Two Months To Go!

It is exciting to see everyone preparing so well for our trek that is coming up in less than two months!  The pre-trek activity was a success.  Thank you, Enterprise Ward, for hosting and feeding us!

In this post I'll give you a brief itinerary of what we will be doing on the trek, plus a list of things you need to bring.

Itinerary

Monday, August 6th

• Meet at Baker City Chapel at 7 a.m. wearing your trek clothes.  Eat breakfast before you come.
• Family assignments will be given. You will ride to and from Martin's Cove with your families on your assigned buses.  They will become your friends and support group throughout the week, although you will still see your other friends too.
• Bags to hold your sleeping bags, foam pads, and pillows will be handed out.  Just bring those things in a black garbage bag and you can switch them at the church.
• Bring sack lunch for this day only; bring water bottle.
• Spend night in Evanston, Wyoming.

Tuesday, August 7th

• Arrive at Martin's Cove, Wyoming, in the afternoon.
• Orientation; load handcarts; hike to campsite.
• Evening activities

Wednesday, August 8th

• Martin's Cove 
• Drive to Sixth Crossing at the base of Rocky Ridge.
• Evening activities

Thursday, August 9th

• Hike up Rocky Ridge (14.8 miles)
• Rock Creek Hollow
• Testimony Meeting

 Friday, August 10th

• Drive to Salt Lake.
• Shower at motel and put on regular clothes (jeans for boys, jeans or capris for girls (no shorts for anyone); trek T-shirts will be passed out for you to wear today).
• Temple Square

Saturday, August 11th

• Travel to Baker City chapel wearing regular clothes

Beginning with Monday evening's dinner, all meals will be provided so no one will starve!  They will be prepared by Allen and Pam Bingham, Brent and Jeannette Thompson, Nick and Hilary Cox, and Colby and Erin Thompson.  Please remember to thank them often!

Packing List for the Trek 

Write your name on everything with a sharpie marking pen!

5-gallon Bucket

The total weight in your bucket must not exceed 17 pounds (that does not include the weight of the bucket).  The buckets will travel with you on your handcarts.  Put smallers items in zip-lock bags to protect them.  Obviously, the bag with your sleeping bag will not go in your bucket.

• Personal scriptures (do you have an old set or paperback copy?)
• An extra set of trek clothing (clothing list is below)
• Leather gloves for pulling the handcarts
• Small towel and washcloth
• Toothbrush and toothpaste
• Bar of soap
• Deodorant
• Comb or brush
• If you use contact lenses, you may consider wearing glasses during the trek--it gets dusty and windy there
• Any other necessary hygiene products
• Personal medication or other personal care items/first aid things such as band-aids, moleskin, kleenex, etc.
• Insect repellent (Deet is a good kind)
• Flashlight and extra batteries
• Sturdy water bottle or canteen (not a cheap bottle that may easily break)
• Journal and pens
• Poncho
• Camera (optional)
• Sunglasses
• Wipes 
• Small hand sanitizer
• Neck cooler (optional)
• Chapstick
• Sunscreen 
• Powder for chafing

Bag for Sleeping Items

Remember:  bring these items in a black garbage bag to Baker City.  You will receive another bag to switch them into.  Your assigned family will have the same color of bags.  Put your garbage bag inside, just in case of rain.

• Sleeping bag
• Extra blanket if necessary
• Foam pad
• Pillow
• Sweatshirt or light jacket
• Pajamas (make sure they're warm; you also may want clean socks to wear at night and maybe a knit cap--it is cold at night)

Duffel Bag 

You will not see your duffel bag until Friday when we are in Salt Lake. 

• Clothing for Friday and Saturday (nice jeans, shoes (no flip flops); modest T-shirts on Saturday).  You will be given a Trek T-shirt to wear on Friday.
• Any other personal care things, such as makeup and curling irons, etc.

Clothing

• 2 complete pioneer outfits--one to wear and one in your bucket
• Strong tennis shoes that are broken in and comfortable; make sure the shoe laces are good
• Old tennis shoes or water shoes (no flip flops), and a plastic zip-lock to put them in (these will go in your bucket).  You will need these when we do the river crossing.
• 3-4 pairs of underwear
• 4-6 pairs of socks
• Poncho (like the kind you get at Dollar Tree)

Women's Clothing

• 2 blouses--long sleeved, loose fitting, cotton blends
• 2 skirts--boot length, mid-calf, not dragging the ground
• OR 2 dresses with modest neckline, "boot-length"
• Scrub pants 
• Bonnet with straps
• Optional:  apron, pantaloons, and bloomers

  
Men's Clothing

• 2 shirts--button down type with collars, long sleeves
• 2 pair long pants, lightweight khaki type (no jeans)
• Wide-brimmed hat to shade ears from sun (no baseball caps)
• Optional:  vest, suspenders

Please do not bring:

• Candy or food of any kind (except for your sack lunch on Monday)
• Electronic devices (cell phones, music players, ipods, electronic games)
• Other games or playing cards
• Jewelry (other than a simple watch) 

Other things to know:  

•  At this time of preparation, you should be building up your stamina and hydrating your body.  Be prepared! 

• There will be a paramedic, family doctor, emergency room doctor, nurses, and a podiatrist on the trek.

President Hinckley once said that the cemetery area of Martin's Cove was Wyoming's temple.  It is a very sacred place.  The trek is not just a hike.  It is a place of joy and a place of pain.
 

