Step Into Nature With The Outdoor Adventure Club

HIKE: The Outdoor Adventure club takes a group photo just before climbing Rattlesnake Ledge. The Outdoor Adventure Club is a club that has risen this year centered around taking mini field trips into nature during the school year. Photo courtesy of Tara Vanselow.

A new club has arisen at Vashon Island High School, the outdoor adventure club! The outdoor adventure club is a club made for students who love the outdoors and want to spend more time in nature during the school year. The main goal of the club is to go do an outdoor activity once a month. These activities can range from hiking, kayaking, or ice skating in the winter. The club also allows for students to get in some extra bonding time with friends from 9th to 12th grades. 

One of the best parts about this club are the beautiful views and sights you get to see. On our hikes we get to see towering mountain ranges, wonderful valleys,  and breathtaking terrain. By joining the club students can experience nature with friends in wonderful ways. Recently, the club went on an adventure up into the mountains on a snowshoe hike. The hike was like wandering through a winter wonderland with all the snow and the magnificent views of both the lake and the mountains.

The club is run by freshmen Piper Frith and Naomi Jones, along with adult supervision from Mrs. Vanselow and Mrs. Coe. The trips are professionally planned and the leaders’ top priority is making sure everyone has a great time. Our club is also managed by some other student staff such as Mabel Pekoz, who is the club’s secretary, Josie Reiling and Lily Burke Cobarr who are our treasurers, and our last member of the core staff is Eli Berman who is in charge of transportation. 

By joining this club there is one major consequence. You may miss school in order to accompany us on these adventures but most are planned to avoid any major tests or assessments during the school week. If you would prefer to not miss school, then this club might not be for you, but I think OAC has just the right frequency of trips so that you don’t fall behind in school and can still take the time out of the week for a relaxing expedition. It’s so refreshing to be able to take a break from your mental strain to go out and spend a day in the wilderness with your friends. It can feel like a breath of fresh air, both literally and metaphorically. The trips also allow you to grow closer with your friends and make new ones you never would have found before. 

We have one grand adventure planned for the end of the school year. We are taking a two night camping trip to Alta Lake in Eastern Washington. Our plans are to do some swimming, hiking as well as other activities while we’re there, and if adventures like this don’t seem like a good enough reason to join this club, then I don’t know what is. If you love the beauty of the natural world I would recommend joining this club at VHS. We have meetings every Thursday at lunch, and you can talk to Piper Frith or Naomi Jones if you are interested in joining!