It’s time to meet another round of our wonderful leaders! Here are our leaders who will be adventuring on both coasts with Northwest Mountains & Coast, Maine’s Downeast Explorer, and New England Mountains & Coast.
Name: Morgan Dahdal (she/her)
2026 Trip: Northwest Mountains & Coast
Prior Apogee experience: Caribbean Service: Virgin Islands ‘25 and Maine Coast College Essay ‘25
Hometown: Tucson, Arizona
School: Arizona State University
Certifications: Wilderness First Aid, Wilderness Swim Safety, and CPR
Favorite outdoor activities: Hiking, backpacking, swimming in a natural body of water, observing wildlife, and going for walks
Highlights from the past year: Morgan tried dogsledding and snowshoeing for the first time this year, got into law school, and completed over 450 hours of volunteer work!
Where you can find Morgan when she isn’t volunteering: She is likely teaching a yoga class, going to a local coffee shop or farmers market, reading a good book, or watching a documentary.
Facts that will make you say “Wow, Morgan is awesome”: Prior to working with Apogee, Morgan worked as a counselor for three summers at a dude ranch in Colorado! While on the ranch, she facilitated hiking, rafting, paddleboarding, fishing, horseback riding, and more with her campers. She has also been teaching yoga for five years, both at school and at a hot yoga studio. After her own experience as a student on our Alps Explorer trip in high school, Morgan is beyond excited to continue being a part of the Apogee leader community this summer. She cannot wait to explore the beauty of Washington State and share countless laughs and adventures with her students!
Name: Wylie Ocken (he/him)
2026 Trips: Northwest Mountains & Coast and New England Mountains & Coast
Hometown: Riverside, Connecticut
School: Hamilton College
Certifications: Wilderness First Responder, Wilderness Swim Safety, and CPR
Favorite outdoor activities: Backpacking, trail running, snacking with a view, and swimming
Highlights from the past year: Wylie got after it this year! He ran the New York City Marathon to raise money for Type 1 diabetes, went skydiving, and hiked over 20 of the Adirondack High Peaks!
Where you can find Wylie when he’s not jumping out of planes: He is probably reading a good book, drawing, taking a nap-ogee, or hanging out with friends.
Just a few more (very) fun facts about Wylie: Wylie plays varsity lacrosse and club rugby at Hamilton, and he also works as a tutor at a nearby middle school. When he is not playing sports, learning, or teaching, he’s likely off on an adventure. In the summer of 2024, Wylie backpacked across Europe with his brother, and he loves facilitating Hamilton’s Outdoor Orientation trips for incoming freshmen each year in the Adirondacks. He is also a part of his school’s Dungeons & Dragons club! Wylie is so excited to be joining the Apogee team this summer, and he can’t wait for all the adventures that he and his groups will embark on in both Washington State and New England!
Name: Elisa Eng (she/her)
2026 Trips: Maine’s Downeast Explorer and New England Mountains & Coast
Hometown: Rockville, Maryland
School: Wake Forest University
Certifications: Wilderness First Responder, Wilderness Swim Safety, and CPR
Favorite outdoor activities: Backpacking, hiking, swimming, kayaking, and rafting
Highlights from the past year: Elisa studied abroad in Morocco last summer, visited the Great Wall of China, and got raft‑guide certified on the Nantahala River.
Where you can find Elisa when she is not rafting down a river: She is probably on a walk with friends, working on a sewing project, checking out a local vintage market, swimming with her swim club, or rowing on Salem Lake.
Other reasons we think Elisa is the bee’s knees: She grew up swimming in the same pool that Olympian Katie Ledecky used in high school, and she has also worked as a swim coach for three summers, coaching swimmers ages 4–18. Elisa has studied abroad in Morocco not once, but twice! While there, she had the opportunity to ride camels, which of course she did. Recently, while hiking through the Ecuadorian rainforest, she saw the zombie fungus that The Last of Us was based on. Elisa is so excited to explore New England, meet her amazing students, and embark on meaningful adventures with her groups!
Name: Kyle Patterson (he/him)
2026 Trips: Maine’s Downeast Explorer and New England Mountains & Coast
Hometown: Morgantown, West Virginia
School: Washington and Lee University
Certifications: Wilderness First Aid, Wilderness Swim Safety, and CPR
Favorite outdoor activities: Climbing, hiking, backpacking, kayaking, rafting, and birdwatching
Highlights from the past year: Kyle spent four months studying abroad in Berlin, Germany, and loved being able to travel all over Germany and Austria by train. He also spent a week sea kayaking in the Everglades with his school’s Outing Club.
Where you can find Kyle when he’s not on a train in Germany: Likely taking photos (he enjoys both natural and street photography) or playing beach volleyball.
A few more fun facts about Kyle: Kyle spent last summer teaching STEM classes at a summer camp in West Virginia, where he led hands‑on science experiments and construction projects. He also loves to play music and has been playing the tuba and trombone since he was 10 years old. He has performed in everything from marching band and orchestra to jazz band and even a pit orchestra for a musical! As part of his math major at W&L, Kyle spent a summer doing research in knot theory (not the kind of knots we tie on trips, but very cool nonetheless). Kyle is looking forward to meeting all the awesome people in the Apogee Community and doing amazing things in the outdoors this summer!
Name: Sawyer Thompson (they/she)
2026 Trips: Maine’s Downeast Explorer and New England Mountains & Coast
Hometown: Richmond, Vermont
School: University of Vermont
Certifications: Wilderness First Responder, Wilderness Swim Safety, and CPR
Favorite outdoor activities: Hiking, camping, swimming, gardening, kayaking, and biking
Highlights from the past year: Sawyer recently traveled to Oaxaca, Mexico, where they practiced their Spanish and engaged with the incredible artwork in the area, both in museums and in the vibrant murals around the city. They then traveled up into the nearby mountains for some hiking above the clouds before heading to the coast where they experienced the Pacific Ocean for the first time ever!
Where you can find Sawyer when they’re not hiking around Mexico: They are likely crafting, which has recently meant collaging and block printing. They might also be practicing guitar, playing board games with friends, or dancing to live music!
More reasons to love Sawyer: Sawyer spent nine summers, from ages 11 to 20, at the same summer camp, moving from camper to counselor to program administrator. They have also hiked the entire length of Vermont, not once but twice! Once they painted their car to look like a yellow Croc (yes, the shoe) and took it on a 2.5‑month cross‑country trip. Talk about traveling in style! Sawyer is really excited to spend the summer in the woods, playing silly games, spotting plant and bird species, and sleeping outside. It’s just the icing on the cake that they get to experience all of that with their wonderful co‑leaders and amazing students!