World's Best Dance Party, Ever!

Sarah Farnell, one of SPLORE’s amazing summer interns, reflects on her experiences working with people with disabilities, rafting and the magic of life-changing accessible recreation.

In July of 2007 I was honored to participate in the World’s Best Dance Party, Ever. It all began one fateful evening on an overnight rafting trip on the beautiful Colorado River. After a fun-filled day of braving the rapids, we settled down at camp to relax and have dinner. This is where the excitement of a typical rafting program might end; at SPLORE, however; this is where the excitement begins…

To truly appreciate the magic of the World’s Best Dance Party, Ever you have to know a thing or two about SPLORE and about the people who participate in our programs. I didn’t know too much about rafting before I started working with SPLORE. I thought I knew a few things though: rafting is dangerous and you have to be a great athlete to do it, right? Turns out, I was wrong for the first time Ever ;-)

Some of our clients are world class athletes; one is even training for the next Paralympics. I’ve learned that rafting is an extremely adaptable sport. Done right it can also be a very safe activity. Throughout my summer working at SPLORE, I have seen people with spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injuries, developmental disabilities, and social and emotional challenges participate in SPLORE’S rafting program. Some clients sat back and enjoyed the ride and others jumped right in and helped row the boats.

OK, Back to the World’s Best Dance Party, Ever …

One particular trip that I was a part of is a good example of the mix of people that participate in SPLORE activities. Everyone ranged in age from early 20’s to late 60’s. Some of us had physical disabilities, some of us had developmental disabilities, and some of us were dealing with illnesses and emotional issues. What in the world did we have in common? Some people might think there was nothing a group of such diverse people could connect through, but that’s the beauty of SPLORE and the “World’s Best Dance Party, Ever!” Gordo, a SPLORE staff member John, a volunteer, provided rhythm for the dance party on their guitars. The rest of us provided percussion from instruments we had made and found and together we all danced! One of the clients was sad that she couldn’t hear the music because of her hearing loss, but Cara, a SPLORE staff member, taught her to “feel the music” through the vibrations. We danced and danced however we wanted to: from our lawn chairs, our wheelchairs, or on our feet. I’m only going to say this once: there is no “right” way to dance and don’t ever let anyone tell you differently!

I forgot to tell you about myself. I am an intern with SPLORE. Another thing about me is that I lost my sister to cancer in January. My whole world fell apart in that moment and I am still trying to pick myself back up. I have often felt disconnected from the world since then. Why am I telling you this? Because during the dance party, watching everyone laugh and dance and “feel the music,” I didn’t feel disconnected anymore. I let down my barriers. And that, to me, is what SPLORE is all about: tearing down barriers. Tearing down physical barriers that make outdoor recreation inaccessible to people with disabilities; tearing down financial barriers that make outdoor recreation monetarily inaccessible; and finally, tearing down interpersonal barriers that keep people apart from each other because of preconceived ideas about difference.

THAT is the magic of SPLORE!!!

10 Memorable Years with SPLORE!

By Steve Powell

This year, 2007, SPLORE is celebrating its 30th Anniversary of providing life-changing, accessible and affordable outdoor adventures to people of all abilities, primarily focusing on people with disabilities, including their families, friends, volunteers, care providers and staff. SPLORE has served over 30,000 individuals during that time and I’m very happy to be one of them! This is my 10th year with SPLORE and I’m so grateful that I was introduced to this unique and wonderful organization. Many people wonder what the name SPLORE means. It originally stood for “Special Populations Learning Outdoor Recreation and Education”, but since then the term “special populations” is no longer used to describe “people with disabilities”, so now the name is no longer an acronym, and the organization is simply known as SPLORE. When I first became aware of SPLORE, the name reminded me of “explore” – and that’s just what I was looking for – the chance to experience and explore new possibilities and adventures. As a coincidence, the word "splore" in Scottish means "a frolic; revel; or carousal", which is a great description for the exciting activities SPLORE provides to their participants! The four primary programs that SPLORE offers include river rafting in southern Utah, canoeing in northern and southern Utah, rock climbing in northern Utah, and winter activities in northern Utah and Wyoming.

