Outdoor Program and Sports
Ben's Blog
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Outdoor Program & Sports
The Riverstone International School Outdoor Program is an integral part of the school's mission at every level and offers many wonderful opportunities to students. Beginning with an overnight kindergarten trip and culminating with a week-long senior backpacking trip, the program exposes students to a variety of environments in Idaho and throughout the West. By the time they graduate, students have explored the mountains and rivers of Idaho, the redrock desert of the Southwest, the rainforest coast of the Pacific Northwest, the high desert of Oregon and much more.
For photos and regular updates about the outdoor program, our ski and snowboard team and our football club (soccer team), visit Ben's Blog, written by outdoor director, Ben Brock.
RIVERSTONE SKI AND SNOWBOARD TEAM
The Riverstone Ski and Snowboard Team has competed in the Bogus Basin Race Program since the 2005-06 season. The program is open to Middle and High School students and is designed to get students out of the Boise valley and into the mountains located virtually out our back door. Skiers and snowboarders of all abilities are welcome on the team; many participants have never seen snow, while others have had significant competitive race experience.
THE 2008/09 RIVERSTONE FOOTBALL CLUB
The Riverstone Football Club competes in U-19 and U-14 Boys Division of the Idaho Rush Soccer Organization. The High School Select League is composed of co-ed teams whose players have chosen not to compete with their High School Varsity of Junior Varsity programs, or in the competitive division of the Idaho Rush program. The U-14 Otters compete and hold their own primarily against U-14 boys teams. The goal of both teams is to have fun, and to compete together to represent Riverstone International School.
BASKETBALL PROGRAM
Many Riverstone students in grades 8, 9 and 10 compete on the Riverstone Basketball Teams. The boys and girls teams begin practice in October and compete against local Junior High School teams through January. Despite playing the inaugural season winless until the final game of the year, it was clear that the program was here to stay. Students are proud to represent the school on the court and wear their jerseys to school on game days.
ELEMENTARY SCHOOL OUTDOOR PROGRAM
The Elementary School component of the Outdoor Program is intended to get kids outside and help them become comfortable in a variety of settings. Whether it is learning to set up a tent, rafting, snowshoeing, or hitting the trail, Elementary School students enjoy a wide range of exposure to the outdoors. Parents participate in many of the trips and help provide comfortable, safe experiences that leave kids wanting more. Many excursions are closely linked to topics students are studying in the classroom, creating a unique and lasting multi-disciplinary experience.
Elementary School Raft Trips on the Upper and Lower Main Payette River: Since its inception as Hidden Springs Community School in 1997, the back-to-school raft trip has been a staple of the outdoor program. Originally an all-school affair, the trip is now offered to Grades K through 5, and parents are welcome to participate. Grades K-2 float the Lower Main Payette, with one Class II+ rapid, and Grades 3-5 float the Upper Main Payette, with several fun Class III rapids. Cascade Raft and Kayak Company provides excellent guides and equipment.
Other Elementary Trips: In addition to the Elementary School raft trip in the fall, which all Elementary School students take part in, and a winter skating, skiing and snowshoeing program, students participate in grade level Spring Trips such as the following:
- Kindergarten: Overnight trip to the Montour Wildlife Refuge in the Black Canyon of the Payette.
- 1st Grade: Overnight trip to Farewell Bend State Park to sleep in teepees as part of the 1st grade Oregon Trail curriculum
- 2nd Grade: Four-day, three-night trip to fossil beds near Fossil, OR with the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI)
- 3rd Grade: Five-day, four-night coastal ecology trip to Camp Magruder with OMSI
- 4th Grade: Five-day, four-night car-camping trip to Northern Idaho, studying Nez Perce culture
- 5th Grade: Five-day, four-night trip watershed ecology trip to Bend, OR with OMSI
By the time they finish Elementary School, students have hiking and camping skills in a variety of environments and are aware of their connection to their surroundings. They are ready for the more challenging experiences they will encounter in Middle School.
For photos and regular updates about the outdoor program, visit Ben's Blog.
MIDDLE SCHOOL OUTDOOR PROGRAM
Fall Trips: The 6th Grade Fall Trip takes place at Redfish Lake and is a great way to start the year! As a back to school welcome and an outdoor skills primer, the trip mixes fun, self-care skills, and teambuilding/challenge elements and gives students and faculty leaders an opportunity to get to know each other as the year begins. Students come away well-prepared for the more demanding backcountry trips encountered in the Upper School.
Grades 7-9 participate in backpacking trips with High School students, and travel to a variety of lakes in the Sawtooth Mountains.
Winter Trips: January means it's time to head back to school ... and back to the mountains! Grades 8 and 9 will travel to the Boise Mountains where they will snowshoe to various yurts and backcountry winter camping sites just north of Idaho City. Based out of Banner Ridge, Elkhorn and Skyline Yurts, 8th Grade students will spend time profiling the snowpack as part of their "Watersheds" unit in science. Having spent time in Yurts the year before, 9th Grade students will build and stay in igloos and snow caves as they learn about winter adaptations in conjunction with their Biology class. Students discover how the environments they often experience during the spring, summer and fall change during the winter months. Activities include snowpack studies, winter travel and camping skills practice, and a few snowball fights.
Spring Trips: Spring Trips are the core of the Riverstone Outdoor Program, and Middle School students participate in some great ones! Trips take place around the West, exposing students to a variety of disciplines and environments. As a Riverstone faculty member exclaimed on a trip once, "If you don't know where you're from, you don't know who you are!" After a few Spring Trips, Middle School students know what it means to be from the Intermountain West.
Sample Spring Trip Destinations
- 6th Grade: Greater Yellowstone Ecology Trip, Jackson Hole, WY
- 7th Grade: John Day River Trip, OR
- 8th Grade: Hell's Canyon Trek, ID
For photos and regular updates about the outdoor program, visit Ben's Blog.
HIGH SCHOOL OUTDOOR PROGRAM
Fall Trips: Students in grades 10-12 participate in the Fall Backpacking trips with students in grades 7-9. As High School students, they act as student leaders, showing younger students the ropes. Sometimes this means being comfortable carrying a bit of a heavier pack, while other times it entails showing younger students how to filter water or use the cook stoves correctly.
During the first week of school, students in grades 6-12 head for the Sawtooth and White Cloud Mountains near Stanley, ID. Students in grade 8-12 backpack to and camp at various lakes and rivers in the area. Along the way they get to know new teachers, classmates and students in other grades. Trips are lead by teachers, faculty members, volunteer parents, as well as High School students to ensure a fun and safe experience.
Winter Trips: As the college applications process approaches, a significant amount of a High School student's time is devoted to academic pursuits, but the school makes sure to provide outdoor experiences whenever possible. Optional winter trips are available to High School students who stay on top of their studies and want to continue to develop their outdoor skills. A week-long Senior trip, which takes place in February, gives students a mental break as they make their final push towards the IB exams.
Spring Trips: The 10th Grade spring trip takes students the Olympic Coast in Washington for what can be the most demanding trip that Riverstone Students encounter. Potentially very wet weather and difficult terrain and surf conditions require that students apply all of the self-care and equipment skills that they have acquired in their previous years at Riverstone. That being said, it's always possible that students will be treated to incredibly beautiful sunny weather. It doesn't get much strikingly different from Idaho's high desert.
For photos and regular updates about the outdoor program, visit Ben's Blog.
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