Our first day in Shenandoah, just in time to see a bear and make camp at Big Meadows. No more showers from here on out!
The bus ride from the hotel to Shenandoah was several hours long. I expected to sleep, but learned a lot about sheep farming instead. I sat with Lára, who I had seen back at the hotel only a few times, and immediately began asking about Iceland, her homeland. She told me about her sveit (area of farms) that overlooks the river on a hill, the mountains on either side of the farms, and how the sheep need only "love and food." It sounded beautiful, and Icelandic sheep farming is officially added to my list of potential careers.
After hours of falling in love with Iceland and enjoying the rolling hills and beautiful views of Skyline Drive, the bus came to a sputtering stop at the side of the road. It broke down on the mountain only a quarter mile from the Visitor's Center, so we embarked on our shortest hike of the journey with our packs on our back to cover the rest of the distance. We dropped the packs outside the center, grabbed the sandwiches provided to us, and found a shaded spot to begin lunch. The two hiking groups were separated, so it was just the ten of us again, and we hesitantly played our first game of Hot Seat as we ate. Everyone asked the person on the hot seat one question, a sort of truth-or-dare without the option of dare. The game would quickly become one of my favorite ways to get to know everyone in my group.
Only a few questions in, Hot Seat was interrupted by a bear-sighting - a mother bear with her two cubs. They crossed the street into the meadow, and the meadow's underbrush fell in over the little cubs' heads. The cubs were only visible when they popped up on their hind legs, sniffing the air and scanning the small crowd of people forming on the side of the road. It was absolutely adorable, and was our first of many encounters with the adorable and surprisingly small black bears that lumbered through the park.
The rest of the day was spent getting to know the park and each other. We met with a park ranger to learn about potential careers in conservation, and she shared her passion for everything that the park has to offer. Leaving our packs by the Visitor's Center, we explored a little bit of the park to see for ourselves what the ranger had been talking about. The group went off-trail into the large expanse of Big Meadows, and walked among the tall flowers and hovering bees. For some of those from other countries, it was their first time seeing butterflies. I think we all appreciated the beauty of butterflies a little more after seeing Lára light up at their sight.
After meandering through the meadow, we made our way to the front-country Big Meadows camp ground, complete with running water and bathrooms. NatureBridge staff kindly made us dinner while my tent-mate Ryleigh and I struggled to set up the tent for the first time. That night was the first of many spent surrounded by the night sounds and under the (sturdy and safe) trees - since Dani and Christina would survey each tree for dead branches before allowing us to set up camp.
That night, Ryleigh and I woke up at 3am, and as groggy as we were, we stopped to gape at the sky. I saw more stars in the sky than ever before, and if I looked really closely, I could point out the streak of the Milky Way.