By Audrey Hamilton
This weekend was our first training weekend for our expedition. Claire and Michael couldn’t make it due to scheduling issues which wasn’t a huge deal but we all still missed them. The rest of us left Saturday morning and headed to Lake Jocassee. This weekend involved training in sea kayaking which we will be doing in the second portion of the expedition. We did a little paddling the first day but mostly just practiced wet exits, assisted rescues and basic strokes. After we got back we made dinner and then talked about the expedition and we each shared why we had applied for Voice of the Rivers. After that we took a short walk to a rock that went out over the lake. We looked at the stars which were incredible and we even saw a few shooting stars. The next day we got up and paddled about 3 or 3 and a half miles out, then stopped for lunch and paddled back. By the second day it was clear that everyone was getting more comfortable in their kayaks. The most important thing we decided on this day is that we are going to be river pirates, whether or not this includes eye patches is still up for debate. When we got back we loaded up all of our gear and went back to Brevard. The last time we loaded up our gear it was much faster and more efficient and it was clear that we are really starting to come together as a team. We learned a lot about each other the whole weekend but especially on the ride back. We all shared our parent’s first names which sounds boring but was funny. We also found out that Austin is grouchy when he wakes up and that John used to live very close the Rappahannock. This weekend brought us all together and helped us see what the expedition will be like, as well as helping us to set standards for the group. We are all excited for the expedition and, “Looking forward to using our vessels” (Liza).
