Adventures that Change Us
If you’ve been following us on Instagram, you may have seen that I recently took a trip to Colorado. This is something I’ve been wanting to do for years, especially after I met and connected with Eric Swithin, the founder of Outdoor Adventures. Eric and his team are passionate about building meaningful, transformational relationships between mentors and young people through adventures in the beautiful wilderness of the San Juan National Forest. As Outdoor Adventures has grown, they have begun to host and guide other groups with similar missions on epic backpacking trips. I am hoping that Fernway Outdoors will be able to bring a group to Outdoor Adventures as soon as next summer!
During my visit this year, I had the privilege of shadowing one of these trips. E210 Outdoors and Avengers, who both provide mentoring to young people in Houston, Texas, worked together to bring a group of four young men to Colorado for a week of adventure.
And, while I may have had more experience than these four fine young men, I had never experienced anything like the wilds of this backpacking trip. I kept catching myself just looking around and chuckling; saying under my breath, “This is incredible”, “I can’t believe this is real”, and, “I can’t believe I’m here.” The scenery was simply spectacular. You could look in almost any direction, at almost any point, and simply be blown away by it all. The photos below cannot capture the fullness of this place, the wonder, and awe.
Not only was the scenery breathtaking, but so was the altitude. I’m not quite an expert backpacker, but I’m no rookie, either! I can load up and hit the trail here on the East Coast and clock 9-10 miles in a day fairly easily. On this trip, we started at nearly 9,000 ft. above sea-level at the trailhead, and we quickly climbed nearly 4,000 ft higher over the 6-7 miles we hiked on our first day. It was brutal! But it was totally worth it.
We set up camp in a beautiful meadow (pictured above) near Four Mile Lake which was our home base for the next 3 days. From there, we took part in many of Outdoor Adventures’ traditional activities including a privy building contest, day hikes, swimming, and a whiffle ball showdown. We also had plenty of time to just enjoy the daily rainstorms, take in the mountain air, and share meals around the fire.
One of the best parts of this trip for me was getting to spend some time with the leaders of these other groups. Our guides from Outdoor Adventures were wise beyond their years. And it was so encouraging to hear from other men in other states striving to invest in the lives of young people in their communities. It was great to hear that others are struggling and persevering in similar work as me. It felt like I got some wind back in my sails to keep going!
The whole trip was incredible, and far more than I could have imagined. But the times that affected me the most were, surprisingly, during Outdoor Adventures’ “closing ceremonies”. I was content to sit back, watch, and learn for much of this trip. However, I was really moved to more actively participate during our final night. And I don’t know how to describe what happened other than to say that I experienced God in a way that I had not in a very long time.
Before the leaders graduated the trip’s participants, our whole group hiked, in the dark of night, a couple thousand feet up a narrow deer trail from Outdoor Adventures’ cabin near town. There, everyone reflected on what we had learned on our trip, and on how we would want to live when we got back home. As I went through these exercises, I was shook. I mean, it was like an emotional wall, that I didn’t even realize was there, was torn out of me. In just a few short minutes, I felt everything from fear to contentment to anger to comfort. And then it all felt quiet.
I hiked up that little deer trail that night feeling tired, knocked down and discouraged. But at the same time, I felt resolve to persevere. As I went through these reflection exercises, I was honestly pretty mad at God. And as I watched the others complete the reflection exercises after me, I felt like I almost heard God whispering to me. I felt like I heard Him say, “It’s ok. It’s ok to be tired. It’s ok to get knocked down. You’re running the race. You’re not giving up. You’re not sitting in the stands or on the sidelines. You’re running the race. Just trust in Me more. Just let go and trust in Me more.” Like I said, I was shook. And I cried almost the whole way back down the trail.
So much of what I do, I do because I am convinced that spending more time in the outdoors makes us all better people; helps us all grow. I truly believe in adventures that change us. But, somehow, I almost forgot that I still need to grow and change, too.
