Outdoor Education School Science Camps California

The Road Not Taken – Caroline Blake

As a recent graduate from the University of Vermont I was unsure of my career path.

Right out of college I was offered a lab technician position for a Fortune 500 Company making over 50,000 dollars a year. They even offered me an apartment in the city.

At the same time, I was offered a different position as an Environmental Educator in the San Bernardino Mountains of Southern California making below minimum wage, living in the woods with no TV or Internet, in a community with 25 other people.

I was at a crossroads and did not know what decision to make. Or did I?

I am not a city girl and looking through a microscope all day is not my idea of fun. I do like seeing sunshine. Then why was I still considering working in the lab?

Well, people kept on telling me to take the money and work through the misery for a couple of years to pay off my student loans and build up my savings. Was this good advice? Absolutely. I would love to do both of those things.

However, I just couldn’t accept the lab position. I took the road less traveled.

I sent in my acceptance letter, packed up my car, and cross-country road tripped to Southern California to teach children about the environment at High Trails Outdoor Science School.

Have I ever regretted my decision? Not even for a minute, and here are five reasons why with the help of some blog posts from my fellow coworkers.

#5: Push Yourself and Learn New Things

Blog Post: Solar System GPS? I was completely caught off guard by how quickly I became obsessed with learning about astronomy. It started off during my first week of staff training when I looked up into the clear, dark sky and the thousands of sparking lights from the stars hit my eyes. A couple of my new coworkers and I found a clearing in the woods. For hours they taught me about the different constellations and the fascinating stories that went with them.

After that night, I immersed myself in the material. I bought children’s astronomy books to make the material relatable to the students that I would be teaching. I looked up cool facts online along with pictures. I even invested in a laser pointer to make the constellations more easily visible to my students. Every week, I get to share my new passion with students in the hopes that it might spark their interest as well.

#4: Make a Memorable Experience for the Students

Blog Post: Let’s Go Play. Every day I get to go OUTSIDE. I have seven hours in which I get to take my students ANYWHERE in the woods. Within a couple of miles of camp, I can hike with students to a lake where they can skip rocks, a river where we build small boats and race them, or maybe to a large meadow to assemble a survival shelter. Along the way, we focus on plants, animals, water, insects, and how to better our planet. The list goes on because every moment is a teachable moment. You never know when a bird might fly by or clouds may come rolling in.

#3: Go on Adventures

Blog Post: Poopout Hill. The past couple of months have been one great adventure. It first started with the road trip out here from

Vermont. My dad and I did a 12-day trip, which included 13 states and 4 National Parks (Rocky Mountain, Zion, Mesa Verde, and the Grand Canyon). This was a wonderful growing period for both of us to mend the broken cracks and solidify our relationship.

Now that I am here on the West Coast, I want to see it all. Almost every weekend I travel with friends to beaches, mountains, or National and State Parks (Death Valley, Joshua Tree, Red Rocks to name a few). I have been crossing things off my bucket list left and right.

Even in the next couple of weeks, I plan on hitting up Big Sur, Monterey, San Francisco, Yosemite, and Kings Canyon. My dream was to see the West and by golly that is what I am going to do.

#2: Framily (Friends + Family)

Blog Post: Love Like Heather. I have never been closer to a group of individuals in my life. Is it because I live with 25 people in cabins with no TV or Internet? Or that I see them 24 hours a day, 7 days a week? Is it because I love to teach children about the outdoors? Is it because on any given weekend there are multiple groups going hiking, biking, surfing, rock climbing or just playing board games, so you can pick and choose your adventures? Or is it a combo of all of these? In all honesty, I have no idea.

But for the first time in my life I have been able to be 100% myself and teach children about what I love. Many of them know more about me than I do myself. They consistently push me to try new things in my classes as well as on the weekends. I have people who share similar passions and are willing to go on my crazy adventures.

#1: Be Happy

Blog Post: Keeping it Fresh in Year Three. To end it all. I am just truly happy. Wasn’t that the decision all along when choosing between working in a lab and moving out here? Where was I going to be happy? The answer is here at High Trails in the San Bernardino Mountains.

Am I saying that this is an easy job? Absolutely not! Every day my body is pushed to the physical limit and my patience may run out after a long week. However, then I remember how truly lucky I am. I am fulfilling my dream of seeing the West with a group of people that I care about. Every day I push myself to be a better person and teacher in the hopes that I can somewhat shape the young minds of the students that come up here.

“Two roads diverged in a wood, and…I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all of the difference.” Robert Frost

At High Trails Outdoor Science School, we literally force our instructors to write about elementary outdoor education, teaching outside, learning outside, our dirty classroom (the forest…gosh), environmental science, outdoor science, and all other tree hugging student and kid loving things that keep us engaged, passionate, driven, loving our job, digging our life, and spreading the word to anyone whose attention we can hold for long enough to actually make it through reading this entire sentence. Whew…. www.dirtyclassroom.com

Opinion and Inspiration, Staff

The Heroes of Olympus Enter the World of High Trails! Quinn Holthaus

Do You Hate Managing? Chris Wright

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Popular Parent Links

Special Concerns: Information and form for special situations. Health Consent Form: required for every student attending High Trails. Medication Form: required if a student is bringing medication to High Trails. Discipline Form and Packing List: general information to prepare for your trip. Forms Video: check this out for a visual explanation of our forms. Printable Parent's Guide: used in lieu of the online Parent's Guide. Menu: a weekly list of the food up here.

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