Okpik

by Dan

We went up to Maine for our special mid-winter campout.  We got our gear out of the car and we listened to the counselors talk about what we were going to be doing.  The first night we slept in a big cabin that was heated.  When we woke up we got all our bags together and got on our clothes that we would wear that day.  We went downstairs and got fitted into cross-country skis. 

We skied for what seemed like 20 minutes in 1 foot high powdery snow.  The leader got us lost because they weren’t sure where they were.  I had to carry a sled so it was pretty hard to turn around.   When we finally got there we had to get going on building igloos. 

We had to pile up 5 feet of snow and then we stuck sticks in so to help determine the width.  Then we had to wait to let the snow settle.  After it settled we started to dig it out.  By that time it was getting dark so our day was spent pretty much just building igloos. 

They were telling us to drink a lot of water so we wouldn’t get too dehydrated.  Chris didn’t listen (though it was stupid).  The next day come to find out he was dehydrated and he couldn’t stand up.  He somehow managed to lead the way out with guards so he could hurry back and get water. 

Moral of the story… water is not stupid!