Meet Dakota

Hey everyone. I’m Dakota. Less than a year ago I had never been on a hike in my life. I not only hadn’t been on a hike, I never even had an interest in hiking. If you asked me then I would have told you that’s too much and it’s not for me. 

Then I joined the Photo Club. Being in nature with the Photography Club was kind of amazing. It’s cool  learning how to take awesome photos. But that’s just one part of the club. I got to pick my best pictures and try to sell them in a gallery. I love those galleries. I can show off my work and it forces me to be more social. I can communicate with buyers and be a bit of a sales person. It feels really good to sell something you created. 

Then I joined Summer Treks. That’s their two week program in the summer. Everything about it was both amazing and hard. Those hikes were not for the weak. There was lots of climbing and it seemed like rocks were everywhere. It felt like I was stepping on pointy bricks for days. But it was somehow fun. Being able to do it feels good. I was proud of myself. 

Then came the three day trip in the Catskills. This was not like Jersey City. There’s no trash. There’s no broken sidewalks. But, there’s also no bathrooms! We had to use the bathroom in the woods. Who does that? We also had to cook the food in filtered water so we could eat it. Sleeping in a tent. LET. ME. TELL. YOU. That first night it was tough to sleep. I kept hearing things. Everything sounded like a venomous snake. It was not for the weak. And all of this was mostly with new people that I didn’t know at all. It was an experience to bond with them. We became close. 

One challenging thing we did was rappelling. It felt like a thriller movie. It was terrifying to be backing down a cliff. I would have never expected me to ever do something like that. I am a normal person. I am a city girl. We do not rappel! It was challenging and I was afraid. But after gaining confidence from the staff I knew I could do it. And I did! 

After our scary rappelling journey, we went to see this beautiful waterfall. The waterfall had a dope rainbow. hich was absolutely breathtaking. 

Summer Treks gave me more confidence and prepared me for living in the outside world, and taking care of myself. Now thanks to everyone I am hiker.