As we got off the bus, we were greeted by a stellar natural wonder and a taste of independence, Yosemite. It all started when we arrived at school on Sunday at around 9 a.m., when we said our last goodbyes to our parents and got ready for a week of Yosemite scenery with friends.
After a wait, we loaded up onto buses by cohort and left a week of assignments and homework behind. The bus ride was pretty long, but it wasn’t too boring as movies played on the buses and some people brought games. Also, we stopped for lunch at a park in Los Banos before completing the bus to Yosemite. Then, we took off our stuff and were split up into rotations. Basically, because SPB is such a big group, to make sure the dining hall wasn’t too crowded, we were split up into rotations, and within those rotations, trail groups (the people whom we hike with). There were about thirteen trail groups. After we got our assignments, we were given some welcome instructions, and then we had to carry our luggage to the lodging before receiving the keys. From there, we got our first look at our lodging and found out who our cabinmates were, and then we started unpacking before dinner. As for the lodging, it was pretty standard, with there being two single beds, a double bed, a chair, and a rack sort of thing, but it didn’t matter that much, considering we weren’t often away from the cabin. Then we had our first dinner at Yosemite, which was pretty okay. Regarding meals at the dining hall (breakfast and dinner), it was okay. There were different meals each day with there being Latin, Asian, burgers, and pasta among other foods. Breakfast mainly had the same stuff like cereal, scrambled eggs, patties, fruit, and an assortment of either waffles, pancakes, or French toast sticks. Then after food, we had our first night hike, where we hiked in the dark to a location where we had an evening program.
As for the evening programs, we had an opening night program, a rock climbing informational talk, some playing in the dark, and a closing night where we did skits to show other groups what we did in our trail groups. Our daily schedule was pretty customary, with curfew ending at 6:00 am and quiet hours ending at 6:30 am, followed by breakfast (7am-8:30am), and then we had a small break before we met our trail guides and went for our hikes. Some popular hiking destinations were the Bear Caves, Yosemite Falls, Mirror Lake, and other spots near El Capitan, Half Dome, and the Merced River. We learned a lot of things, ranging from Native American history, controlled burns, Yosemite’s nature, and bouldering.
Some groups even got to take a shuttle. We had cold lunches and apples. The lunches ranged from things like sandwiches to pita bread and tacos. We came back to camp from around 3 p.m.-4 p.m. after a full day of exploration with our trail groups, and we had a break. During the break, most people showered, hung out, played sports, or did what they wanted to do. After that, dinner started (5 p.m.-7 p.m.), followed by the night hike. Once we came back we had a bit of free time before bed, where we could change and hang out. The routine was pretty customary, except for the day it rained, where some groups’ plans got changed. However, that didn’t stop some groups from doing their challenge hike. The last day was really sad because it signaled the end of a great adventure at Yosemite, especially with some groups having wonderful trail guides. We also took a survey on our experience.
At Yosemite we didn’t just learn about Yosemite, but also about our peers, teachers, and other chaperones. A lot of people got grouped with people that they didn’t pick, but this led to new friendships and the experience of bunking with others. The same thing occurred at the breakfast and dinner tables, with fun moments happening with our trail group members, some of whom we barely knew before the trip. Also, we learned a lot about the teachers too, especially through sports and other moments.
Then it all ended on Thursday night, when after being given instructions on how the bus loading procedure would work and where to put stuff, we were told to pack up. Some people were relieved because they were done, but others were sad and reluctant to leave. The next morning, people packed, dropped off their stuff, and ate breakfast before enjoying the scenery and time with friends one last time. Then we loaded back onto the buses, excited to tell our friends about our trips and to play games, and a few hours later, we arrived at school to see our parents again after five days. I believe it was a wonderful experience.
