By Will Robertson
Our summer turned fifteen days-old today! Instead of balloons and streamers to celebrate, however, we will settle for peaks and meadows. Today’s trips turned in an impressive amount of great views that are certainly worth celebrating! We’ll let the pictures speak for themselves as we celebrate fifteen spectacular days of Apogee’s 2017 summer.
Skip to a Specific Trip: NEMC, CRM, MCCE, MCP, CQ, MSA, NWXA, NWXB, PCA, PCB, SHX, AXA, AXB, ECCA, ECCB, ACC1, ACC2
New England Mountains & Coast (NEMC)
Our NEMC crew hiked their way up above treeline on iconic Mount Madison! Rainy weather prevented them from summiting, but the word from Jack and Olivia is that there was a pizza treat for dinner tonight!
Colorado’s Rocky Mountains (CRM)
Waking up to the sounds of your leaders singing a duet from Aladdin is the best way to explore “A Whole New World.” Today, the trailblazers of CRM2 swapped genie lamps for hiking boots and escaped to the lush green fields of Big Meadows! Word is, the CRM crew has already gone through two full bottles of sunscreen; gotta block those UV rays!
Maine Coast College Essay (MCCE)
After a productive morning of writing essay outlines at their beautiful oceanfront cottage, our MCCE crew piled into the van and drove to Bowdoin College to get tips for their college essays from Bowdoin Admissions Counselor, Kat.
Maine Coast Photo (MCP)
A little rain didn’t stop our favorite photographers from getting out and serving their community. Today they worked with the Boothbay Harbor Land Trust – and we have the smiles to prove it.
Coast to Québec (CQA and CQB)
Our Coast to Québec groups re-entered the United States today and said goodbye. In the immortal words of A.A. Milne (of Winnie the Pooh fame): “How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.” Until next time, CQers!
Montana Service Adventure (MSA)
Another day off of the bike for the MSA team! More service in Glacier National Park for our intrepid Montana crew as they get ready to cross the continental divide on their way to West Glacier tomorrow.
Northwest Explorer (NWXA)
NWXA emerged from their 5 nights in the North Cascades back country today – back to civilization! From here, they’ll roll into a luxurious and well-deserved rest day in the Bellingham area. And finally, some pictures and (as promised, I may add), they won’t disappoint!
Northwest Explorer (NWXB)
NWXB continues on their journey through the back woods of Olympic National Park, along the Elwha Valley. Night 2 of Backcountry — we are counting down the days until their pictures emerge!
Pacific Coast (PCA)
As they say on all Apogee bike trips: rest day, best day. Not that our PC Alpha squad doesn’t love biking – oh, they do – but you also won’t hear them complaining about a well-deserved day off. They explored the lovely coastal town of Mendocino, CA this afternoon.
Pacific Coast (PCB)
It was a monster day for PCB, but at this point in the trip, 60 miles doesn’t seem quite so daunting. Emma & Miles’ crew muscled their way up a four-mile, 1,100 foot climb as well as another two-mile, 700 foot hill. It’s days like this that make us wonder, “How do they do it?!”
Scottish Highland Explorer (SHX)
SHX is one step closer to their final destination of Inverness! Today the group made their way to Fort Augustus, an adorable village at the southwest end of Loch Ness.
Alps Explorer (AXA)
The Alps Explorer Alpha crew got a well-deserved rest day after tackling two-thirds of the Tour de Mont Blanc. Only four more days of hiking and they will be back at the pink church where it all started!
Alps Explorer (AXB)
Our AXB team crossed back into Switzerland today; after a lovely night at a Rifugio (alpine hut) in Italy they took a sunrise hike up to the border. Now back in their country of origin, they had a great time on the trampoline at the campground.
Europe Coast to Coast (ECCA)
ECCA pedaled their way into Celles-Sur-Plaine, France today! It was a long, beautiful day on the road, 91 KM to be precise – but they’re happily snoozing as we speak (type?) – and look at these smiling faces – bright as the sun(flowers)!
Europe Coast to Coast (ECCB)
In what may have been record time today, ECCB rolled through their 95km today and made it into their camp in Nancy, France with plenty of time to spare. All smiles today as Becca & Chandler report that spirits are sky high!
America Coast to Coast (ACC1)
Nothing like a 50-mile ride after three straight days of 90-milers! The ACC1 crew rode into their rest day and picked up a big chunk of mail. Fun fact: leader Fred has already eaten 15 pounds of BBQ Chicken since their cross-country venture started two weeks ago (true story).
America Coast to Coast (ACC2)
ACC2 is chugging through Mississippi! Today’s 87 miles felt like chump change compared to yesterday’s 93 miles!