Pre-trek

The Pre-trek activity is BACK ON! Please reschedule it into your calendars.

When: Saturday, June 9th, from 1 - 6 p.m.
Where: A beautiful spot in Enterprise (directions will come later)
What to wear: Your trek clothes
Food: Provided by the wonderful Enterprise ward
Bring: A water bottle and your camera if you want to take pictures

This activity is really fun. We did it before the trek in 2007, and everyone was glad they came. Please support our stake presidency, young men and young women leaders, and any others who have spent hours planning a successful trek for you!

In retrospect, it is clear that many Saints in 1856 were determined to come to Zion at almost any cost. President Gordon B. Hinckley movingly recounted the experience of his wife’s grandmother, Mary Ann Goble Pay, who at age 13 left England with her family and ultimately joined up with the Martin Handcart Company. Before journey’s end, she lost two brothers, a sister, and finally her mother, who died just before they reached the valley. Years later, in her personal history Sister Pay reflected on the spirit that prompted her family to become handcart pioneers: “I have thought often of my mother’s words before we left England. ‘Polly, I want to go to Zion while my children are small, so they can be raised in the Gospel of Christ, for I know this is the true church.’”

Mary Ann Goble Pay, of course, made it to the valley. Others did not. Blessed be the names of all of them. Those who came to the West by handcart and those who sacrificed their all found the joy and peace promised to Saints who endure suffering for the Savior’s sake. The story of their tragedies and triumphs and their legacy of courage and conviction will never die.

(Paul H. Peterson, "They Came By Handcart," Ensign, Aug. 1997)

Rocky Ridge, Buckets, and More
The trek is quickly approaching. Now that the weather is warmer, put on your walking shoes and walk a lot, particularly uphill! It is very important that you are in good shape. We will be pushing handcarts up Rocky Ridge to Rock Creek Hollow. When the Willie pioneers went up Rocky Ridge they were malnourished, wearing thin clothing and holey shoes, and they pushed in very cold, wintery weather, sometimes pulling a sick loved one in the cart.

When we go this August, we will be well fed, properly dressed with good shoes, and wearing gloves to protect our hands. It will be summer and we will have water to drink. It will be difficult, but it will be rewarding.

While we push and pull with good attitudes, we should think about why our stake has chosen to give you, the youth, this opportunity for a taste of what the pioneers went through. The pioneers had many physical trials, and they endured them with great faith as they walked to Zion. We have many trials in our lives also, and like the pioneers, we must endure them with great faith. That is a great lesson we can learn from the pioneers.

It is up to each one of us to have the right attitude as we participate in this trek. This isn't going to be a "fun" vacation, and you will leave behind all your electrical devices. The trek is not meant to entertain you.

However, with the right attitude you will discover many things: you will make lasting friendships with people from other wards; you will gain an appreciation for warm food and a soft bed; you will realize that doing hard things can be rewarding and enjoyable; you will appreciate what the pioneers went through and why they persevered; and most important, your testimony of our Savior, Jesus Christ, will grow and be strengthened. You will come to love Him just as the pioneers did. With the right attitude, your week on the trek will be a memory you will cherish forever.

Buckets
Every person on the trek will need a 5-gallon round bucket with a lid. This bucket will hold everything you will need that week, except for your sleeping bag, foam pad, and pillow, which will be in a bag that will be provided for you later.

The bucket will hold the following: your change of clothes, such as extra skirt and blouse; socks/underwear; toiletries (don't forget your toothbrush and deodorant!); baby wipes; hand sanitizer; bug spray, flashlight; poncho; sunglasses; gloves; journal/pen, and small scriptures. Everything has to fit in your bucket. Your pajamas can go inside your sleeping bag if you desire. Write your name on all of your possessions.

The bucket will be your chair for the week. Be sure to put your name on it in big, readable letters. You can find buckets online, at farm supply stores, home depot, from restaurants (just make sure it didn't have pickles in it!), and some Walmarts have them too. Gamma lids are great. They are lids that twist off and will be easier for many of you to use than a pull off lid.

Water Bottles
You must bring a water bottle! There are no drinking fountains anywhere. Put your name on it.

Shoes
Everyone must wear good, sturdy broken-in shoes on the trek. No one can go barefoot, wear flip flops, moccasins, slippers or anything less than good, solid shoes.

Clothing
Look at the post of December 13, 2011, for what to wear on the trek.

Fireside and Stake Dance
The stake fireside and dance will be held April 14th at 7 p.m. Plan to be there!

Pre-Trek
The pre-trek event scheduled for June 9th in Enterprise has been cancelled.

Are you practicing your square dancing?

Sarah and Henry Squires joined the church in England. Nine years later, they sailed for America to be with the Saints in Utah. Their oldest daughter, Sarah, was eight years old at the time. Young Sarah's mother had been in ill health, so Sarah, who was also sick, walked so her mother could ride. She pushed the handcart as her father pulled. As they climbed a mountain, her well-worn shoe came off in the mud. The handcart would roll back if she stopped pushing, so she left her shoe in the mud and went on. That night her little foot was bleeding from exposure. She needed a new pair of shoes, as her other shoe was worn badly. A man in the company named Brother Booth, made her a pair of buffalo hide moccasins, that she wore the rest of the way to the Salt Lake Valley. Sarah never forgot his kindness.

(Squires Family, Martin Handcart Company, Jolene S. Allphin, Tell My Story, Too, p. 305)