The Gray Wolf Pups gathered at Sehome Arboretum full of energy and ready for exploration. The boys immediately gravitated over towards a maze of mulch piles in the field next to the parking lot. Diving, jumping, and rolling they practiced their acrobatics and crash-landing techniques. Circling up in a grove of tall Douglas Fir we had an opening meeting. The mentors checked in with the boys, making sure they understood that we were doing a traverse and were not coming back to this location. The boys agreed to be aware of themselves and their belongings. Together we called attention to fact that this was the last outing of the Boys EC fall season and it was also the pup’s second completed fall season as a group! Watching the boy’s laugh and joke with one another we saw that they are are deeply rooting as cohorts.
Breaking our circle we played a few rounds of a game called Hungry Hungry Martin and regrouped at the Sehome Arboretum trail map. The Tribal Elderfor the day worked hard to get the boys to circle up and make a group decision on which trail to take. Once he had the group’s attention they unanimously decided to follow the Douglas Fir trail to the top. Our Front Scout did an excellent job of waiting at trail junctions until the back of the group caught up. The boys will need this vital navigation skill in future wilderness trips, and what better place to practice than the low-consequence arboretum.
After about a quarter mile on the trail the mentors pulled the boys off their course and the group explored an exposed sandstone ridgeline. Climbing on the rocks the mentor cautioned the group to have a healthy awareness of their movement when near to the cliff’s edge. At one point Peter crouched on the edge of the cliff as he looked down at a few of the Explorers. He looked like a cougar ready to ambush some hungry deer. He deemed our newfound location Cougar’s Landing. After some solid exploration the group got a little bit squirrely and we decided it was time to move on from the ridgeline.
Pushing further up the arboretum we came to a valley laden with tall Sword Ferns and Western Hemlock. Peter called Hide and all the boys went diving into the bushes. It was a good thing too because just ahead we saw another groups of Explorers move across the trail. The boys stalked each other until a mentor gave a Crow Call and boys came of the bushes from every angle.
Circling up the Raccoon Kits and Gray Wolf Pups introduced themselves to one another and we decided to play a round of Spider’s Web with both groups. Once the course was set up we chose to have two spiders, and the game was on! As the game developed one spider stayed close to the food source and another spider watched the web. They worked as an effective team and after twenty minutes of sneaking and stalking half the boys were stuck on the web and having a difficult time getting unstuck. This challenging situation eventually led to conflict and strife. The mentors called the game and we circled up to talk about it. The mentors asked the group what the point of the game was. They responded: fun, getting the food source, playing, being together, and learning to sneak. The mentors responded, “Why then are you arguing and treating each other so poorly”? The etymology of the word competition means to strive together. Mentors stressed that each time we compete with one another we trade courage and offer them our 
best. As a group we agreed to play with honor and to accept challenge as a necessary component of of growth within our lives.
Saying goodbye to the Raccoon Kits we gathered our packs and continued up the hill for one final push to the top. Arriving at the lookout tower the boys ate a much-needed lunch and looked out over Bellingham Bay and Lummi Spit. What a wonderful closing to the fall season. We reveled in the sun and mildness of the day. After eating Peter showed the group the Art of Fire by Friction and the bottom of the tower. The boys asked when they were going to get to learn how to use a bow drill. The mentors told the group that it would be awhile before they learned this skill, but that they would be starting the Art of Carving next season.
Leaving the tower we climbed down into a secluded valley for some solitude and a closing meeting. It is wonderful to think that in the busyness of downtown Bellingham a group of Explorers can sit in a wooded location and hear nothing but the calls of the birds and still of the forest. Sitting in a circle on top of a large sandstone rock we shared apples and revisited the season we shared together. The boys gave thanks for the weather, for Spider’s Web, for challenge, for climbing and sandstone, and for a great season. The mentors would like to thank the boys for their commitment to playing games with honor and integrity and for their maturing abilities as a group to make decisions while collaborating and compromising. We hope to see you all at the Winter Solstice Gathering and thank you for your support throughout the season. The Winter Solstice Gathering will be held at Lake Padden Park’s playground shelter on December 6th from 4:30-7:30pm.
For more pictures from the day please visit the Gray Wolfs Pups photo gallery.
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