“I always get where I’m going by walking away from where I’ve been.”
Bonus points to you if you know who says that quote! The answer shall be revealed at the end of this blurb. But as for the blog….
Today’s blog has got everything. A cross-country bike tour coming to a close, Iron Chef competition and night-time glow-stick posing, some hikers finding the fabled Bubble Rock, biking Apogee records broken, and more! We’re always on our toes here in the Apogee office – no day is a boring day in an Apo summer. We’ve got some amazing updates and photos for you today, enjoy the sights and wonders that are ahead!
And the answer….
–Winnie the Pooh is the author.
And now, the blog awaits!
Skip to a Specific Trip: MCJA, MCJB, CI, NEMCA, NEMCB, CRMA, CRMB, CS, MCCE, MCP, DEX, VMA, VMB, CRLS, CRMC, CMCA, CMCB, AKMC, NWXA, NWXB, PCA, PCB, SH, AX, PMC, ACC
Maine Coast Junior (MCJA)
Look out belooooow! These heroic hikers enjoyed a sweet hike up the wonderful Bubble’s Loop, where the found… Bubble rock! Fortunately the rock wasn’t actually as light as a bubble, and our crew, no matter how strong they were, couldn’t budge it. Probably for the best. Great hike and happy camping, MJCA!
Maine Coast Junior (MCJB)
Bike gloves: on
Tires: pumped
Helmets: strapped
11 miles: CRUSHED.
Way to go MCJB – they got to see Acadia in (with my professional, completely unbiased opinion) the coolest way possible: biking their way to victory! 11 miles later, and we’ve got big smiles and victory leaps as this crew continues on their adventure of the summer. What a perfect day for a bike ride!
Cape Cod & the Islands (CI)
I thiiiiink we’re going to Booooooston!! Augustana, anybody? These speedy CI-er’s had an amazing day today, starting with some exploration of the beautiful Provincetown before taking a ferry to, you guessed it, Bawston! This crew got settled in nicely this evening and is ready for a seriously sweet day of exploration in the big city tomorrow. Thank GOODNESS the only sharks they saw today were already on land. Phew! Rest up and enjoy the big city, CI squad!
New England Mountains & Coast A (NEMCA)
What a beautiful day our crew of adventurers experienced today! From beach-side card games with snacks to scenic lake swimming, these guys and gals really have it all today. They soaked up another beautiful day of hiking in the Whites and prepared for their last day of hiking tomorrow. How the time has flown by!
New England Mountains & Coast B (NEMCB)
This awesome crew also enjoyed some spectacular weather for a beautiful day today. They hiked the incredible Sawyer Pond today and enjoyed a delightful lunch by the lake, where they ran into the other NEMC group and enjoyed a group swim! What a perfectly laid back day for a perfectly laid back crew!
Colorado’s Rocky Mountains A (CRMA)
CRMA explored Rocky Mountain National Park. They kicked off the day by not packing up camp (hallelujah!) and prepared for some sweet day hikes around the beautiful Rockies. Lakes, wildlife, picture-esque views, and tons of smiles were in store for this group, and they’re definitely ready for a big challenge day tomorrow.
Colorado’s Rocky Mountains B (CRMB)
After a big day of rafting yesterday, our intrepid CRMB group enjoyed the beauties of the Rockies with a nice day hike around some gorgeous Colorado lakes. I hear several of the views on their journey today were in mountain-surrounded passes, covered with snowcapped peaks on all sides. Pinch me now. Take me there.
Caribbean Service (CS)
These exotic explorers had quite the day today – they capped off their last day of service with VNWR and enjoyed some community time with several locals. From planting plants to planting smiles, this crew absolutely crushed the day of service. And it looks like they were joined by some feathered friends – the best addition to any service project!
SWIM AWAAAAAY!!
Maine Coast College Essay (MCCE)
Our studious college-bound authors are back at it again today, hard at work as they crank away on some wordsmithing. They met with a college-admissions officer again and talked about interviews today – a valuable skill that they’ll need not just for college but later in life as well. I cannot wait to hear about the final essays!
