The Townsend's Chipmunks and Gray Wolves Team Up for Life & Death in the Forest!

It was a dark and rainy day, but that didn't stop two groups of Explorers from having a blast at Lookout Mountain!  The Townsend's Chipmunks and the Gray Wolves teamed up this past weekend for a big game of Life & Death in the Forest, a game which tested the Explorers' minds and bodies to the limit while also teaching them a bit about the natural balance of ecosystems.

Given the challenging weather conditions, it was no surprise that the boys were a bit subdued on arrival at the trailhead.  While temperatures weren't especially low, the volume of rainfall was obviously going to stretch the edges of comfort that day.  Luckily, everyone had come prepared with insulating and waterproof layers!  And, as an  added bonus, the mentors had time before the Explorers arrived to set up a couple of tarp shelters at base camp.

Dude, are you going to wear a rain jacket?

Thank goodness for tarps!

After getting settled in, the team circled up to learn about the game.  Life & Death in the Forest is probably the most complicated game we play in Explorers Club.  The course is set up ahead of time with bandannas marking the boundaries and, throughout the playing area, there are cards that show food sources and water sources.  Each player is assigned a role as an herbivore, omnivore, or carnivore and given specific instructions on what resources they need to survive.  Before time runs out, herbivores need to find five different food sources and four different water sources without losing all seven of their "lives" (lives are tracked by rubber bands worn around the wrist).  An herbivore loses a "life" when tagged by a hungry omnivore or carnivore.  Omnivores are a bit more complicated.  They need to find three food sources, four water, and also catch three herbivores.  Carnivores need to catch seven herbivores or omnivores for food and find four water sources.  Sounds simple, right?  Try explaining that to a big group of teenagers...

The discussion started like this...

...and ended more like this as the rain really got going.

Ultimately, the lesson we try to impart to the Explorers in this game is the importance of balance.  If the boys choose to allow too many carnivores, they quickly realize that there aren't enough prey animals to support the population.  Likewise, too many omnivores can lead to the same problem.  With this group, the Explorers' group discussions reached this conclusion pretty quickly and the game was better for it.  We saw a very high level of engagement in the game and it was a lot of fun listening in on some of the strategic planning.

High-speed pursuit

Where's Waldo?

If your Explorer was a bit worn out at the end of the day, he earned it!  The mentoring team was proud of the focus the boys showed in learning a tough game, the effort they put into playing, and the strong sense that these groups have learned to "Play with Honor", as we often say.

The long road home

Great Job Townsend's Chipmunks and Gray Wolves!

Check out our other pictures here!

Connelly Creek service site transforming: Gray Wolf Pups & Townsend's Chipmunks

We shoulda taken photos (Check that - we did. Track the history of our service at this site by clicking on the “tag links” below: Connelly Creek). I wasn’t there, but I’m told that when the Boys Explorers first set eyes on the Connelly Creek service site a few years ago, the scene was dominated by Himalayan blackberry bushes and tall Reed canarygrass. Both are invasive, non-native plants that detract from the health of the creek. And, of course, the blackberry brambles hurt! Hidden in all that growth was an equally unpleasant discovery - trash. Apparently, the area had been used as a dump by people with nails, car parts, rusting wire, plastic, concrete and more to spare. The thing is, as an explorers club motto puts it, all things are connected. 

Himalayan blackberry was introduced from Eurasia. It often spreads over the top of other plants and crushes or smothers them. It can root at branch tips and spread from roots (suckers). Birds can spread the berries over long distances. It is a Class C weed in Washington State, which means it is already widespread. And, as the scratches on arms and legs will attest, it has a strong defense against well-meaning service workers.

Reed canarygrass forms dense, highly productive single species stands that pose a major threat to many wetland ecosystems. The species grows so vigorously that it is able to inhibit and eliminate competing species. According to the state department of Ecology, the species poses a significant threat to the state’s wetlands. 

Salmon, of course, need the ecological balance that these aggressive species will eliminate if not combatted. As I said, it’s all connected.

So, once each fall and spring, each explorers club (EC) group spends an outing working at the site to replace blackberries and canarygrass with native species. With guidance from Bellingham Parks and tools on loan from the Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association(NSEA), the boys devote their time and energies to clipping and uprooting blackberries and then stomping down canarygrass and covering it with bark mulch to deprive it of the sun on which it thrives. They’ve also planted trees and bushes to shade the area, providing a more permanent solution to the “problem” sun. In this way, the explorers, parks and NSEA are connecting and protecting, another EC motto.

I’ve been through two seasons of service outings now, and can personally attest to scores of bags of brambles and roots (and dozens of scrapes!). I’ve witnessed multiple groups of explorers cutting (which turned out to be the wrong strategy - encourages growth) and stomping down (better approach) canarygrass, and moving dozens of yards of bark mulch in buckets large and small to cover the grass. And I’ve supervised the removal of rusted nails, plastic who-knows-whats, and much more trash. (We shoulda inventoried.) The work was done willingly, even eagerly, as a rule. Despite the occasional bark battle, the irresistible tree waiting to be climbed, and the allure of the creek, the explorers keep at it, demonstrating again the EC motto - many hands make light work. 

So now there are young alders reaching for the sky and native shrubs such as ninebark restoring ecological balance to the area. Sounds good, doesn’t it? Read it aloud - it sounds even better that way...restoring ecological balance. Nice. If you’re interested, check here for information on native, non-invasive plants for your garden. Along the way, we liberated some trees that were being swallowed up and a fence that was hidden in the blackberries. Here’s a panoramic view (pardon my poor photography skills) of the site today. 



Saturday’s was our last service outing of the spring. We’ll be back at it in the fall, again with the collaboration of the Bellingham Parks and NSEA. Your final EC motto for the day - Everyone helps. Your boys are learning the importance of caring for the land. As they return twice a year, they’re excited by the progress they’ve made and can see the change they can affect. Sure, the creek is better off, but no more so that all of us who have the privilege of putting the blackberries and cararygrass in their rightful place. 

Gray Wolf Pup families, click here for the gallery of photos from Saturday’s service outing. Townsend's Chipmunk folks, click here.

The Gray Wolf Pups return to exploring on Sunday, June 7 with a traverse. Click here for further information on that outing.

The Townsend's Chipmunks are also back at it on Sunday, June 7 with a traverse (different place!). Look herefor the outing description.