This trip began and ended with a 13 hour drive. Colorado is a very close neighboring state, but more than half the drive was in Texas! We planned this trip with two full days set aside just for driving so we started off at 5 a.m. with a groggy group of 8. Some of us were strangers, but others were friends. Cramming us all in a van for a day of driving didn’t make it easy to get to know one another, but by the time we got to Colorado we all had at least one thing in common: we were tired and hungry for a real meal. When we reached Alamosa, CO, we stopped at Alamosa State College to size up our gear, meet our guides, Mick and Marcus, and sit down for some nice Italian cuisine. We reached our cabin in South Fork around 10 p.m. and, after claiming our beds, all of us sat down for a refreshing game of Apples to Apples. This is a great way to get to know people since you have to pay attention to how each person judges a pairing of words or reacts to certain subjects. As it turns out, we were a mixed group with different disciplines and backgrounds, but everyone loved to have a laugh.
Our first day of climbing began early at 8:30 a.m. We followed Mick and Marc to our site which was only a five minute drive and a five minute hike away. The 30 foot frozen water drips had been climbed the day before by Mick’s student staff as part of their winter training but the only evidence we could see at first were the red drops of blood in the snow. This made us pay close attention to instruction on ice tool technique; you are supposed to look away right before the ax actually hits the ice to avoid any chunks flying into your face. Accidents happen though, so undaunted, we completed our practice and instruction phase and began our first ascent on the beautiful blue ice. The scenery was gorgeous and a few of us became serious photographers when we were not belaying or climbing. We climbed until the sun sent us home with accomplishment and excitement for the next day. However, the first day wouldn’t end until we cooked up a nice dinner complete with a birthday cookie cake for Sal’s 21st! After a wonderful home cooked meal some of us watched a movie while others made use of the hot tub on the back porch where we took part in a northern tradition of jumping out to make snow angels and then jumping back in again. That was another experience to check off my bucket list which made for two in one day for me!
The second day was at a different site about an hour drive from our cabin, so we had to get started a little earlier. This site also required some extra equipment just to reach it… snow shoes! After ten minutes hiking through the snow with these crazy contraptions on our boots we approached a canyon with a frozen waterfall. The scene was majestic and breathtaking as we were all lowered down the waterfall into the canyon. The wind was so brutal, but it didn’t matter because we just wanted to climb on this amazing frozen feature over and over again. There were sections where you could see water still falling behind the ice, but the ice was so thick it didn’t matter how hard we swung our ice tools into it. When we had all climbed to our hearts content we hiked out of the canyon on slopes so steep I’m still not sure how we did it.
As we gave back our gear and loaded up the van for the long trip back many of our thoughts were already on Tuesday morning and the first day of school, but the snow and ice kept us company until we left the mountains. Just like that, an amazing adventure ended and we continued on to the start of a new adventure; spring semester.
Monti, Trip Leader.

Still spots available for the upcoming Colorado Ice Climbing Trip, January 14-17. Well worth coming back to campus early or even taking a vacation day. Two days driving and 2 full days ice climbing in beautiful SW Colorado. Package includes transportation to/from, all meals/grocery upon arrival to our destination, lodging at a centrally located vacation home that sleeps 12 with full kitchen and hot tub, ice climbing equipment, and guides.

You can register over the phone with a MasterCard, Visa or Discover card by calling the OA Rental Shop at 214-768-9918. Don’t hesitate…the deadline of Jan 7 is looming.

<a href="http://smu.edu/recsports/adventure/trip/tripdesc.asp#ICE“>SMU OA Ice Climbing

River’s Edge
Waking up early on a Saturday morning has never been a favorite activity of mine, but when the day ahead of you contains the Ouachita National Forest, your perspective changes a little. I met our participants bright and early at six o’clock. Their eager faces were really what kept me going that morning. Everyone showed up early with every intention of rocking this trip, which is probably the best way to start an expedition into the back country. Leaving SMU, already ahead of schedule, we took off on our four hour drive to the Eagle Rock Loop Trail in Arkansas.
We arrived at the trail head with the sun high in the sky. Everyone packed their backpacks with their tents, stoves, cook sets, food, and everything else needed to survive outside far away from civilization. Soon, we were off on the trail; everyone in high spirits. It was only about ten minutes into the walk before we hit our first river crossing. As you can expect on the road less traveled, there wasn’t a bridge or anything of the sort that we could use. So, after a briefing on how to safely walk across a flowing river, we got into formation and began our descent into the cool waters. This was the first of three major water crossings on this trip, and all of them gave the same results. Everyone exited the river cooled off, refreshed, and ready for the next big obstacle; as I’m sure anyone on this trip will tell you, crossing a river while trying to balance a thirty pound backpack on your shoulders is a very fun thing to do.
The sun eventually began to set, and we had to quickly set up camp for the night. We managed to get our tents set up while there was still a bit of light, but we had to cook our dinner in the dark. Headlamps and flashlights out and ready, we cooked our dinner of lentil soup. Without the sun the temperature dropped drastically, into the thirties, and we were grateful for the warm meal. Especially so since lentil soup is one of the most delicious things you can eat out on the trail.
The next morning we woke up to greet the dawn. Everyone complied with the promise of a special breakfast. We all worked together to make some of the best cinnamon rolls any of us had ever tasted. (Feel free to stop by the outdoor adventure office for the recipe!) After breakfast we were back on the trail. We had a lot of ground to cover with a few summits ahead of us. Up one side of a mountain and down the other, we marched dutifully on. Repeat. The views were absolutely amazing. If you have never been to Arkansas, be sure you make time. The state itself is beautiful, but especially in the Ouachita National Forest. After a long day of hiking we made it back to the trailhead, having completed our loop. Everyone was unhappy to leave the outdoors so soon, but we all had lives to return to.
This trip has been classified as one of my all time favorites for two reasons: one, the weather was absolutely perfect. There were never as much as two clouds in the sky. Two, the group was absolutely brimming with excitement and willingness. If you don’t have a good group, willing to “suck it up!” at every turn, you won’t have a great trip. I just want to thank all the participants and the leaders for making this a memorable trip!
Stephen Hayden, Trip Leader.

