The only Consistent thing is Change...

West Clear Creek- My Wilderness Orientation

My recent return to Prescott has been one filled with warmth, welcome, and ridiculous amount of intrinsic excitement on my end. I attended PC in 2009, breaking to take an instructing job with Outward Bound in the Mid Atlantic. I’m from Delaware originally, so leaving the sweetly mysterious desert that I had finally began building a relationship with was not an easy feat. I decided to keep my eyes peeled, focusing on the silver lining surrounding the move, and decided to relearn how to love my home place.

Fall foliage on the Appalachian Trail

So, I packed all my things, and headed back east… back to the fast paced dwellings of ample public transportation, humid subtropical summers with bitter Nor’easter winters, fresh seafood and family. Working for Outward Bound had long been on my to-do list, and I was stoked to finally have the chance to play outside while hopefully challenging myself and those around me. I ended up working there, between the Philadelphia and Baltimore bases, for 3 years… and loved every minute.

High Rock, AT, Delaware Water Gap, PA

I worked with a diverse population of students, from the inner city all the way to the ‘burbs, public schools and private alike, going backpacking, canoeing, and rock climbing. During the winter months, when we were not contracted for instructor work, I took up various gigs to make ends meet, like working at a crepery one winter and a homeless shelter the next.

Pilot Sea Kayak Training,
Baltimore Chesapeake Bay Outward Bound

In my downtime, I traveled as much as possible. I went rock and ice climbing in the northeast, mostly exploring the Adirondacks of New York and White Mountains in New Hampshire. I hopped on a sailboat for 2 weeks that made its way down the Intracoastal Waterway… which my friends and I termed, “I-C-Dubs” for conversational purposes. I crossed the country, twice, in a car that was lent to me by a new found friend in Prescott. I went sea kayaking for a week in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. I also worked at a farm in Downingtown, PA during the fall and spring months. I went to shows, read books, baked bread and watched movies. At the end of the day, on most days, however, Prescott always came to mind… and I often thought about our unfinished business.

Monsoon Season!

So, after my last course in August, I bought an ’86 Chevy S10 with what I had saved from instructing, packed my stuff, made my rounds of kisses and hugs, and ventured back to the land of panoramic blue skies and the ‘sea of desert’, as Abbey had once deemed it. There is something to be said about the isolated beauty that the land provides, and I don’t know if I would ever be able to truly articulate the connectivity I feel when disappearing among the junipers and cicadas for the weekend.

What I do know... is that it’s great to be back. - Amanda August