By: Emily Sturtevant
The day is finally here! As our baseball friends say, “Plaaaaayyyy baaaallll!” As our New Orleans friends say, “Laissez les bons temps roullez!” And, of course, as Norah, Willie, and Wynton put it here, “Here we go again!” Yahoo! We have eight trip starts upon us on this auspicious 2015 Day 1, which must mean that we have officially begun Apogee Adventures’ 14th season! We are setting out today all over the world – from the piney woods of Maine to the busy terminals of SFO in California, from the Atlantic shore outside of Charleston to the humid tropics of Puerto Rico – the Apogee engine is firing on all cylinders. And without further ado, here are some first words and pictures from our little guys on Maine Coast Junior, our cross-country riders on America Coast to Coast, and all the trips in between! Huzzah for summer! Huzzah for Apogee!!
Maine Coast Junior (MCJ)
Leaders Isa and Aaron have their amazing crew together at their meet up in Massachusetts. They’re now tucked in to their oceanside campsite in Maine and are playing name-games galore!
Cape Cod & the Islands (CI)
Looks like Kevin and Alyssa are already getting goofy with their group down on the Cape! After spending some time getting to know each other these folks had a short ride to their first campsite where they will enjoy their first night together.
Vermont to Montreal (VM)
Next stop Vermont! These trippers just met up in Manchester, NH this afternoon and are heading to their first campsite in VT. As they get settled in tonight they will get to know each other better as they begin their two week journey and head for the border. Look out Canada, this group is coming for you!
Maine’s Downeast Explorer A (DEXA)
The gang is all here at the Downeast Explorer trip start in Freeport, ME! These rock stars are all smiles with their leaders John and Erinn as they prepare for some of Maine’s natural treasures, including Acadia National Park and Mount Katahdin. For now this group will spend the evening getting to know each other and learning some great new games!
Maine’s Downeast Explorer B (DEX B)
Looks like our other DEX trip is having a blast as well at their drop off! This crew has their claws out as they prepare for the trip ahead of them, and with game faces like this they surely will be able to take on any challenge that comes their way! We look forward to hearing from leaders Jonathan and Jessi tomorrow as they hit their first summit in Camden! Amazing views await them all (or would await them, if it weren’t supposed to be a bit damp tomorrow morning…).
Caribbean Service Adventure (CSA)
Emily, Thomas and their tropical trippers look ready for the sun and service ahead of them! Everyone’s flights got in safely, now the adventure begins. After a good meal up in the bunk house, the coqui frogs are going to sing their lullabye tonight before tomorrow’s first day of service on the Tanama River. We look forward to pictures of palm trees and beaches in the future!
California Mountains & Coast (CMC)
And with Airport Picture #2, here is Midge and Matt’s hearty crew. The long flights are over and these guys have an amazing trip ahead of them – starting with an over-night kayaking trip that starts tomorrow. Tonight they will head to their first campsite where they will have time to play games and get to know their new trip-mates. We hope to see more pictures with the cheese hat as the trip continues!
America Coast to Coast (ACC)
The Grandaddy of Them All! Listen for the trumpets – because here comes America Coast to Coast. Today is the start of our ACC’s 43-day epic journey! Mia, Chris, and their group have completed the ceremonial dipping of the tires in the Atlantic and started the first of their 2,700 miles this afternoon. We look forward to the next six weeks with these adventurers as they embark on their trans-continental trip!
That’s all for tonight, ladies and gentlemen – check in again tomorrow night when we come to you with eight more trip starts – including Montana, Seattle, more Maine, more California, and Switzerland!