Final Training Retreat

We are so excited that our final retreat is this weekend!  If any of you haven't heard yet, we will be camping at Redwood Regional Park in Oakland.  We have a great campsite, the weather promises to be beautiful, and we have a ton of great activities planned.  The theme of this retreat is stepping out of your comfort zone and taking risks, and we will also have lots of great bonding time with each other, some fabulous creative activities, and also some surprises!

Our retreat this weekend will be at Redwood Regional Park (7867 Redwood Road, Oakland, CA 94619; http://www.ebparks.org/parks/redwood).  The best way to get there is to arrive at the Redwood Gate, at Redwood Road near Skyline.  When you enter the park, follow signs to the Canyon Meadow Staging Area, which is the closest parking lot to our campsite (Trail's End Campsite).  We will gather in the parking lot and walk together to the campsite.  Directions are pasted at the end of this email.

Please arrive fully packed with everything you will need for the summer!  We want you to have practice with packing your backpack or duffel bag, and be familiar with how much you will be bringing and your ability to carry it.  If you still have a few lingering questions about what you should pack, we will be available to answer them during the weekend--but in the meantime please do the best you can to pack fully. 

In addition to what you will need for the summer, please bring:
- Your Volunteer Handbook, Program Guide, and Health and Safety Handbook
- A pen or pencil
- Your own (NON-DISPOSABLE) plate or bowl, utensils and cup
- A waterbottle
- A flashlight or headlamp
- A sleeping bag
- Camping pad or mat -- unless you would prefer to sleep on the ground!


The retreat will begin at 12 noon on Saturday, and pickup time will be approximately 12:30 on Sunday.  We will NOT be able to provide lunch on either day and we will have a very full schedule, so please arrive already fed on Saturday -- or at the very least, bring some food that you can eat there. 

If at the packing meeting you volunteered to bring a tent, gracias!  Please make sure to label every part of your tent with your name -- we would hate for any piece of your tent to get mixed up with someone else's. 

If you do not have a sleeping bag or any other gear you'll need, please let us know and we will help arrange for some people to bring extra gear to share. 


Directions to Redwood Park:
The main entrance, Redwood Gate, is on Redwood Road in Oakland about two miles east of Skyline Blvd. In Oakland on Highway 13, take the Redwood Road exit and go east (uphill). At the top of the hill you will cross Skyline Boulevard and pass the Skyline Ranch Equestrian Center on the right. Farther along you will pass Piedmont Stables on the left. Big Bear Staging Area will be on the right about one and one-half miles from Skyline Boulevard, followed by MacDonald Staging Area on the right and Redwood Gate on the left.


Please let us know if you have any other questions, and we will see you on Saturday!

Abrazos,

Liz, Laura and the Training Staff