“Can you imagine what this place would have been like before it was a national park,” SAFE BASE Director Angela Henry said while surveying the cabins littered around Rocky Mountain National Park.
The sun was just beginning to gleam over the ridge to the east, as light cascaded onto Long’s Peak and its neighboring summits. The large basin, through which the Thompson River runs, snakes down into the valley of the park, providing a lush backdrop to the campgrounds.
The 68 SAFE BASE students were beginning to rustle around in their tents at around 7:30 a.m. Staff members had been awake for a short while, preparing breakfast for the hungry campers. It seemed most people had caught up on at least some sleep after driving through the evening from Iola on Saturday evening. Their energy would be put to good use — Monday was chock full of activities.
THE CHARTER bus picked up the elementary students, where they rode out of the basin north to a junior ranger program provided by the park.
“Ranger Rick, of all people, gave a really nice presentation,” Mark Dunlap said. Dunlap is serving as the official photographer for SAFE BASE, and he went to the presentation with the students. He said the ranger informed all of the kids on wildlife ecology, native plants, as well as the duties of a park ranger. They were all sworn in as junior rangers.
AS FOR the middle school students, they were up to their knees (literally) in aquatic ecology.
The group hiked over a mile through the RMNP campground, down into the basin to the bank of the river. Ranger Trevor Nichols (a volunteer ranger who teaches high school environmental science in Denver) led the students to a meeting area, where rangers Katie, Julie and Meredith gave an overview of the morning’s activities.
Students chattered with excitement as the rangers helped them record information of the Thompson River. They measured width, depth, velocity and discharge before splitting into groups.
Then, things got interesting.
“Wait, that’s that crab thing,” said one student.
“That one has three tails,” another replied.
The students had collected samples from the river, gathering native insects from the water to categorize, count and name. Caddis, midge and mayfly larvae, along with water snipes, were just a few of the wriggling insects they pulled from the samples. The clear water of the alpine river deceptively hides the organisms from plain sight, and the rangers had given the students an up-close-and-personal view.
The second group (they later rotated) took chemical samples of the water. In addition to temperature, they measure the oxygen, carbon dioxide, phosphate, alkalinity and phosphate levels. Ranger Nichols informed the students on the optimal levels for wildlife (such as brook trout) that reside under the crisp water.
AFTER THE GROUPS convened following lunch, it was time for a scenic ride. The charter buses filed out of Moraine campground, and quickly gained elevation as they rose out of RMNP’s basin. Turning onto Trail Ridge Road, the students had one of their first chances to see the Rockies in all their glory. The buses winded along the narrow road, as peaks rose on one side, and dropped away on the other. The ride ended at the Trail Ridge Road visitors center, elevation of around 11,950 feet.
For those looking to go a bit farther, steps led to the top of ridge’s crest. After a long hike up the stair-littered trail, the students were rewarded with an awe-inspiring (and somewhat oxygen depraved) view of the mountains from well over 12,000 feet. For most of the students, it was the highest elevation they had ever been.
But, as many learned, the toll of elevation and activities had sunken in — it was time to return to camp. The students spent the remainder of the afternoon in the campground “relaxing.” Most of the staff were amazed they had any energy left at all.
PERSONAL NOTES:
I didn’t catch a single trout along the Thompson River, at the basin of RMNP — and I couldn’t care less. I had the view.
The distant, snow-capped peaks took my attention away from the river, where I wasn’t having much success with my fly-fishing rod. I had snuck away from the campground in the afternoon, looking to enjoy a bit of quiet and relaxation after the flurry of the past two days.
I’m not sure if I’ve ever fished in a more beautiful backdrop. There wasn’t any time to think about the fact that there were campers, tents, buses, rangers and tourists mulling around half a mile behind. They could have been in Kansas, it didn’t matter.
I thought about the comment Angela had made early that morning, about the first settlers in RMNP. They had seen what I was seeing — the indescribable beauty of something so accessible, yet so out of reach.
I was concerned, somewhat, that I wouldn’t have the chance to appreciate the mountains during SAFE BASE’s week in Colorado. I know now those concerns were foolish. All it takes is just a glimpse of the towering summits, and I’m drawn to them.
As I walked back to camp, the students began to ask if I had caught anything.
“Not even a bite,” I said.
