. A portion of the group worked on tarp shelters learning to: carve tent pegs, how to tie a tarp knot, the proper height to raise the shelter to, and how to get a clean smooth shelter surface to fend off rain using 45 degree angles and taught lines attached to the tarp’s grommets.

Adam provided some hot chocolate on his jet boil stove while he worked with a few of the boys on knife sharpening. The group harmoniously worked away following their interests. Circling up for a closing meeting we debriefed the second half of the day highlighting the mentors ability to pass on knowledge, skills, and give more autonomy and responsibility when the groups demonstrates that they are ready for it. Sharing our thanks and some apples the group suffered more interruption and again needed to be reminded of our behavioral expectations for our meeting time.

The Short-tailed Weasels’ group work needs improvement and one hundred percent focus and engagement from its members in order to thrive. Fortunately mentors and Explorers alike are given the gift of time in this program and the STW will have the chance to try again after our holiday break. Adam and I are thankful to work with your sons and for your commitment and support for the program. We see opportunity in the group’s challenging dynamics and look forward to tailoring our next few outings to help facilitate their capacity for leadership and engagement.

For more pictures from our outing please visit the Short-Tailed Weasels’ photo album from the day.

Short Tailed Weasels explore Clayton Beach

The Short Tailed Weasels’ last outing of the fall season was also their first super wet fall outing with the BEC. The rain came on and off all day as low clouds kept the humidity high.  However, the dampness failed to curb the enthusiasm of these boys as we explored the steep forest and grey beaches of Clayton Beach on a drizzly day.

After crossing Chuckanut Drive we scampered into the safety of the woods where our inner vision led us to a magical spot along the creek from where we set up our home base. Because the stream was running exceptionally high, the usually easy creek crossing was now impassable.  Undeterred, the boys used excellent teamwork skills to construct a (partially floating) bridge across a section of the creek. By listening to our bodies and following our intuition, we realized that our bridge was built and that we needed some nourishment.

We settled down to warm our cold hands and fill our hungry bellies with a snack and maybe some hot tea or cocoa. Miraculously, only a couple of us managed to soak our feet during the bridge construction, and those of us who did changed our socks are were happy to once again have dry, warm feet.  We, the Short Tailed Weasels, are one of the youngest groups, and thus welcome the wisdom that the forest provides to us as we grow in skill as explorers. 

We then called upon our Tribal Elder to help us decide how we wanted to use the remaining time on our last outing of the fall season.  As a group, we decided that we wanted to descend through the ferns and cedars and have some time to explore the intertidal habitat.  We appreciated the sturdiness of the bridge we had just built as we all used it to cross the creek and continue down to the soft beaches and sandstone cliffs of Clayton Beach.

Once at the beach some of us immediately scattered and explored the big sandstone boulders. Others among us took the opportunity to watch the loons and cormorants dive for their lunch as we ate some more of ours.  After a few minutes of this, the cold wetness crept into our bodies so we played many rounds of Fire in the Forest on the beach.  We all remarked on how difficult it was to run in the sand but it certainly kept us warm!

After we felt like we couldn’t run another step we spread out along the waterfront and had a very calming sit spot.  We felt thankful to be able to observe the beauty of a beach on a wet, rainy day because we normally choose to visit beaches only on “nice” days.  Some of us saw a loon struggling to eat a fish that looked a little to big for this particular bird to swallow. Others watched eagles fly high overhead and scan the surface of the water for salmon running along the shoreline.

After our sit spot we all watched Peter make a fire using only materials that he had harvested and crafted during our outing that day.  It was incredible to watch him use various materials from this wet forest and somehow manage to get some hemlock boughs to catch fire.  As we looked ahead to future seasons as a group, we learned that Fire by Friction is a skills focus that we will someday be able to practice, but only after showing proficiency in the Art of Carving. 

In our closing circle we practiced our Attitude of Gratitude by giving thanks. We also got to share our fondest memories of our first season together.  Looking back, we realized that we have had some really fun adventures this season and have grown a lot closer as a group.  We look forward to gaining new experiences and skills together next spring!

Short Tailed Weasels Explore Chuckanut

The Short Tailed Weasels arrived at North Chuckanut Trailhead ready for their third outing. As a new group the Short Tailed Weasels have fully accepted the challenges of cohort dynamics and the group decision making process; growing through these experiences into a really collaborative and cohesive group. The Chuckanuts are an exciting place for an outing, rich with exploring opportunities and abundant in wildlife.

Once everyone had arrived we made our way directly down from the parking lot, following a small game trail toward the creek. The boys excitedly bushwhacked and lept down the hillside toward the creek. As we approached the creek we began wondering if we would see any salmon spawning up the creek. This is the time of year they do and also a location they frequent. We saw no fish, but began asking ourselves why; is the creek too low? are they salmon later than usual?

We held our opening circle on an exposed gravel bar in the middle of the creek. The Short Tailed Weasels gathered up, passed out jobs, and began discussing what they wanted to do with their day. Many ideas circulated and the group struggled a few times to hold their focus as we heard from everyone and tried to come to a decision that would fit everyone's needs. With a little gentle guidance the group agreed on hiking further upstream with the intention of finding a good place to play spiders web? 

As we hiked up stream we played hide, explored the creek, through rocks into the water, crawled under bridges, learned about licorice fern, talked, laughed, found off trail hideouts, and immersed ourselves in the wonderful Fall day. 

Eventually we came to a place where a giant log crossed the river and seemed to lead up a steep hillside, the perfect place for spiders web. Climbing up the steep hillside we were greeted at the top by dense sword fern and pronounced topography which would provide great terrain for spiders web. We took a break to eat lunch then dove into explaining the rules of the game to everyone. The boys all focused really well to the somewhat complicated game.

Soon enough we got the game under way. after playing for only about 10 minutes we heard voices coming up the hill and realized it was the Girls Explorers Club! The girls had come here with the same intention of playing spiders web. After talking briefly we all decided to just play one big game in this location. Again we brushed up on the rules and chose a new spider.

The game went excellent; it was the first time playing for both the girls and boys group. For such a big game and it being everyone’s first time there was surprisingly little conflict. Everyone played with honor and respect toward one another. The game lasted a little over an hour before the flies finally managed to bring the food source back to the web. The boys excited chatter of play by play accounts of the game lasted long after the girls had disappeared down hill.  

We had an amazing Fall outing; Excellent Weather, good games, great group, and a perfect location to facilitate all of this. Thank you Explorers for a great outing and thank you parents for your continued support of our program. Please see our photo gallery for more pictures from the outing