9th Grade End of Year Catalina Expedition 2021

Trip Dates: 6am Monday, May 31- 7:30pm Sunday June 6

We are so happy to finally get back out on the trail and spend time outside, sitting around the fire, camping under the stars, and just being together.

This trip will be unforgettable! You have an amazing week to look forward to: 2 days journey out and back to the island by boat, 3 incredible hiking days, 2 rejuvenating and fun layover days at Howland's Retreat, bison, Island Foxes, ravens, mine buckets, palm trees, pine trees, sandy beaches, crystal clear blue water, grassy fields…you will feel like you've landed and walked across Paradise! This trip is a golden opportunity to see a part of Catalina Island that hardly anyone ever gets to see.

Trip Itinerary:

Monday, May 31 Meet at SBMS at 6am. Drive to Long Beach. Take the Catalina

Express to Avalon at 11am. Camp at Hermit’s Gulch

Tuesday, June 1 Hike to Black Jack

Wednesday, June 2 Hike to Little Harbor

Thursday, June 3 Hike to Two Harbors, boat to Howland’s Retreat

Friday, June 4 Layover at Howland’s - kayak, snorkel, SUP, ropes course!

Saturday, June 5 Layover at Howland’s - kayak, snorkel, SUP, ropes course!

Sunday, June 6 Depart Howland’s, boat back to the mainland then drive home! Arrive SBMS at 7:30pm

Please read the following safety information about how we will tent before the trip and our approach to tenting and eating while on these carefully planned and exciting expeditions.

• TENTING: Each cohort will have its own sleeping area and students will set up tents close to other tents within their cohort (including the staff/faculty assigned to each cohort). After consulting with our Covid team, as well as considering the social and emotional wellbeing of our students, we have decided that students will be allowed to “nest” in mini-pods with 2 or 3 other students. Nesting comes from a practice that boarding schools and outdoor programs employ to ensure students can support one another. With your nest, you are allowed to sleep in a tent together (not masked) and sit together around the fire. If you or your child are not comfortable with nesting, please note your child is not obligated to nest and may choose to sleep in a single tent. All students will fill out a survey indicating preferences for nesting classmates or tenting alone. Because all students will be tested before leaving on the trip, we strongly encourage each family to consider nesting. We feel it will be in the best interest of the student, but we also completely understand if a family chooses not to do so. We will closely monitor all children throughout the trip for social-emotional needs whether nesting or not.

• EATING: During backpacking trips, students have the unique opportunity of cooking for themselves! For this 9th grade backpacking trip students will meal plan and shop for 3 days of food (3 breakfasts, 3 lunches & 3 dinners). SBMS will give students a 3 day food stipend. For the rest of the days, meals will be provided by Howland’s Retreat. Each student will be given an SBMS camp stove that they will cook with. They will eat with their cohort and will be supervised by their cohort’s staff and faculty. They will follow similar eating protocols that they follow at lunch on campus.

• PRE- TRIP QUARANTINE/SAFETY: Starting the Monday before the trip, Monday, May 24, we ask that families and students be extra vigilant in their adherence to CDC guidelines. We are asking that, in addition to following all CDC guidelines, families also avoid indoor sporting events, non-essential travel, and other higher-risk activities. If you have any questions or want to run any scenarios by the Covid committee please contact erik@sbms.org with specific questions and details so the committee can weigh in.

• PRE- TRIP ANTIGEN TESTING*: All students will be required to take a school-provided rapid antigen test on the Wednesday (May 26) before departure.

  • SBMS’s Covid-19 team of doctors will administer the test and read the results.

  • These will be given to students while in their car, and they will take about 15 minutes to process.

  • If a student tests positive on the Antigen test on Thursday, they will need a negative PCR test to join the trip.

  • This test is in addition to the rapid antigen test the school will administer on the morning of departure.

  • Antigen tests are provided by SBMS.

*Testing requirements are subject to change based upon county regulations and Covid-19 team advice.

• DAY BEFORE DEPARTURE DAY ANTIGEN TESTING*: All students will be required to take a school-provided rapid antigen test on Sunday May 30 between 6-7pm

  • SBMS’s Covid-19 team of doctors will administer the test and read the results.

  • These will be given to students while in their car, and they will take about 15 minutes to process.

  • This will add extra time to our drop-off, so please plan accordingly.

  • If a student tests positive on the Antigen test on the day of departure, they will need a negative PCR test to join the trip.

*Testing requirements are subject to change based upon county regulations and COVID19 team advice.

Please review all of the pages on the Catalina 2021 website as it contains all the information you will need to help prepare your child for a successful journey: details about trip prep, an equipment list, information on backpacking food and how to pack a backpack as well as important forms and waivers. Please familiarize yourself with this site and visit it often with your child to make sure you are well prepared.

• Please fill out the Howland's Retreat Minor Participation Waiver and return to the office by May 8.

• Please inform us of any food allergies or restrictions for our visit to Howland's Retreat by May 8.

• Please fill out the Trip Medication Consent (if needed) and return it to the office asap. Please refer to the emails from Anne Chen in the office regarding important instructions and links to trip waivers.

• Important: Please update Magnus Health with any of the following information that has changed since the beginning of the year. Here are the different areas: Emergency Contacts, Insurance, Healthcare Providers, Allergies, Medications, Heart Health, Bone & Joint, Medical, Other Health Conditions, Additional Medical Info. Instructions on how to update can be found here.

• A separate email will be sent regarding the Trip Waiver.

We understand that getting back out on the road for these expeditions will require a good deal of additional work, flexibility, and cooperation by all of us, but we feel that these extra efforts will allow us to finish the year strongly with safe, fun, and rewarding peak experiences for our students and staff.

We will be holding a 9th grade information meeting focusing on our end-of-year expedition on Monday, May 10, 6pm on Jesse’s Zoom 440 048 3610.

If you have any questions please feel free to contact . . . .

Jesse Wooten - 9th grade Dean JesseW@sbms.org

Erin Finnegan - Director of Outdoor Education & Trip Coordinator Erin@sbms.org

Erik Edwards - Health and Safety Erik@sbms.org

Looking forward to the trip!

Erin, Jesse, Brian, Danielle, David and Kelly