Program re-connecting students to the great outdoors and fun

    In a day and age when many young people are migrating indoors to spend excessive amounts of time on the computer, East Grand High School is actively working on reversing that trend and promoting a healthy lifestyle at the same time through its Outdoor Education Program.
Photography courtesy of Dave Conley
LEADING THE WAY – Jordan Crone, front, along with other students put their trust in classmate Robert Cousins, as he leads the way on a night hike. After trudging through deep snow for about an hour, Cousins successfully put his map and compass skills to work and led the group back to the campsite.
    The class has 12 students and is led by physical education teacher Scott Holmes and outdoor instructor Dave Conley, and offers students a variety of outdoor experiences throughout the school year.
    This winter topics and activities include learning outdoor survival skills, researching career opportunities in the outdoors, cross country skiing, snowshoeing, map and compass, hockey, an overnight winter camping outing, introduction to fly casting and several outings to Big Rock in Mars Hill for skiing and snowboarding.
Photograph courtesy of Dave Conley
WORKING TOGETHER – Members of the East Grand High School Outdoor Education Program work together on creating an igloo in front of the school.
    Looking ahead to the spring, students will plan and take part in an overnight canoe trip, attend a ‘Teens to Trails” conference at Windham High School, condition and take part in several canoe races, including the Meduxnekeag race in Houlton.
    The East Grand Outdoor education students recently took part in an overnight survival outing in the East Grand Lake area.             Students went out in pairs, built survival shelters using snow and brush, made warming and cooking fires and settled in for the night. With temperatures in the middle teens, students learned the importance of being properly prepared, while attempting to stay outdoors overnight in the winter. 
     In May, the class will be hosting the East Grand Adventure Race, a 15-mile triathlon including a compass hike, mountain biking and canoeing, on Saturday, May 17, and is open to all interested high school students statewide and the Maritimes. The event will have more than $1,000 in prizes. For more information on this event, please contact Dave Conley at 448-2743.
Photography courtesy of Dave Conley
OUTDOOR ED – East Grand Outdoor Education students heading out for an overnight ‘Survival’ outing in the East Grand Lake area were, from left, kneeling, Scott Holmes, outdoor education instructor; Abe Brittain, Dustin Morse and Dustin Miller; back, Cleave Kenyon, Eddie Bobisky, David Cropley, Harvey Brittain, Robert Cousins, Garrett Harding, Aaron Henn, JD Dinis and Jordan Crone.