Students saddle up for frontier adventure

Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Students learned what it took to saw logs before the days of power tools and chain saws. Photo by Brian S. Orban

The icy wind blew through the camp as Cal Clevenger gathered a handful of children together around the flat block of wood resting on the ground. The instructions seemed simple enough, but the children just couldn't get the fire started.

Helping the youngsters start over, he walked them through the steps, emphasizing the need to take their time and avoid rushing. As they huddled together to shielded themselves from the cold, the children gasped in amazement as the dowel, wrapped around a bow-drawn string, created enough friction against the wooden plank to produce smoke that would eventually help them create a camp fire.

Jumping up, the students belted out a hearty "yee ha." Their job here was done. Time to move on to the other chores.

Late last week, hundreds of fourth grade students from local area schools got their first look at life on the frontier during this year's Wagons Ho experience. Celebrating its 20th year, the pioneer camp brings the flavor of early American life to students in practically their own back yard.

Set up at Carl Miller Park, the hands-on experience included everything from a covered wagon to a campfire to help students learn how life really was for those living on the American frontier. Throughout the day, the students and their adult chaperones visited different stations set up around the park, each one capturing a different aspect of pioneer living.

"We enjoy that we can make a museum come to life" where children can experience firsthand what life was like for America's pioneers, Cal said. It's a definite change from walking through a museum where everything's behind glass.

The hands-on experience makes it not only memorable, but it allows these youngsters to better appreciate how tough life could get for those living in the days before technology, Marla Clevenger said.

"We thought kids would really enjoy learning about Idaho history through a hands-on experience," she added.

The Wagons Ho idea started out quite unexpectedly for the Clevengers, who share a lifelong fascination with this moment in U.S. history. In fact, while their children were still young, the family refurbished a frontier wagon -- without using power tools.

Traveling from place to place to showcase their wagon at events like the Three Island Crossing in Glenns Ferry, the family noticed that people were engrossed watching them partake in the frontier-style games and chores, which they brought along to keep their sons occupied.

At the urging of others, the Clevengers took their frontier camp idea to local schools, who jumped at the opportunity. Today, Wagons Ho remains a memorable experience for both children and their adult chaperones.

"This is, by far, the one thing they remember," said Judy Lehto, who attended the camp with her son, Terry. In year's past, Lehto's two daughters attended the same camp and still have fond memories of the experience.

"It's amazing. My son's waited four years for this day to arrive," added John Paul, who attended the camp with his son, Andrue. "He saw his sisters go through this years ago, and he couldn't wait for his turn."

As the weather grew colder later in the week, many of the students admitted they appreciate the luxuries of modern living.

"I bet it was hard to make homes and cook back then," said Emily Derrick as she sat down for lunch with her classmates from North Elementary School. "It took us a long time to get through things, and we didn't even get through half of it."

Despite the wind and occasional snow, the event left a lasting impression on children like Kylie Tucker.

"It's amazing and I really like it," the North Elementary student said. Looking back, Tucker enjoyed the idea of experiencing the frontier life in the outdoors, "even if it is freezing out here," she said.

Despite the lure of some attractions, such as chopping wood or creating buttons from wooden disks, the roping exhibit remained a popular destination for children like Bradley Borgholthaus.

"It was awesome; it was really fun for us... "because we got to swing things around and throw them," the North Elementary student said.

During their allotted time at this station, students tried their best to swing a lasso around their heads and throw it accurately enough to snag the revolving steel frame that represented a runaway calf. Undeterred over the frequent lack of success, the students kept trying until they got at least one loop around the elusive target.

"I had some luck if I got real close to it," Tucker said.

The bandsaw exhibit remained a popular destination for Tristan Riezinstein and Glen Sullivan from West Elementary School. The lesson focused heavily on teamwork to cut off a section of a roughly nine-inch-thick log. Both needed to work in unison to successfully and quickly cut through this stubborn piece of lumber.

Their tenacity to slice through the timber earned them privilege of holding onto the wood slabs as a keepsake for their class.

While some frontier chores seemed "fun" to some, others were deemed not so pleasant. Victoria Rosario from the Base Primary School discovered, for example, that washing clothes with only a washboard and cold, soapy water was a lot tougher than it looked.

Meanwhile, Darby Bennett and Jessie Watt found that drawing water by hand is a lot slower than simply turning on a water faucet. Working together, it took them several minutes just to fill a two-gallon pail.

Following the morning's hands-on lessons, the day's festivities focused on fun and friendly competition. During each afternoon, the youngsters had a chance to participate in a series of games, including an egg race -- using raw eggs. Following several potato sack races, the day's fun wrapped up with a series of tug-of-war matches with teams digging in their spurs, so to speak, to earn bragging rights for the rest of the day.

Despite the week's blustery, unpredictable weather, Cal praised the students' frontier spirit and tenacity.

"These kids are true pioneers," he said. "It was hailing, but they stuck it out. They endured just like the real pioneers did."