Author: John Iwawaki

Mountains, mist, and many many memories

 

We did it! Another year of ESCAPE. We had a great turnout for every trip this year, visited some new places, and shared a lot of good times. Read on for a recap of our culminating camping trip and information about an upcoming family picnic and alumni reunion! 

We took 42 students to Yosemite National Park for a weekend, hitting many of the park’s highlights and getting back to Mariposa Grove for the first time in several years. There’s a huge amount of planning that goes into this trip starting months beforehand. We need campsites, food for 60+ people, tents and sleeping bags, a whole lot of other camping gear, and over a dozen drivers. It’s all worth it though when we finally get to be there and to see students experience Yosemite. 

On our first day, we got on the road and went straight to Mariposa Grove. We haven’t been to see the giant sequoias since before the pandemic due to renovations, so it was great to be able to get back to the big trees (it’s pretty humbling to stare up at a tree that is nearly 3,000 years old). After a short hike in the sequoia grove, we set up camp in Wawona and had a delicious dinner of chili nachos. 

Saturday is our big hiking day, but first we enjoyed hot coffee/cocoa and eggs, bacon, and pancakes by the morning fire. Even with the time crunch of needing to head out to the valley, there’s something special about camp mornings. After breakfast we piled into cars and drove into Yosemite Valley for the main event of the day: hiking the Mist Trail. When we got to the bridge at the base of Vernal Falls, we saw a bobcat hanging around near the trail! It stayed around long enough for many in the group to get a good look and take some pictures. Then after returning to the parking lot, we got our second wildlife treat of the day: a black bear! Finally, we got back to our campsite for dinner, campfire, s’mores, and glowsticks. 

Our last day was an easy drive back through the valley to see Bridalveil Falls (though it looked like more mist than waterfall) and to watch from the meadow as climbers attempted to scale El Capitan. After a quick pitstop for pizza, we were back in Richmond, tired but happy. It was a wonderful weekend. We’ll be sad to say goodbye to the 8th graders, but looking forward to seeing our returning students along with new members next fall. 

In the meantime, join us for an end of year celebration! We’ll be closing out the year with a family and alumni picnic on June 7 at Point Pinole. All are welcome! We would love to see you there. Please RSVP at this link. 

Check out the video if you have a few extra minutes!

Moss Beach, Pt. Reyes, and new shirts!

 

The end of the year is fast approaching! We had a couple of really lovely trips with students this spring, first to the Moss Beach area to visit tidepools and Pt. Reyes National Seashore for some hiking and marine wildlife. For both trips, the California flora and fauna was a real highlight, with everything from elephant seals to beautiful wildflowers and tidepool sea creatures.

In March we drove down to Moss Beach for a new ESCAPE trip to the tidepools. Our first stop was the Pacifica pier, where we enjoyed a nice walk out onto the ocean and watched folks fish and crab from the pier. A few brave students even held some of the freshly-caught crabs! At Moss Beach, we took advantage of the negative tide and saw all sorts of small creatures — sea stars, anemones, crabs. So fun! And finally, what was probably the most memorable part of the day for some students: Taco Bell on the beach! What better place to enjoy a Baja Blast??

In April we had a beautiful day in Pt. Reyes National Seashore with some easy hiking and a nice picnic. We started with 300 steps down to see the old lighthouse (that trek that felt much more difficult on the way back up). It was cool to see the line of the beautiful new blue t-shirts as we took the stairs! After that, we hiked the Chimney Rock Trail and saw elephant seals way down below us on the beach and fields of absolutely spectacular wildflowers. Over at Drake’s Beach, we saw fewer elephant seals than we’ve seen in the past but did get a closer look at the some pups. Finally, we ended the day with some food and relaxing at the Bear Valley Visitor Center. Even had a surprise Easter egg hunt for students at the end! Overall, a fun day for our last regular day trip of this school year.

Soon we are off on our culminating weekend in Yosemite National Park. Many students have been talking about this trip all year. We can’t wait to be out there! As always, thank you for following along. We are grateful to have so many friends and family supporting the club. Below are videos from the last two trips if you have a few minutes to check them out!

Tide pools at Moss Beach

Pt. Reyes National Seashore

A rainy December day in the city

What a fall we have had! With new members and new trips, it’s been an exciting time. We have had a surge of interest in the club among students and have had great numbers for all of our trips.

We closed out 2024 with a tour of San Francisco. Early morning storms greeted us as we drove across the Bay Bridge into the city for our first destination: driving down Lombard Street. After a quick drive by of the Palace of Fine Arts, we then made our way to the Field Station in the Presidio Tunnel Tops. This space is filled to the brim with fauna and flora specimens, interactive activities like microscopes or owl pellets to dissect, art corners, and herbal teas. This is a great way to connect with the natural history of the Presidio and learn more about the nature surrounding us. So fun!

Unfortunately the weather got the best of us at our next stop. We got to Fort Point and started to explore but within a few minutes were ushered out due to weather conditions. So we spent some time watching surfers and parasailers play around in the waves then headed downtown for our last stop of the day – ice skating! We had some seasoned skaters and some first timers on the ice and everything in between. We had a great time!

And that concludes our 2024 year. From all of us in the ESCAPE Club, we hope you had a wonderful holiday season and wish you a very happy new year! We are forever grateful for the support that allows us to continue with the club. Excited for what the new year has to offer!

Check out the video if you have a few extra minutes!

A tour of Immigration Station and all the way around the island!

Our November trip this year was a return to Angel Island. Although we’ve gone several times over the years, it had been five years since our last time there. We took the ferry from Tiburon, and arrived at Ayala Cove in the late morning. Our first stop was the Immigration Station, where we learned about folks who came from other countries (mostly from Asia) who came first to Angel Island. One of the most interesting things to see was the carving in so many languages into the walls. Some were detained there for more justifiable reasons, but others less so. We imagined what it would be like to take only one suitcase and move permanently to another country! We also learned about other uses of the island, including by Native Americans and the US Military.

After lunch, we set out to walk the Perimeter Trail. It ended up being about six miles all the way around the island, but we took breaks to explore ruins, spot wildlife, and enjoy views all around the bay.  The weather was cool, but sunny, and although we were tired, we were grateful for the experience. We were the only ones on our chartered boat back to the mainland, and we celebrated our accomplishment with some gourmet ice cream!

You probably know by now that it’s Giving Tuesday, and there are many competing, worthy causes out there. If you’d like to support our work this year, we’d be grateful. Many of you already have! We are completely volunteer-led, and have almost zero overhead. Virtually every dollar goes to taking our students to see and do amazing things.

You can donate in several ways:
1) via the EdFund (tax-deductible and employer matchable!). Be sure to choose ESCAPE Club in the dropdown menu.
2) via PayPal: link HERE
3) write a check to DeJean Middle School
4) send a check directly to John

Let us know if you need help or follow up with any of these. And thank you so much! We appreciate your support!

Walk with us to see the Immigration Station and around the island!