I was involved in a life-altering car accident in 1983 in which I severed my spinal cord, and also sustained many other life-threatening injuries, including traumatic separations and dislocations of both shoulders, which has left me with very weak shoulders joints. After my accident, I spent almost 2 years in two hospitals and a nursing home, and although I was paralyzed from the chest down and would need to use a wheelchair, I knew I still had a lot of living to do! For several years after my accident, I admit that I was rather depressed, but I began to feel better about myself as I met new friends and tried new activities. I was happy to learn there were still many things I could do. I really enjoyed the challenges that came my way because they gave me the chance to grow both physically and emotionally.

I’m a great enthusiast of the outdoors, and participating in various outdoor activities is something I thought I was forced to give up due to my injuries. But that was before I became involved with SPLORE. My very first trip with SPLORE 10 years ago was a 5-day canoeing trip down Labyrinth Canyon on the Green River in southern Utah. Although I was very excited about the opportunity to go on the trip, I was also concerned about my ability to spend several days in the wilderness and take care of my personal needs. But the outstanding and experienced SPLORE staff assured me they were there to help me with any special needs I have. Their primary desire is for everyone who participates to feel welcome regardless of their disability or particular needs.

I was so thankful and thrilled that I went on that first river trip with SPLORE. It was one of the most incredible experiences I had ever had in the previous 14 years since my accident. I never knew that I would once again be able to enjoy the beautiful back-country of Utah, or paddle lazily down one the most scenic stretches of river I had ever seen! And that one trip with SPLORE impressed and excited me so much that I knew that SPLORE was an organization that I really wanted to stay involved with. Since that time, in addition to other canoeing trips, I’ve also had the opportunity to experience many white-water river rafting trips. In the past 10 years, I’ve had the chance to raft on the Salmon River in Idaho, the Snake River in Wyoming, the Gunnison River in Colorado, and the Colorado, Green, and Yampa Rivers in Utah. I even had the opportunity to raft down the Grand Canyon for 10 days. Wow! – how exciting and memorable every one of the trips has been!

For my 10th year with SPLORE, I was once again looking for a new adventure. The opportunity was made available for me to join a group from Wyoming with mild cognitive disabilities called CES (Community Entry Services) to go on a 5-day rafting trip down the San Juan River in the four corners area of Utah. The trip was sponsored by SPLORE and hosted by the wonderful sister rafting outfitter Holiday River Expeditions in Salt Lake City. I was so excited to go because I had never been on that river before and also because the four corners area is so rich in the history of Native Americans including the Anasazi, Navajo, and Utes. Early cliff dwellings remain tucked away in sandstone alcoves and petroglyphs can still be viewed in several locations along the canyon walls. The San Juan River begins its 360-mile journey on the slopes of 13,150' Montezuma Peak in Colorado’s San Juan Mountains, and threads its way through Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah to the border of northeastern Arizona. It is joined by the Piedra and Los Pinos Rivers in the reservoir behind Navajo Dam in northern New Mexico. It flows southwest out of the dam, gathering strength from the Animas, the La Plata, the Mancos, and the McElmo Rivers, before carving out a 1,000' twisting gorge through the Goosenecks in southeastern Utah. The river finally merges with the Colorado River at Lake Powell.

We began our portion of the trip on the 84 mile section of the river beginning near Blanding, UT at Sand Island, and ended at Clay Hills Crossing near Lake Powell. Because the river drops a gentle eight feet per mile, there are only a few rapids. However, the fun trade-off is the sand waves that occasionally surface out of nowhere. Caused by the water's movement against the silted river bottom, sand waves can build in the middle of a section of flat water, providing a few moments of magical fun and disappear as mysteriously as they appeared. The San Juan is a perfect river trip for families and those with more extensive disabilities who may not be able to tolerate the larger, higher class rapids of other river sections.

