“Wait, where are we?”

Written by Theresa Nash, a crew member with the Los Valles Region:

Theresa's fellow crew members at the Great Sand Dunes National Park

For me, SCC has been an experience unlike any other and I leave with no regrets.  I came into the program wanting to get out and try new things for the summer.  I was ready for adventure in Colorful Colorado and that is just what I got.

My crew was for the most part working in the Great Sand Dunes National Park.  I had never seen a sand dune before and had never camped out for more than a long weekend, let alone gone without showering for any extended period of time.  To say the least, my expertise in the world of the outdoors was at the amateur level…but not for long!

Theresa and Lara, a fellow crew member, discovering an old structure

I soon learned that with understanding and easy to talk to crew leaders, which are plentiful within the Southwest Conservation Corps, my only necessity was a desire to learn.  And learn I did.  Ranging from bears to the ultimate six star poop I am now the master.

I learned the true meaning of hard work and without a doubt this is hard work, I learned that walking through the forest on your way to work is better than any drive, and overall I learned that I am capable of more than I thought.  Yes, I learned to camp, but along the way I made some great friends and did some great and meaningful work.  I will forever be thankful to SCC for affording me this opportunity and finally, in the wise words of Colin Fletcher, “All other things being equal, choose a john with a view.”