2nd Annual Domestic Study Away - #TeachAgDSA14 - Day 6: The Wild Wonderful West

Editor's Note: During our 8 day adventure with 14 teacher candidates and 2 chaperones, we will have two guest bloggers share their observations every day! 

 

The Penn State Teach Ag! Society team woke up in beautiful Estes Park Colorado excited for an adventure. We started off the morning reflecting on the past week at the entrance to the Rocky Mountain National Park. Under the direction of Meagan Slates, 2014 PSU AEE Graduate and Laura Metrick, 2015 Student Teacher, we discussed the four schools that we visited, and compared the school facilities, scholastic goals, and FFA programs of all four of the schools. Upon reflecting on these four incredibly unique programs, we proceeded to enter the park.

Rocky Mountain National Park is hard to capture in words. The beautiful landscape is undeniably different that our much smaller “mountains” at home in State College PA. The drive up the mountain provided many beautiful spots to stop and admire nature’s splendor. We were also able to get some great pictures with the Nittany Lion. The mountains, wildlife, and trees were a truly relaxing morning after a week of traveling.

After eating a delicious lunch at a Barbeque Restaurant in Estes Park, the team continued to travel to Colorado Springs. In order to avoid some construction on other roads, we took a picturesque detour throughout more mountains. One of the Park Rangers at the Rockies had described it as “beautiful from Peak to Peak.” This windy, but beautiful road led us to an unexpected stop at the Buffalo Bill Museum and Grave near Golden Colorado. This last minute stop was not only beautiful, because the gravesite is at Peaks Mountain, but also very informational. Buffalo Bill, being an important part of developing the west, is a very interesting person. From his service in the US army to his famous Wild West Show, Buffalo Bill led a dynamic life. The Museum was fun and enlightening.

We then continued the rest of the drive to Colorado Springs, and finished out our day eating at Rasta Pasta, where when the waitress says, “yeah, that is a little spicy,” what she really means is “you might want to drink milk with that because you will be sweating your pasta is THAT HOT.” Our Saturday deviated from our original itinerary quite a bit, but this only added to our adventure here in Colorado. We cannot wait to see what tomorrow will bring!

We really appreciate the CHS Foundation and Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences for their support of our learning adventure!

 

Written by:

Sarabeth Royer

2016 Student Teacher Candidate

@sb_royer

Nathan Repetz

2017 Student Teacher Candidate

@N8_Repetz