Junior Ranger Badge

My first teaching position was a 5th grade Job Share, Leave Replacement. I taught Math, Science, Health, and Language Arts. To maintain your teaching credentials, you can either take classes or get clock hours. An opportunity came up on an In Service Day where I could get clock hours to go on a “mild” hike in the Olympic National Forest. The objectives of the hike included identifying native plants, animals, and trees along with learning some survival skills. Along with the description was an explanation of the “mild” experience teachers needed. “Teachers should be comfortable walking a mile without exhaustion and not wear high heels on this hike.” Since the trip to go whale watching and learn about whales was full, I signed up for the Olympic National Forest hike. Clearly, I didn’t know what I was getting myself into.

The guides helped us navigate through one of the rainforests. “In Olympic National Forest, temperatures rarely drop below freezing or go above 80’F, enabling an incredibly unique ecosystem to grow. Mosses, ferns, Douglas fir, red alders, Western hemlocks and Sitka spruce thrive in temperate rainforests, as do epiphytes, which are plants growing on other plants. Cat-tail moss and licorice ferns are two types of epiphytes you will find in Olympic.” Since we were guided by experts, we did not stay on a “paved” path. I made sure I stayed with the group since I clearly have no navigation skills in the forest.

Olympic National Forest is well known for its diverse plant life. We saw Oregon oxalis, Sword ferns, Lady ferns, and many others. We continued to climb upwards and saw animal footprints. There are about 56 mammal species including 24 marine mammal species. Some of the animals in and along the Olympic National Forest include weasels, muskrats, martens, mountain goats, foxes, and many others.

Part of the climb included learning how to use ropes to maneuver ourselves up rocks. None of us had gloves nor harnesses. The hike was about 9 hours in length.

Still to this day, I have no clue where we were nor how many miles we hiked. What I do recall is my back and arms hurt. My hands and feet had blisters. But hey, I have a Jr. Ranger Badge now (LOL). Now, I have no desire to hike again.