Interview With
Jordan Stone
We started in 1926, when a schoolteacher named Hillis Howie brought a few of his students to explore the Wild West.
There are two answers to that question. Our Base Camp is located in Northwest New Mexico, in the foothills of the Zuni Mountains on the edge of several Native American reservations. But that’s only half of it–much of our time is spent exploring the Four Corners, everything from a backpacking trip through pristine wilderness to learning how to weave a Navajo rug.
Well first of all, we don’t like that word “camp.” Camp, in our minds, conjures up air conditioned cabins and kitschy tie-die activities. We live outside, in tents or open air cabins, and learn through experiential education. Sometimes that means the challenge of backpacking or rock climbing, and sometimes it means taking part in a paleontology dig. We strive to explore this land, the beautiful Southwestern United States, both the wilderness and the culture.
As I just said, we have a unique combination of wilderness and culture. Unlike some programs that ONLY focus on wilderness adventure or a long backpacking trip, we learn about the culture and science of the Southwest. We do this in two basic ways: we have a longstanding summer program that attracts students from all over the country. And we have a school group program during the spring and fall, in which we lead shorter versions of our summer Treks for school groups.
Wilderness and culture. So on the wilderness side of things, we lead backpacking trips and rock climbing expeditions. And there is an explicit science component to that wilderness adventure, which is rare–we don’t just climb a mountain peak, we also ask ourselves how that mountain came to be, and why we see lizards down in the canyons but not on top of a mountain. But in addition to the wilderness exploration we also dive into the unique culture of the Southwest– we live and work with Native Americans whose families have been here for centuries. We create art out of turquoise and clay and silver. And we have an archaeologist on our staff who leads us to investigate, with our own hands, little potsherds that give us clues as to how people lived in these mountains and deserts for generations.
Our sessions are from 2-6 weeks, which is long! But they are long for a reason–the extra time allows people to learn skills and develop close relationships with their peers and staff. One week just isn’t long enough to have a lasting impact on kids’ lives–several studies have shown that, and we abide by that philosophy. The prices run between $1900 for a 2-week session to $4500 for a 6-week session, which you’ll find is less expensive than most others. Our prices are supplemented by generous alumni donations every year, which keeps them relatively affordable compared to other high-quality programs.
We hire 30-40 staff each summer. Some specialize in outdoor skills–backpacking, rock climbing, things like that, as well as scientists who add a naturalist component to our Treks. Others specialize in the cultural side of things–we hire archaeologists, artists, cooks, and gardeners, all of whom are great educators.
A friend told me recently, “The Trek is a place where you not only learn how to live in the backcountry, but you also learn how to live in the front country.” On other words, you will learn backpacking skills, but you will also learn skills that mean a lot back home. Some of those are personal skills–how to be a team member in a large expedition, how to take initiative. And some are hard skills–how to dig up a dinosaur bone or create habitat for burrowing owls. How to silversmith your own jewelry. How to grow food in the desert. How to be an archaeologist. These are skills that lead people to discover a potential career, and they learn the soft skills to thrive in whatever they end up doing.
This year the first kids show up June 24th and the last ones leave on August 5th.
Well you can check out our website, www.cottonwoodgulch.org. Or call us to chat or to receive a free brochure: 800-246-8735.
Any time!