The first day we met as a group in Blanding and had a pre-trip meeting that evening with Drew, the head guide from Holiday, and we got the chance to meet one another. I had actually been on a couple previous trips with some of the participants from CES, so it was fun to see them again and meet new folks, too. It’s always great making new friends! I have no family in the area, so I always utilize volunteers from SPLORE who are also willing to be care providers to accompany me as my helper on trips. In the past, I’ve always met and known in advance who I was going with on a particular trip. But on this trip, I only knew her name – Sarah. She was a college student from Tennessee and was out here in Utah for the summer supporting SPLORE as a guide for the rafting program as part of her college internship. Megan, SPLORE’s Program Director, was kind enough to let Sarah off from her regular duties in Moab to assist me on the San Juan trip.

Sarah was very anxious and excited because she got to come on the San Juan trip as a care provider, and I was very happy because every volunteer care provider who has come with me on past trips have always been exceptional at helping me to enjoy the best trip possible. I knew if Megan asked Sarah to assist me, she was confident that Sarah would be just as ideal for this trip. It always makes trips so much more fun and memorable to have such thoughtful and compassionate people to share experiences with. I feel so fortunate that there are many kind and caring SPLORE volunteers who are always willing to help. I met Sarah that first evening which also happened to be my Birthday, and she was one of the most kind, sweetest, and fun-loving individuals I have ever met. We went to dinner together that evening after the meeting for my Birthday and I knew just from talking to her that the San Juan trip was going be a fun, wonderful and a memorable experience!

We spent the night in Blanding and the next morning we took a 30 minute shuttle ride to our put-in at Sand Island. It was a beautiful morning and everyone was anxious to get on the river. The group divided up into three rafts, and Sarah and I rode on a raft with Gordo as our guide. He’s a long-time SPLORE guide, and Sarah was happy to be letting him do the rowing so she could relax and we could get to know each other better. Each day on the river we would stop somewhere along the river for a great lunch and sometimes those who could walk might go on a little hike. But what I really enjoyed the most is when we arrived at our camp each evening, and everyone would gather together around camp for socializing, games, story-telling or whatever. It’s just so peaceful to relax out in the wilderness so far from the hustle and bustle of normal city life. Relatively few people get to experience such solitude and personal growth!

Every day on the San Juan was a new adventure including the beautiful flowing river, majestic cliffs and anticlines, stunning peaks and spires, roaming wildlife and soaring birds, evidence of the river’s early inhabitants, learning about early explorers, royal blue skies by day, the twinkling of a billion stars by night, the warm crackle of our nighttime fires, great food, and the love of new friends. About a third of the way down the river we passed the famous rock formation called Mexican Hat – what a fascinating creation of nature! Continuing northwest downriver we entered the Goosenecks, a spectacular chasm carved through the Pennsylvanian Hermosa Formation that meanders and folds back and forth for five miles on the river within only one linear mile.

Our most enjoyable evening was the last night when everyone dressed up in colorful clothes for some wacky fun and marshmallow toasting. Everyone was in such a fun-loving and silly mood! The next morning it was time to go back home, but everyone was sad as to how fast the trip went by. What I was most thankful for was how considerate and helpful Sarah was – she always thought of everything to make the trip just right! Sarah’s back in Tennessee now, but I’ll always remember what an outstanding example she was of what SPLORE is all about – people helping people to achieve the best experience possible! The San Juan trip was another wonderful physical and emotional journey that I’ll never forget and one that I’ll always be grateful for because it was so enriching and inspiring. It’s the “Magic of SPLORE” and I can hardly wait to go on my next SPLORE adventure. I’m really looking forward to my next exciting and memorable 10 years!

If you’re not already involved in SPLORE and would like to be, to learn more please access SPLORE’s website at http://www.splore.org/.

If you would like to support SPLORE’s mission as a general program volunteer, please check the Volunteer page at www.splore.org/volunteer.html.

If you would like to assist a SPLORE participant as a volunteer care provider, please refer to the Volunteer Care Provider page at www.splore.org/careproviders.html.

If you would like to help support SPLORE as a donor, please visit the Contribute page at www.splore.org/contribute.html and also the Harvest Moon Auction page at www.splore.org/auction.html for information about our annual fund-raising auction.