Day 4 of Apogee Summer 2024 welcomed even MORE trips into the field! Awesome food, views, and friends made today a great day. Read on to hear about the cool adventures these crews got up to today!
Skip to a Specific Trip: AKMC, AXA, AXB, CI, CRM, CRMC, CSPR, CSVI, DEX, ECC1, ECC2, GSA, IMC, MCCE, NEMC, NWX, PC, PMC, VM
Alaska Mountains & Coast (AKMC)
Exploring Alaska’s backcountry? Count our Alaska Mountains and Coast-ers in! This group spent yesterday gearing up for their first backcountry section of the trip. Today is Day 1 of exploring Chugach State Park while hiking the Williwaw Lakes Loop and they are jumping for joy (as seen in the picture below). These rugged adventurers will be unable to send photos during their backcountry stint, but we will be sure to post many photos when they get back in service!
Alps Explorer A (AXA)
Today the AXA group crushed the Sunnegga hike with great views and weather! Energy was replenished along the route with a nice glacial lakeside lunch. Following the hike, the group explored Zermatt and spotted goats in the countryside! The crew was super jazzed when they witnessed an impromptu performance from Swiss Alphorns, an awesome cultural experience! Don’t forget to refresh the page tomorrow to see the next chapter of adventures for this group.
Alps Explorer B (AXB)
AXB woke up to the soundtrack of Ratatouille, which has quickly become their group’s anthem. They set off on their hike of the day: Schwarzsee, and packed a picnic lunch of baguette sandwiches for the top. The crew spent the afternoon prepping their gear for the Tour du Mont Blanc, and had a scrumptious dinner and dessert beneath the stunning view of the Matterhorn! The explorers are tucked in bed catching some Z’s as they prepare for a fun-filled day tomorrow!
Cape Cod & the Islands (CI)
The CI group had a fun-filled adventure day out on the Vineyard. In the morning the group had lots of laughs while volunteering at a local farm harvesting lettuce and pea shoots, they also got to check out the farm’s chickens and sheep. After a productive morning, the group enjoyed a fresh lunch complete with the veggies they harvested! There’s nothing cooler than that. In the afternoon, the group biked to the beach and played games to complete the day. We can’t wait to see what’s in store for the squad tomorrow!
Caribbean Service Puerto Rico (CSPR)
Who loves community service? This group of course! CSPR had an AWESOME time helping out their friend Ramon with some trail maintenance at a beautiful site this morning in Luquillo, complete with many snacks and a yummy lunch. Their big morning was followed by a trip to the beach to cool off. This group loves playing games and is excited for more lively bonding days soon! Adios por ahora, los lectores regresan mañana para recibir otra actualización (“Good bye for now, readers, come back tomorrow for another update” in Spanish)!
Caribbean Service Virgin Islands (CSVI)
Today was an exciting day for the CSVI students! After waking up and having an amazing breakfast, this group enjoyed stunning views on a day hike. Following the rewarding trek, they learned about the history of their living accommodations. They are prepped and excited for their first day of service tomorrow. The group took a dip in the ocean and hunted for sea glass in the afternoon, followed by a scrumptious dinner and many games! Come back tomorrow night for an update on how this group is enjoying the “Island Life”!
Colorado’s Rocky Mountains (CRM)
Today was an adventure-packed day at Grand Lake and the west side of the Rocky Mountains National Park. Today the group embarked on a scenic day hike through breathtaking landscapes. The crew spent some major time bonding, which included lots of fun in the Colorado sun beginning their unforgettable time in the Rockies!
Costa Rica Mountains & Coast (CRMC)
Hola lectores! (“Hello readers” in Spanish). Today CRMC could be found eating awesome breakfast sandwiches, seeing some superb animals in Manuel Antonio National Park, and enjoying an amazing beach hike with their guide. They lucked out and saw awesome sloths, monkeys, lizards, tree crabs, and beautiful butterflies! In the afternoon they played MANY fun games including soccer and some new card games! Reports from the field say the fresh fruit has been fantastic!
