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Throughout last week sixth graders at Chisago Lakes Middle School enjoyed a special field trip, taken in two sessions, at the Wolf Ridge Environmental Learning Center in northern Minnesota.

Wolf Ridge is an accredited school, west of Lake Superior between Little Marais and Finland, off Hwy. 6. "It was really cold, but there's was plenty of snow," was the most heard comment. "The peach cobbler was excellent," was probably second-most uttered by kids coming home.

The first group of students traveled by coach bus caravan for their session beginning Monday, ending Wednesday. The second caravan left the school Wednesday, bringing the second half of the sixth grade class to participate Thursday and returning late Friday.

The Wolf Ridge Environmental Learning Center offers immersion programs involving direct observation and participation in outdoor experiences.

There's cross country skiing, snowshoeing, outdoor obstacle courses and team-building exercises that encourage scientific discovery, personal growth and an appreciation for the environment. Students could observe animals and habitat and enjoy trails and skills stations for students and adult chaperones to do climbing, enjoy the thrill of a zip line, etc. Indoors, students could be involved in a variety of crafts and pitched in on operations of the center such as kitchen duty.

For details about the center see www.wolf-ridge.org.

The middle school has been involved in Wolf Ridge programming for many years. Sixth grade students pay $150 (chaperones also pay to participate) for their trip and are able to do fundraisers to underwrite trip fees, and scholarships are supported locally.

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