“Trektoberfest” is a Hit with 9th Grade Trekkers

Students from Trekkers’ Team Puma at the Damariscotta Pumpkin Festival

After spending 14 days on a multi-state expedition last summer, Trekkers’ Team Puma students reunited
once again, for a day of fun and friendship they called “Trektoberfest.”  On Sunday, October 13, twelve 9th graders from Trekkers’ Ride Through History program spent the day with four adult mentors, taking advantage of activities happening in nearby coastal communities.

To start the day, Team Puma departed from Oceanside West to visit the Damariscotta Pumpkin Festival. One of the attractions of the festival is a 12 foot tall catapult that is made of iron and wood.  It contains 50 garage door springs, which creates five tons of throwing force used to hurl pumpkins hundreds of feet through the air.

The group’s next destination was Wiscasset where they met the Lady in the Red Cloak for a Haunted History Tour of this picturesque town. The Lady in the Red Cloak, clad in period clothing of the late 1800s, guided the students through the back streets of Wiscasset to hear tales of local hauntings and the history behind them.

Program Manager Meredith Lynt said, “Trektoberfest” was a great opportunity to reunite students and mentors and  formally kick off the 9th grade Ride Through History program while exposing students to some positive, fun and local community outlets happening right here in their own backyard. Whereas our core expeditions continue to take students out of state to explore the world beyond Maine, our expansion as an organization has afforded us the ability to offer students more local opportunities to connect, explore and engage with caring adults from our community.”

Team Puma will continue to meet for bi-monthly planning meeting throughout the school year, where they will plan the itinerary and structure of their 2014 trip to Boston, Philadelphia and Washington D.C. As part of the planning, the students must include five educational components into their expedition: service learning, wilderness experience, cultural awareness, environmental education, and adventure-based education.  To read the trip log from “Trektoberfest” or to learn more about the Ride Through History program, please visit Trekkers’ web site at www.trekkers.org.

Trekkers is a non-profit, outdoor-based mentoring program that connects caring adults with young people through expeditionary learning, community service and adventure-based education.  For more information please visit www.trekker.org, or contact the Trekkers office by calling 207-594-5095.