The cabin may be for the boys, but there’s no rule against using their rocking chairs!
This is NOT how you should shake someone’s hand for an interview, Abby.
Maine Coast Photo (MCP)
Our photogenic photographers enjoyed an incredible double whammy of pictures to take today: both a sunrise AND a sunset photoshoot! Starting the day nice and early, they got some incredible shots from a pier and headed back for some sweet Napogees. After some relaxation and more portraits in the afternoon, this group headed out for round 2 of outdoor photos and snapped some incredible sunset shots. I can’t wait to see the views they captured!
Maine’s Downeast Explorer (DEX)
Now everybody, time to form up in a classic Apogee lineup: the Sardine Napogee sleep formation, of course! This hidden gem of a lineup is best performed in sleeping bags on top of a mountain, as demonstrated by our fabulous DEX team here. Additionally, it is well complemented by the good ol’ night time glo-stick jazz pose, which is also shown well by these adventurers below. Cadillac mountain had never seen such poses before – well done, DEX!
These pics were taken at 3am – did someone say Sunrise hike??
Vermont to Montréal A (VMA)
Bonjour! These speedy roadsters embarked this morning for their first full day of riding on Canadian soil and absolutely crushed a short day of riding to the wonderful Camping Les Cedres. These champions…*drumroll please*… GOT THE RECORD FOR TODAY!! Major congrats to this speedy group of rockstars on a VM record! Soccer fields, ice cream, and somehow the very last day of riding tomorrow await these heroes of the North. Winter is coming? More like VMA is coming (to Montreal)!
Vermont to Montréal B (VMB)
Woah woah woah, somebody pump those brakes for me – how many miles did VMB ride today?? That’s right folks, I can barely believe what I’m seeing… VMB crushed a HALF CENTURY today. Let me spell that out for you again: that’s 50 MILES. FIVE. ZERO. I can barely remember the last time I drove 50 miles, let alone rode it on my own two legs. This group enjoyed some beautiful riding through the Canadian countryside with great views of lakes, cornfields, and the occasional Tim Horton’s. Ride on, VMB! Ride on…
Costa Rica Language & Service (CRLS)
It looks like this group is saying gracias and adios to the Spanish classes, as they finished the last day of classes today! Never fear, they will still be utilizing those Spanish skills till the very end of the trip (and beyond!), since Costa Ricans still, you know, speak Spanish. Big smiles and thumbs up from a cozy cottage for these Espanol experts!
Costa Rica Mountains & Coast (CRMC)
Our CRMC adventurers finished up their time at RACE and transitioned to the beach for today, exploring the beachy village of Bahia! They were privileged with the chance to fully hike out of the RACE housing, enjoying another morning traversing through the jungle. They are staying in the lovely town of Uvita tonight, and we’re so stoked to see those amazing pictures soon!
California Mountains & Coast (CMCA)
The last full day in the backcountry for Nils & Nicole’s CMC Alpha team. While we’re all dreaming of the wonders of the Yosemite backcountry, they’re living it! This is their last night in the backcountry, which means some stellar pics are on their way soon!
California Mountains & Coast (CMCB)
Oh boy oh boy – today we’ve got a big one, ladies and gentlemen. It’s these explorers’ biggest hiking day of the trip, both in mileage and elevation, and they’ve got some stellar sights as their reward! After hitting the Indian Ridge and experiencing Half Dome in all its glory, this group carried on with views of Merced Canyon, Illilouette George, Tenata Canyon, and the full Yosemite valley. Yosemite is pretty big, but this group is managing to see it all! One more night of backcountry before we hear more from them – I can’t wait to see the pics!
Alaska Mountains & Coast (AKMC)
Lucky us – we have lots of amazing photos from these Alaskan adventurers, showing not one but TWO of their highlights from the last few days. First up is the classic beached whale pose in front of some gorgeous mountains in Seward, capped off with some ice cream. A wonderful pose, to say the least. Then we got a glimpse at a fabled Apogee tradition, the competition to rule all competitions… The Iron Chef Faceoff, of course! It looks like this crew cooked up some seriously tasty dishes: we’ve got loaded burgers, we’ve got fried rice with pork, and we’ve got a small, half-eaten bag of doritos, sour cream, and shredded cheese. I wonder which team won…?
