Katherine McCredie

July 3 SMC crew member Katherine McCredie jumps into the cool waters of Babyfoot Lake as the sun drops over its rocky rim. She’s spent 17 nights in the Kalmiopsis. 17 nights in the dirt. 17 nights without a shower or clean change of clothes.

And now she’s just an easy twenty minute walk to the trailhead.

“I don’t want to go home,” she says. “I really love it out here. I can feel myself pushing hard and I can see the real progress.”

On a day off she got to explore the Wild Chetco River and one of its remote tributaries (below). “The water was so clear,” says McCredie. “It didn’t really even have a color.”

McCredie is an environmental studies major at SOU, and she works for ECOS, a civic club on campus.

Do you want the chance to explore the Kalmiopsis? Sign up for a trip and seize your summer.