We have finally been able to secure a permit for a Grand Canyon backpacking trip during spring break 2011! This is our trip of the year! It will consist of two days of travelling to and one and a half days travelling from Grand Canyon and five days backpacking inside of it. We will descend the mile deep South rim of the Grand Canyon (on foot) and immerse ourselves in the history, ecology and wonder of this inspiring landscape over an entire spring break! The daily hiking mileage will range from less than 4 miles up to a high of 7 or 8 per day. The whole hike is about 20 miles long, including losing or gaining elevations of up to 3000 ft. This is desert climate backpacking at its most majestic and is sometimes difficult. Over the 6 days of backpacking along the Tonto plateau, we anticipate some long trail days and only 3 reliable sources of water. This means carrying water to camp once or twice. The trail is rocky and narrow, but fairly well defined. This hike is challenging and has been rated by SMU OA as an intermediate ability level and physically strenuous. Participants should be physically conditioned, capable of carrying up to 50 pound packs and understand that the trails are occasionally poised at the edge of big drop offs. This hike has been described as a fine canyon hike by groups that have been there before.

Around 7:30 a.m. Sunday morning, October 31st, the last of us hopped into the already moving van as we pulled off of the curb and onto the road to Mineral Wells, Texas as part of the Wellness rock climbing class. We were expecting some competition for spots in the van, but were surprised to find that we were the only ones (seven of us) with the genius idea to come climb on a gorgeous cool day despite Halloween festivities. After debriefing on safety we were ready to set up anchors and climb at our leisure as long as the frogs and daddy long legs didn???t mind. After lunch we each rappelled down into the cool canyon before packing up and heading back to campus in the evening. Short and sweet and without any mess, I believe it was a huge success.

After two cups of coffee and a cold shower I found myself with a trailer fully loaded with kayaks and a van fully loaded with college kids. It was 8:00am on a crisp, Saturday morning and I was preparing to make a six hour drive to the gulf coast; just another day at the office.
Our goal was to sea kayak from Port O’ Connor near Galveston to Sunday beach on Matagorda Island. Our group was quite diverse, with students from China, Germany, and France as well as some good ole’ local Dallas boys. After a long day of driving and a fantastic brisket sandwich in La Grange we arrived at our first campsite in Port Lavaca on the mainland. We spent the first night with the friendly campsite owners, who even let us use their grill to cook our silver turtles! For those of you unfamiliar with back-country cooking, silver turtles involve carrots, onions, potatoes, and burger patties all wrapped in tinfoil roasting on open coals. Throw some cheese and spices on top of ’em and you’ll never dread camp-food again.
The next morning, bright and early, we launched our boats into choppy, cerulean waters and started our seven mile trip to Sunday beach. The first leg involved crossing a deep channel made for shipping containers and boats. Since the start of the trip everyone had been asking me what kind of marine life we would see, and whether we would see any dolphins. Sure enough, less than a minute into our trip we spotted a pair of dolphins playing not 30 feet from our boats. With the crew energized, we pushed on and within another two hours we were resting just offshore from an old, abandoned coast guard station eating lunch. The view of the gulf was magnificent and the myriad of birds perched on the old station was a sight to see.
By four o’clock we were within spitting distance of our final destination: Sunday beach. We could hear the roar of the ocean across the island which was thankfully sheltering our approach. Our timing couldn’t have been better because as we finished up the last leg of the trip it happened to be dinner time for the wildlife around us. Birds were socializing on the sandbar to our left while fish were leaping out of the water to snatch insects off the surface to our right. The more adventurous birds glided over the bay and dove for their meals.
Amidst this cacophony we landed on a small, white strip of beach flanked by sand dunes on either side. Once we had pulled our boats out of the water we took a break and crossed the island to the gulf side. It was low tide and the tide was weak enough to let us swim out past the break safely. After a half hour of soaking in the sunset we set up camp and cooked up a quick dinner of cheese and bean burritos. With our bodies beat and our bellies full we promptly passed out.
The third day we slept in. We had a whole day to relax and enjoy the island. After a healthy breakfast of oatmeal and grits we set out to set up our tarp. The sun was already high in the sky and we all were looking forward to some shade. Eventually we got the tarp up right out on the beach with the waves crashing only 50 feet away. With some relief from the sun in place we spent the rest of the day skim-boarding, tossing the Frisbee around, and swimming in the bay. At sunset we split into two teams, a cooking team and a team to collect firewood. By nightfall we had a roaring campfire on the beach and a delicious pasta dinner on our plates. It seems the sun had really taken it out of us because soon we were fast asleep on the beach under the stars.
The final morning we woke up early, loaded the boats, and scarfed down the rest of our breakfast supplies. By 9:30am we were on the water making the trip back to Port O’ Connor. Surprise, surprise we saw about eight more dolphins on the way back, and we even saw a couple jelly fish floating alongside us. We reached our docking point an hour ahead of schedule and decided to stop for a huge, Tex-Mex lunch at the lovely La Parrilla Restaurant. After a superb enchilada platter we loaded up, popped in ‘The Dark Knight’, and hit the road for SMU. It was an unforgettable trip to say the least and I hope everyone had as much fun as I did.
Thanks,
Dexter Jacobs – Trip Leader.