It was 8:30 a.m., and the older Pathfinders were ready to leave on the campout. We decided to leave a bit later so we could eat first because it was going to be a long hike. After discussing where we would hike and where we would camp, for safety reasons we decided to camp in the field behind Uli and Toussaint’s house. However, we made a rule that the Pathfinders couldn’t go to the house. If they forgot to bring something, they would have to make do with what they had.

We talked about what they would need and how to make a menu. It was the hot season, so we didn’t need sleeping bags. I had made tents out of corn sacks. They were open on both ends and tied to posts. We strung up mosquito nets inside of them. The Pathfinders hiked over the mountain to get to the camping site while I drove there with a load of tents and several heavy things. There are no backpacks available here and no lightweight camping equipment.

We split into two groups for cooking duties. My group forgot to bring a big pot, so we had to cook two batches of everything in our small pot. The other group didn’t bring enough food, so they were a bit hungry.

That first night, we all froze. We had thought it would stay warm at night, but outside of town, it got down into the seventies, and a breeze blew through our tents all night. We got up early in the morning to get our blood moving.

I doled out the fried bread dough I had made the day before. (I had cheated a bit and kept it in the fridge in Uli’s house because it had some fish in it, and I didn’t want to give the Pathfinders food poisoning.)

Everyone donned their day packs containing water and their sacks of food, and off we hiked at a brisk trot. At the top of the first steep hill, everyone collapsed. When we all resuscitated, we continued. After about an hour, Rosette’s flip-flop broke. Noelie started a little fire and held a penny in it with the pliers on my Leatherman tool. She then used the hot penny to weld the broken plastic together. When I bent over to move some dry leaves away from the fire, my pants split down the backside. I shuffled into the trees and changed into a wraparound skirt I had brought.

We headed off again. Not much farther on, a nail in the sole of Bony’s shoe pierced his foot. Using my Leatherman tool, he pulled the nail out of his shoe. After letting his foot bleed a while, we continued on. We passed through an area with lots of pretty agates on the ground, and Patient and I collected a few. Patient and Jacques found and ate some wild apple-type fruit.

Four hours later, we arrived at Puiya. Bony made a fire where Noelie could really repair Rosette’s shoe. He then took us to a water pump where we all filled our water bottles.

Then we headed back home by way of the dam that diverts water into a large tube and down the mountain into a hydroelectric plant. We stopped to eat and then followed the tube down the mountain into some rough country. We saw some monkeys and some huge rocks. The rocks got the children thinking about hiding during the time of trouble.

It was a very hot day. My thermometer said it was 112 degrees on the shady side of my body. We were all sweating buckets. After passing the electrical plant, we had to climb some long hills. Everyone groaned at the sight of them. But then the Pathfinders decided to race to the top, and they took off running. Jacques was the winner.

On we went. Seven hours later, we arrived at the top of the first hill we had climbed. I was limping by then. My feet and knees were crying. “Praise the Lord!” I said. The downhill was torture to my knees, so I resorted to walking down it backwards. Since my leg wasn’t working well, I was walking like a drunk. At the house, Toussaint gave me a lift the rest of the way on his motorcycle. The last thing I needed was to walk through town looking drunk. At our destination, everyone crashed for an hour, and I made supper. After another chilly night, we enjoyed a breakfast of pancakes.

In all, the campout was a success, and the Pathfinders got to see a lot of new territory and gain new camping skills.

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