Author Archive

Fall Photo Comp 2011

The DHE Photo Competition Winner for 2011 was announced today on Facebook. Liana Ray wins a $50 iTunes gift card and a box of Deer Hill goodies for her beautiful, intimate and unusual picture of bighorn sheep on the Green River, Utah. Runners-up Josh Espy and Mollye Zahler win Deer Hill goodies to remind them …

Our Sweat Lodge Ceremony

A Tradition of Closure and Sharing In our meadow there sits a simple domed structure of willow branches that we cover with fabric to shut out the light and hold in the heat. We sit in a Circle in the lodge, steam rising off rocks that were heated outside in a wood fire. The …

In Grand Gulch

“Down in the canyon I grew a little, understood a little more, perceived even more, and in doing split the carapace of time and place I commonly wear. Split it, wriggled out of it, left it there, a stiff and empty shell to be blown away by a canyon wind. The new skin was extra …

Helping, Fixing, or Serving? How to think about Community Service

It is a warm Arizona day at the sheep ranch, which is located on a hillside outside the tiny settlement of Low Mountain, about three hours drive from the nearest town. Next to a sheep pen, in the slanting shadows of the late afternoon sun, a group of Deer Hill students are working with their …

Gallery: Deer Hill Details

In the last gallery post, we gathered together some of our favorite landscape photographs taken on Deer Hill adventure summer camp programs. This time, we thought we would “zoom in” a little, and focus on some of the smaller things we notice as we travel through the wilderness areas of the Southwest and Costa Rica, …

Spring!

We woke up this morning and the Easter bunny had come to visit, hiding treats all over Deer Hill. In the office, staff room, and even in the garden. (Thanks to our lovely spring interns Corey, Elise and Britt for that!) Depending on where you are, some of you may have been gardening for weeks, …

We're Reading: Growing Roots

Durango author Katherine Leiner departs from her usual material and style with her new book, “Growing Roots”. Ms Leiner steps away from fiction to investigate another of her passions, cooking, and the growing movement towards – or return to – high quality, locally-produced food. “Growing Roots – The New Generation of Sustainable Farmers, Cooks, and …

Deer Hill landscapes

From desert mesas to mountains, from majestic red rock canyons to gushing mountain streams, and from expansive sheep ranches on the Navajo Nation to the ancient pueblos of Hopi and Zuni, here are just a few of the landscapes you can experience on a Deer Hill program.

Alaska and back on veggie oil

This is a guest post from Emily Capelin, daughter of Doug and Beverly, the Founders and owners of Deer Hill. Now 24, Emily grew up at Deer Hill, and has been a well-loved member of our field staff for several years now. Here she describes a trip she made to Alaska in a truck fueled …

More Magic! Remembering DHE

This is a guest post from Allison Dobscha, from Portland, OR, who attended our Wilderness Leadership program this past summer. Thank you to Allison for putting her experience into such lovely words. When people ask me what I did over the summer, my answer seems to change every time. I’m not quite sure how to …