NOVEMBER
KENTUCKY HIGH ADVENTURE -
Daniel Boone National Forest
Stanton, Kentucky
November 20-25, 2018
$300.00
Travel to Kentucky to experience a four-part series of adventures all packed into an amazing 6-day Thanksgiving high adventure holiday.
PART 1
BACKPACKING
At Daniel Boone National Forest, backpack through rugged mountains, along steep wooded ridges, narrow ravines, rock formations, and sandstone cliffs. At one area the ridge narrows to barely wider than the trail. It is straight down on both sides. Another exciting place is atop Double Arch rock, which provides an amazing view of the surrounding wilderness.
Later that day do what millions of Americans were doing. A Thanksgiving meal, complete with ham, mashed potatoes, gravy, stuffing, green beans, and dinner rolls.
PART 2
ROCK CLIMBING
Rock climbing in the Red River Gorge includes safety instruction and the excitement of climbing and rappelling. Training includes first aid and emergencies, special knots, climbing equipment, technical skills, verbal signals and safety procedures.
Everything learned becomes an action through several exciting climbs. Go straight up the rugged rock face of high cliffs then the excitement of rappelling back down. Earn Climbing merit badge and the opportunity to experience rock climbing at a world class location.
PART 3
VIA FERRATA
Next is via ferrata, which is Italian meaning iron road. It's a climbing route built across a treacherous rock face using iron rungs, pegs, carved steps, ladders and narrow swinging bridges. Harness and clip to a safety cable, undertake the extreme challenge of traversing the via ferrata routes.
High above the ground, everyone moves slow and careful. Use those iron components attached into the rock. Make our way along a narrow ledge, up a vertical ladder, across a swinging bridge, and scrambling across bare rock, be tested to the max. Each decision is crucial. The courses constantly presents new situations to negotiate.
It is a team effort. Moral support is crucial. It takes courage and agility. That experience brings a mix of emotions; terrifying but breathtaking, awesome and challenging. It is not easy to accomplish. Each person proves themselves with nerves of iron.
Some quick history - via ferrata was used in Europe during World War I by the Italians to move troops through the Dolomite Mountains that were otherwise impassible.
PART 4
ZIP LINE
Next and last, visit one of the nation's largest zip line centers. A zip line consists of a pulley mounted to a cable that slides down from a high point to a lower point. High points are at the top of a tower. Each person used a safety harness to ride down a cable at each of seven zip lines.
Hiking from tower to tower, each is a new zip line adventure. These zip lines provide extremes, with some of the fastest, highest, and longest in the nation. Speeding 55 mph, 300 feet high, zipping across a canyon, 4,000 feet in length, will seem like never ending excitement. That adventure can best be described as "fast and furious".
This four-part adventure series includes backpacking, rock climbing, via ferrata, and zip lining. It is an ultimate challenge experience compressed into a short time frame.
Truly a Thanksgiving high adventure holiday to be remembered.
DECEMBER
DECEMBER CAMPOUT -
Snow Farm
Sycamore, Illinois
December 8-9, 2018
$10.00
Our December campout takes place in a heated area at the main barn.
The farm is historic dating back to the 1870's. There are places to hike and explore outdoors. Three areas of woodland include one of them along the Kishwaukee River. A warm indoor room provides a place for electronic games when not outdoors.
DECEMBER
DISASTER RELIEF -
HURRICANE FLORENCE
Moorehead City, North Carolina
December 26, 2018 - January 2, 2019
$100.00
Our 2nd December campout takes place in storm ravaged North Carolina.
The trip involved traveling to Beckley, WV for our first overnight in a church. The next day we arrived in Moorehead City, NC where we were based for overnights at a church. We worked on assigned projects for three homes in the cities of Newport, New Bern, and Jacksonville, NC. We had time to visit the ocean at Emerald Isle before moving to a new location at Kelly, NC. There we worked on projects for three more houses. We then spent two nights in the Smokey Mountains area for New Years Eve and some hiking on Mt Le Conte at the Great Smokey Mountains National Park.