Europe Coast to Coast 1 (ECC1)
Goedenavond lezers! (“Good evening readers” in Dutch). ECC1 enjoyed a night in Haarlem and biked to Wassenaar this morning! After crushing a sick safety ride, this group chased adventure in the Netherlands. Beautiful views and great snacks fueled these riders into camp! Welterusten, lezers komen morgen terug voor een nieuwe update (“Goodnight readers, come back tomorrow for another update” in Dutch)
Europe Coast to Coast 2 (ECC2)
It was an awesome arrival day for the ECC2 group! After meeting up at the airport and taxiing to camp in Haarlem, the kiddos crushed introductions, and helped to build their bikes– all while making new friends! Jet lag has nothing on them – the group played a sick round of Hacky Sack with their new mascot (a very cute pig), and had a yummy dinner and dessert. The group is tucked into camp and is super pumped for their first day of biking tomorrow!
Golden State Adventure (GSA)
The GSA group was off on their first day of hiking in California! Students were eager and excited to see spectacular views of Point Reyes while doing some serious group bonding. We are vicariously living through their gorgeous day and are jealous of the beautiful vistas on the coast! Some sweet selfies pictured below show their great view! We can’t wait to hear what’s in store for them tomorrow!
Iceland Mountains & Coast (IMC)
Our IMC group woke up to some wind at their campsite – but it was nothing that a warm cozy breakfast couldn’t fix! Afterward, they hopped on their shuttle to Grundarfjörður with gorgeous views on the way (in their words, “most beautiful drive in the world (unbiased fact)”). In town, they saw a sneak peek of Mount Kirkjufell, which got them super pumped for tomorrow’s paddle around the mountain! The group is in high spirits cozying up at camp for the night!
Maine Coast College Essay (MCCE)
Today marks the start of MCCE1 for our superstar writers. Get pumped! Introductions included an afternoon of energy-filled games and many get-to-know-yous. After a warm scrumptious dinner in the books and the first-day jitters behind them, these folks are ready for an exciting day tomorrow!
Maine’s Downeast Explorer (DEX)
Today is day 2 in Acadia National Park for our Downeast Explorers! It also is Fofi’s birthday! What better way to celebrate than…. you guessed it, a HIKE (and some cake, of course)! The cloudy weather had this group feeling like they were exploring an oasis in the sky. Yummy snacks helped this group to summit Sargent Mountain and tackle lots of elevation, while their spirits remained high! Back at camp, the group celebrated Fofi’s birthday with some awesome surprises!
New England Mountains & Coast (NEMC)
These New England Mountains & Coasters are making the White Mountains their playground, and completing each hike with EASE (despite some rain last night). Maybe it is their excitement for some amazing camp food, or maybe they are simply built differently. Nevertheless, this group accomplished Pine Ridge and crushed it! Now all of the kiddos are tucked into their sleeping bags with full bellies and smiles on their faces. Catch the next blog entry tomorrow to see what these New England Mountains and Coasters get up to tomorrow!
Northwest Explorer (NWX)
Today’s elevation gain was no match for the rugged NWX crew! Our Northwest Explorers entered the backcountry and tackled the challenge head-on. They were especially excited to be entering into the ONLY continental rainforest in the United States! Hoh Rainforest serves as the perfect landscape with its lush greenery, old-growth trees, and easily observed (from a safe distance) wildlife. Many trail games and riddles kept these hikers entertained! Unfortunately no photos for the crew today as they are out of cell-service range but the squad is safely in camp for the night!
Pacific Coast (PC)
The PC team conquered the legendary Seven Devils along their route in Oregon! The group was more than capable of tackling this awesome feat which included epic views of the Oregon mountains – and took many snack breaks to refuel, of course. The group is in camp now and is looking forward to a tasty dinner and an evening of games, giggles, and good times while gearing up for more fantastic views tomorrow. Since the crew is three hours behind, we’re also including some wonderfully fun photos from yesterday’s exciting beach frisbee!
Pyrenees Mountains and Coast (PMC)
Today the Pyrenees Mountains and Coasters DOMINATED their 9-mile hike. Cap de Creus: 0, PMC Hikers: 1 (but would you expect any different?). Cap de Creus Natural Park offered priceless landscapes which served as the best motivator. These hikers stopped to smell the roses by taking a dip in the Platja de Tamariu. This was exactly what these hikers needed. Check back tomorrow to see what this awesome PMC group gets up to next!
Vermont to Montreal (VM)
Our VM group completed a challenging but rewarding first-day riding. They had some great group bonding along the way, which included a myriad of tasty snacks while cycling through picturesque farmlands, quaint Vermont towns, and on beautiful country roads! Talk about the ultimate triad! These superstar cyclists are now in camp cozied up and are gearing up (literally) for another day of mileage tomorrow!
