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Category: Careers Outdoors

A Homecoming in the Outdoors

por Nadia Rodríguez

Growing up in Queens, New York within a Latino immigrant family the closest I got to being outdoors was the neighborhood playground, along with occasional trips to Central and Flushing Meadow Park. These were short day trips that consisted of barbecues, lawn lounging, and sneaking over to the handball courts to crush on whatever dreamy boy was around. In essence, these were socializing opportunities and not necessarily moments designed to commune in nature.

the experience was torturous; my only escape was the woods.

My interest in the outdoors was originally ignited during a short residency I had in the Upstate New York area. I was 6 or 7 years old and was sent off to live in a now-defunct facility called the Asthmatic Children’s Foundation (ACF) for a year or so. Though my parents had the best intentions in placing me there, the experience was torturous; my only escape was the woods. Nestled in between a network of lush trees, mountains, and lakes stood an industrially designed single-story building where I was housed with other Brown and Black asthmatic city kids. We all had different issues acclimating to our new surroundings and reacted accordingly. Some acted out while others created alternative families with the other kids. I did a little of both, but I also made the surrounding woods my haven. I hid amongst the trees, ran in fields, caught tadpoles, and made up imaginary worlds to escape into. Once my parents recognized how unhappy I was living there, they pulled me out and brought me back home. I was happy to be back, but I missed the woods. I missed the feeling of being alone yet connected to something bigger than myself even if I didn’t recognize that feeling for what it was at the time. It wouldn’t be until my adult years that I would ever really get to visit the woods in the same way.

My interest in the outdoors was reignited by the promise of a trip to Alaska that did not end up panning out. And although I was unable to make it that far out into the Northwest, I was determined to make it as far out as I could. I reached out to a good friend who lived in Washington State and shared my plan with him. He offered me his support, a place to stay, and his company on my journey. So with that in mind I bought a ticket, trained weekly, and started collecting gear for my trip. To say that this experience changed my life would be an understatement—it was a homecoming. We ended up driving through and camping out on Mt. Rainier, hiking arbitrary trails that caught our fancy along the way. Everything up there felt magical, lush, and picturesque, like a postcard or state emblem come to life. I could taste the earth in the air.

Spending time outdoors is how I find peace and connection, not only to the Earth, but to my ancestors who lived off the Earth. It is my inheritance.

Every sight I saw, every moment experienced, I experienced with my heart in my throat and excitement pulsing through my veins. It was a spiritual awakening of sorts and I haven’t looked back since. Spending time outdoors is how I find peace and connection, not only to the Earth, but to my ancestors who lived off the Earth. It is my inheritance. The outdoors were and continue to be my sanctuary. As Frank Lloyd Wright said “I put a capital N on nature and call it my church.”

Nadia enjoys a homecoming at Mt. Rainier National Park.

Being in contact with nature has tremendous healing powers and it belongs to us all. Too often Brown and Black communities do not have the same access to outdoor spaces as white Americans do, and we lose touch with nature and our connection to it. It is imperative that we maintain our lineage to the Earth and allow ourselves to experience everything the outdoors has to offer when we have the opportunity to do so. My hope is that we continue to create more and more opportunities for ourselves and for our communities.

Nadia Rodriguez is a hiking/camping enthusiast from New York who takes special interest in social and environmental justice, and equity advocacy. She works for the National Audubon Society and contributes to the organization’s ED&I efforts. She’s also the Co-Owner of Luna Ruda, an online retail business selling ethically sourced – fair trade products from South American artisans. Nadia enjoys spending time with her son, thrifting & record shopping, and engaging in self-care practices.

My Connection to Nature

por Erynn Castellanos

Growing up we’re told stories about el chupacabra and la llorona, stories our grandparents and parents told us so we wouldn’t be out en la calle all hours of the night as kids, stories on why we should fear the outdoors. These stories helped us believe the narrative that the woods are still a place for us to fear, a place our padres warned us about, places to never go alone.

My grandparents grew up in Sula, San Martín de Hidalgo in Jalisco Mexico, a tiny pueblo a few miles outside of Guadalajara. They moved to the United States when my grandmother was sixteen and my father was a couple months old in the early 1970’s. They settled in Lincoln Heights, California at the height of a polarized political climate. The anti-Latino movement encouraged my parents to stay indoors and to avoid traveling to isolated woods alone. Their concept of the outdoors now meant being outside in the streets, an unsafe place with bullets and gang members. Their connection to nature instead happened in small urban backyard lots.