Northwest Explorer (NWXA)
These adventurers are back on the road – or should I say, back on lakes! They exchanged their hiking boots for kayaking paddles and headed to the incredible Guemes Island before finishing at Cypress Island. I hear there’s a salmon hatchery right around the corner… These guys are absolutely soaking up the last week of trip. I can’t wait to see those views from the kayaks!
Northwest Explorer (NWXB)
For those who have been counting, it’s only two short days until these off-road warriors emerge from the backcountry (and send us tons of delightful pictures!!). Until then, we may or may not be watching the clock sloooowly tick… But we know they’re having tons of fun. Can’t wait to hear back from these hiking heroes!
Pacific Coast (PCA)
Gua-la-la…These guys are crushing their mileage! They biked from Gualala Point Regional Park to Sonoma Coast State Park today – what I hear is an absolutely gorgeous ride with only slightly rolling hills. They enjoyed a nice uphill before a BIG descent today – and they’ve only got 2 days of riding left! Where has the time gone??
Pacific Coast (PCB)
Oh boy – after a wonderful rest day, our fearless PCB-ers were off on the road again on this epic last stretch of riding. Not much service for them today, but that means absolutely phenomenal views – what a way to cap off these last few days of riding. I can’t wait to hear from them again, and until then, we wish them the very best in the Salt Point Campground. To San Francisco we go!
They’re actually all getting to San Francisco on just that one bike, it’s quite impressive
Scottish Highlands (SH)
No (West Highland) way – this group just crushed their last day of hiking for the trip! A big ol’ challenge day of a whopping 13.5 miles, their path today wound its way up and down before a nice descent at the end of the day. These guys and gals earned a wonderful rest tonight! They’ve got a salty day of sea kayaking tomorrow, where they’re going to rock-hop their way through Scottish Seas before finishing up this spectacular trip in Edinburgh. Keep it up, Scottish adventurers!
Alps Explorer (AX)
I know what you’re thinking, but we actually didn’t photoshop these with screenshots from the Lord of the Rings movies – our Alps team ACTUALLY went here. Unbelievable as ever. This team crossed back from Italy into Switzerland, the mothercountry where it all began, and enjoyed a beautiful day of hiking that started with a nice uphill right out of camp. A sweet campsite tonight and somehow only a few days on the beaten path remain!
You put your right foot in, you put your right foot out…
Pyrenees Mountains & Coast (PMC)
Woah woah woah… HOW many kilometers did PMC hike today??? This must be a typo… there’s no way… But way there is! This stellar group hiked a whopping 20 KM today!! That’s right, TWENTY kilometers!! On their way to crushing this serious mileage (or is it kilometerage…?), they passed some pretty interesting things, like the little town of Xantelerreka (which I’m pretty sure is the name of the Alien from the Alien movies, right?), some supermarkets that were boldly described as “strange,” and a beautiful lake outside of Col D’lbardin (seriously, who is naming these places??). 15 miles and a dip in the ocean sounds absolutely delightful – congrats to these mountaineers!
I think they’re having a contest to see who can put their hiking poles higher. Who wins? You decide!
America Coast to Coast (ACC)
I can barely believe I’m typing this. ACC, our fearsome, country-crossing warriors, FINISHED BIKING today!!!!!! LET THAT SINK IN!!!! Seriously… Wow. These biking champions coasted in mid-afternoon to maybe the best sight of the entire summer: the beautiful Pacific Ocean. The celebration was, in a word, epic. Tire dipping, wave-splashing, and tear-shedding are just a few of the highlights from this life-changing moment. To give this crew our “major kudos” feels like it’s just not enough – they’ve definitely earned these next few days off. We salute you, ACC – CONGRATULATIONS!!!
