This was my first summer as Outdoor Experience
Coordinator, and I’ll be honest: sometimes the job
was really tiring and frustrating. As anyone who works
with kids knows, statements like those above can be
draining. But in the end, the Outdoor Experiences program
accomplished more than one could have hoped for. I’d
like to share one of the more memorable events involving
Adventure Camp USA, a new Korean community group in LA. 
Adventure Camp USA came up for their Mono Lake
experience in mid-August. The first few days of their
experience in the Mono Basin seemed to go well, and it
looked like they would be ready for a good hike to
conclude their trip with a little excitement.
With this in mind, we planned an expedition up Lembert
Dome in Yosemite National Park. Lembert Dome is a large
block of granite rounded and exposed on the south side
with gently sloping forest terrain on the north. We gave
the kids the option of splitting up, sending one group up
the trail on the north side, and allowing the more
adventurous to experience the climb up the south.
However, being Adventure Camp USA, all were
adventurous, and they all wanted to try the south
side.
Despite some reservations, we began traversing around
the south face slowly moving up the great rock. As the
path steepened, I checked on the crowd —everything
was going well. I took a few more
steps—checked—everyone fine. I took another ten
steps forward and then I looked over my shoulder again;
this time it was very different. In a matter of seconds
order had turned to complete chaos. The poor kids were
sprawled all over the rock clinging to the granite in
fear. It seemed that all the group, young and old, were
wondering why they were willingly doing this; why they
weren’t in LA happily playing the newest Game Boy or
watching TV.
We immediately went to work picking the kids off the
rock one by one and convincing them that they would be
just fine if they had confidence, stood up on their feet
and moved on.
One by one, the kids developed the needed
confidence and began to climb up the dome.
One by one, they stopped being scared and
homesick and started helping one another.
One by one, step by step, we all reached the
top of Lembert Dome alive and well.
The view, as always, was spectacular, with all of
Tuolumne Meadows and the Cathedral Range before us. We
had accomplished a goal that was never imaginable in the
eyes of most.
For me, standing on top of Lembert Dome that day was
much more than a great view of the Sierra, it was a
realization. We want these kids to go back to LA and
think of this area; to think of Mono Lake and wilderness
when they are at home in the city. That’s a
difficult goal, but I knew that at least one of
those kids would remember this. Maybe, just maybe,
she’ll think of her experience on Lembert Dome and
recognize the importance of Mono Lake, our lake, her lake.
Maybe for just a moment he’ll begin to grasp what
it’s all about and understand his connection to
Mono.
If he does, it will have all been worth it. After all
that’s how we will save Mono Lake forever. Step by
step, one by one.
Mike Klapp was the Committee’s Outdoor
Experiences Coordinator in 1997, will be again in 1998,
and is currently indoors mastering web page graphics.
