March 18, 2009

Left: Tim Gebhart, OWU assistant chaplain and director of wilderness ministry, rock climbing last week at Horseshoe Canton Ranch in Arkansas. Right: Brittany Gulish ’09 takes a break while rock climbing in Arkansas during Spring Break last week.

Photos courtesy of Tim Gebhart

Ohio Wesleyan Students Search Their Souls on Spring Break Wilderness Treks
Trips include rock climbing, canoeing, and backpacking

Ohio Wesleyan students exercised their bodies and expanded their minds at four Wilderness Treks held during Spring Break. The Wilderness Treks, coordinated by the Chaplain’s Office, included 42 students and six staff members who served as advisors and guides.

Ten students traveled to Horseshoe Canyon Ranch in Arkansas, where the theme was “Climb Well, Live Well.” “The students focused on rock climbing, while pondering how good climbing principles translate to good living,” says Tim Gebhart, director of wilderness ministry for the OWU Chaplain’s office.

Thirteen students ventured into Everglades National Park to the 10,000 Island Region in Florida for canoeing. The “Sun-Wind-Tide” trip prompted these students to discover a force in life that shapes them.

The remaining students took part in one of two backpacking trips. An all-female trip to Cumberland Island, Georgia, carried the theme “Searching for Self,” where 11 women were encouraged to “discover their true identities by removing the masks that we wear in front of others,” Gebhart says.

The second backpacking trip, held at Big South Fork National Recreation Area in Tennessee, carried the theme of “Setting Priorities and Using Our Resources.” Ten students made this trek.

OWU has coordinated spring break Wilderness Trek trips for seven years, and the number of participants have grown steadily, Gebhart says. Half of the cost of each trip was funded by the Wesleyan Council on Student Affairs, with students raising money to help pay the remaining expenses.

Prior to leaving, the groups met to pray during a “Sending Service” held at Peale Chapel in Hamilton-Williams Campus Center. The students will reconvene for a celebration dinner Thursday to share photos and stories about their adventures.

– Linda O’Horo