Camping, Hiking and Trail Maintenance in the Olympic Mountains
June 26-28, 2009
My wife Trish and I, along with Tim and Stacy Kern, led ten teenagers from our church on a work weekend in Sequim, Washington. We volunteered with the Pacific Northwest Trail Association, repairing hiking trails in the Olympic Mountains. Our goal was to provide a learning experience for our youth group, labor hours for trail maintenance and a bit of recreation over the weekend for all of us. We also wanted to provide an opportunity for our kids where they could give thanks all the wonderful gifts that our society has showers upon them.
Our volunteer weekend was the last weekend in July. We camped at Sequim Bay State Park. It was a lovely campground; our tents were nestled in among the large trees and the shore was only a few hundred feet away. The campground was clean, well maintained and quiet at night. There were bathroom and shower facilities close by. The Kerns prepared wonderful meals at our campsite on a Colman stove. The weather was pleasant with the exception of Saturday night when it rained hard after we were in bed. Overall, the camping experience was fun and the kids seemed to enjoy it, but the experience would have drastically changed had it rained hard during meal times or earlier in the evening.
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