(Photo courtesy of Katie Holmlund/PMC)
A kayak expedition departed from the southern end of Mitkof Island in July, as part of a camp aimed at helping local teens build outdoor skills and resilience.
The four-day excursion was a collaboration between the local medical center’s ORCA camp and Onward and Upward, an Alaska-based outdoor education nonprofit. Louisa Branchflower, the Director of Development for Onward and Upward, was overseeing the program’s first water venture.
“We’re just starting to get our feet wet, literally, with canoeing and sea kayaking expeditions.” Branchflower said. “We’re so fortunate to live in this playground of Alaska, and it’s great to get students outside and help them connect with nature and help grow their self-efficacy and their resilience, which is so important.”
Despite its relatively short duration, the odyssey the teens embarked on was about two years in the making. Katie Holmlund, the Youth Program Coordinator for Petersburg Medical Center, explained that she felt Onward and Upward’s values of mental resilience and prosocial connection aligned with those of ORCA camp. However, the camp would need support to make the collaboration a reality. That support came in the form of a grant from the Alaska Community Foundation, as well as contributions from various businesses and individuals in Petersburg.
“We had folks around town donating the use of their flatbed trailer to haul gear and kayaks, and then all of our kayaks were lended to us for the week,” Holmlund said. “Our kids got to see how our community is willing to step up and make sure they’re getting these enriching experiences, so that was incredible.”
As daylight faded on the beach, the campers hauled their kayaks out of the water. Gavin O’Neal and Neal Lombard were the first ashore. They said the best part of the training day was capsizing practice, where they purposefully overturned their kayaks for wet exits. “Just getting used to the water, it was fun to kind of swim around a little bit,” O’Neal said.
“Yeah, the capsizing experience was really fun,” added Lombard.
Not everyone was new to kayaking. Nate Olsen mentioned that he got a lot of practice on the island’s sloughs and channels.
“I don’t want to just say I’m like super good – but I do have like some pretty good experience, and I think I can manage myself well,” Olsen said.
Jeff Caron, one of the three leads, noted that the group had some strong paddlers.
“Their maturity level and their willingness to learn, they’re pretty resilient, really strong.” Caron said. “Their attitude and their commitment and resilience are making them go through this training really quickly, which is awesome to see.”
The campers set out the next morning from Blaquiere Point, tracking along Mitkof’s north shore, with an intended endpoint of Ideal Cove. However, poor weather conditions, currents, and tides prevented the paddlers from making it there. Instead, they camped south of the cove on the second night and began the return journey the next day. On their final day, the kids were bused back from Blaquiere Point to Sandy Beach for a bonfire with their families. Carson Holmlund was glad to be back.
“I didn’t expect to be so homesick so quickly,” Carson said. “Going to sleep was what I expected and cooking and all that. I didn’t expect the bugs. It was really awful.”
However, Emi Anderson saw the bug problem differently.
“Everywhere there were black flies, and we had to move all of our stuff and pack up our kayaks,” Anderson said. “It was super annoying, but I feel like we really worked as a team, and that was the fastest we had worked together that entire trip.”
Zia Hulebak didn’t love the rain, but felt like she learned a lot through the program.
“I didn’t expect my feet to get sad from being wet all the time, but it was fun,” Hulebak said. “Some things might get really cold and hard, but I should appreciate what I have because, your food is better and like, I have a bed and all that. And, it’s harder when you have to do it all on your own.”
The group also got to celebrate Etolyn Turland’s birthday.
“I woke up, and I had this big burnt gluten-free pancake with frosting and sprinkles with candles on it,” Turland said. “It was really funny.”
She had to wait for her birthday wish until she got home, though.
“First dibs on the shower, because I have a sister,” Turland said.
Despite some good-humored jokes about rain and pests, almost all the kids said they would want to do the program again. Eli Anderson is especially keen to get back on the water.
“I kind of wish I was still out there,” Anderson said. “I wish we had more food and more time out there. It was such a great time. Even when it did get rainy and kind of nasty out, it was the people around who kind of picked you up and made you feel so much better.”
While there are no official plans for next summer, Youth Program Coordinator Holmlund thinks the effort to host it again would be well worth it.
“We are going to have to track down a significant amount of funding, but I’m up to that challenge,” Holmlund said. “At our big final debrief, we had participants say that their highlight was the scenery. They live here all the time – but it’s a totally different perspective and appreciation when they’re out paddling in the water. So that was really impactful for me to hear – that shift in perspective and how connected our kids are to this place we call home.”
If ORCA can secure the funding, Holmlund hopes that next year, the camp can go on an even longer, two-week expedition.
