By Evelyn Huang
Camping is an annual Keystone tradition that takes students and
teachers to various outdoor destinations every fall. In the fall
of 2015, grade 10 students camped near Mount Xiaowutai after
an exciting and unforgettable hike. Evelyn Huang, one of the
students, reflects on this camping trip and tells us how it was a
journey of discovery for her and her peers.
“W
ith my mind set on a destination ahead, I will get
there rain or shine,” wrote
Wang Guozhen, the poet who inspired an
entire generation with his passion for life, his
devotion to his dreams, and his love of the
unknown paths and potential hardship and
trials ahead. For the tenth-graders at Keystone, in the early autumn of 2015, they set
off their very own journey filled with hopes
and excitement as well as trials and hardship.
As a participant and an observer on this
amazing journey, I would like to look back at
the unforgettable experience and share this
article with all our readers.
THE JOURNEY BEGINS
It was a day we all looked forward to – 9 September 2015 – as all the students and teachers from grade 10 set off on our camping trip.
It started to rain when we reached our destination at the foot of Mt. Xiaowutai. With
the temperature plummeting to below 10 at
the campsite, we had to wrap ourselves up
with the warmest clothes we had packed. As
the drizzle persisted, the towering mountain
range softly transformed, as if mysteriously,
into a scene from a traditional Chinese painting by the thin veiled layer of mist.
weather. Yet to my surprise, no one seemed
to be discouraged by the coming rain. A lot of
us students urged the hiking coaches to set a
definitive time to start the hike. Despite their
concerns for the weather, the coaches eventually made a joint decision with the teachers to
proceed with the 5km backpack hike into the
mountains in the afternoon.
It was still raining when we set off at 1pm.
Carrying heavy backpacks, wearing raincoats and holding tightly on to our hiking
staffs, the hiking teams, stretching over a
few hundred meters, followed the path into
the mist-covered mountain. Everyone was
extremely careful walking over slippery rocks
and muddy ground. Some people started to
boost morale with a song, and soon everyone
sang along. The teams gradually got into a
rhythm and gained momentum. But we had
to give in to the increasing downpour, and
walk the five kilometers back to the campsite.
The mountain range gradually faded into the
evening sky and the stream resonated with
the freezing rain, sounding like the prayer for
a new dawn. Feeling exhausted, we drifted
into sleep with the sound of raindrops as our
lullaby.
W hen the first rays of the morning sun
pierced the mist and illuminated the mountain peak, all the greenery seemed to have
woken up fully refreshed. We picked up our
backpacks and set off again. For me, the backpack is now filled with a sense of mission, the
determination to finish the hike and perhaps
the courage to challenge myself. On 11 September, we got back on the path to climb
Getting up early the next morning, I noticed Xiaowutai. We were determined to reach the
even thicker mist that signaled more rain. The finish line.
original hiking plan was put off due to the
On that first afternoon, we had our first
home-cooked feast, played a variety of warmup games, and learnt a lot about the outdoors.
With everyone enjoying the laughs and the
laid-back atmosphere of our time in the wild,
nobody seemed to be paying any attention to
the dark clouds gathering.
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