Wednesday, August 3

Coming back to a comfortable community after the second expedition all 18 of us rejoined to tell stories of Mt Massive summits, glissading, new meals we created in the backcountry, and funny circles. Karen's expeidtion hiked off trail for the majority of the trip and finished off the trip with Independent Student Travel (IST). Meanwhile, Maureen's group had the excitement of Sophie joining the group on day 3 and filling a few packs with twenty-five plus pound rocks for the final six-mile hike back to campus.

This week we wrapped up our classes with an exciting last study hall, final presentations, and a practical exam in P&P. In Humanities, we wrapped up class by displaying a weeklong ethnographic interviewing project and the history of the Leadville area, following a trip to the National Mining Museum and Hall of Fame. The science class came to a close with final labs involving water quality testing and identifying macro and micro organisms in order to assess the impact of Leadville's mining history on it's current day water quality. 

The final days together were very exciting and busy. We fit a solo, advisee breakfast, dance party, full circle, Super Clean, a visit to the hot springs, paint ball war, and concluding slideshow all into the last three days. Tomorrow we take off for home with 18 new friends, an awesome HMI fleece, and the memories that will last a lifetime!

By Scout Sorcic