My grandmother was an environmentalist without being an “environmentalist”. She showed me that I could have a garden filled with limones, guavas, bananas, yerba buena, and nopales. I could water that garden by using the bucket that awkwardly sat in the shower with me so that no drop would be wasted. She taught me how to love her garden, how to be self sufficient and how to feel at peace in nature. My grandma wasn’t an environmentalist, she was a survivor that used every piece of everything she had.

When I was 8 my family moved from Lincoln Heights to a suburb 25 miles East of Los Angeles. When I was stressed my mother would take me, usually against my will, to go for long walks with her “far away” (about 20 miles away) from home. These little adventures became the only thing that would take me out of the complications of my day to day life. I began to find the beauty in morning runs and the feeling of accomplishment in dominating vistas overlooking the valley.

Erynn Castellanos

I was easily labeled as an Environmentalist with a capital “E”, meaning my family thought I was crazy when I became a vegetarian in middle school, and took up sewing patches on my clothes instead of throwing them away. When I got older I wanted to go on hikes with my friends, they called me a crazy adventurer because I didn’t fear the outdoors like they did. Although I had a strong connection to the outdoors, especially the small pockets of nature in my urban jungle, it wasn’t until I finished my degree that I wanted to reform environmental education in my community.

While I was going to school for Communications and Political Science from California State University, Northridge, I began working for an environmental nonprofit. I found some of the biggest challenges in the organization was trying to assist homes of people living in climate vulnerable neighborhoods how their lifestyles could be more sustainable. There was a significant absence of representation at meetings and seminars. Attending these meetings led me to understand that the reasons these issues were present correlated with the lack of access to spaces of nature, and the lack of environmental curriculum in these neighborhoods.

Erynn Castellanos

I am currently the only person of color in my environmental studies cohort in Montana. Now I am looking to be a leader in making the environment a more equitable and welcoming place for people needing to find the same peace and escape that I found. My hope is that in the near future, jobs in conservation, environmental science, and nonprofit work will be flooded with applicants of all colors and backgrounds. I also hope the fear surrounding the Latino community in the outdoors can be faced with the same explorative courage our ancestors(my grandmother) had when they wanted to create a better life for their children

Erynn Castellanos is a Los Angeles area native with a desire to change her city and the world for the better. She graduated from California State University, Northridge with a degree in Communications and Political Science and is currently attending the University of Montana Graduate School for Environmental Studies. Her passions include exploring cities, forests, and literature. Along with pursuing her M.S., Erynn also works to promote educating children (K-5) about Earth sustainability.

Una vida llena de Aventuras.

por Anibal Rocheta

Apenas tenía 16 años de edad cuando decidí; junto a un primo, experimentar una nueva aventura, en el Parque Nacional Cueva de la Quebrada del Toro, en Falcón, Venezuela. Tomamos una cuerda vieja que estaba en mi casa y una linterna; y justo allí emprendimos camino a lo que sería el inicio de mi carrera como montañista. Recuerdo que ninguno de los dos teníamos conocimiento absoluto en el área, no estábamos para nada capacitados, pero la adrenalina y el deseo de aventurar, se apoderó por completo de nuestras mentes y de lo que sería en un futuro, una vida llena de retos.

ANIBAL ROCHETA

Durante ese viaje aprendí muchas cosas, sobre todo a acampar, además el hecho de tener que saber cómo administrar tus pocos recursos durante un fin de semana, fue un completo reto. Utilizar la justa energía de la linterna, las provisiones para la comida y también aprender a identificar sonidos de la naturaleza es realmente maravilloso ¡Wow, una experiencia inolvidable! Dentro del parque nacional había una cueva acuática muy poca conocida, pero no existía mapas ni guías turísticos, prácticamente no había información alguna de ella. A pesar de la imprudencia (éramos unos adolescentes) adentramos a la cueva. Mi primo se amarró la cuerda a la cintura (él era mi ancla) y yo inicié ese recorrido, nadando, pataleando, observando cada detalle de aquél inmenso monumento, pude observar por primera vez murciélagos en su hábitat natural, peces sin ojos, salamandras pálidas, guácharo (oilbird), y otros animales. Luego de ese maravilloso encuentro único con la naturaleza, nos tocó caminar unos 10 kilómetros, por un camino de tierra que nos llevaría a dónde estaría el transporte y posteriormente unas 5 horas en carretera a casa. Esto fue en definitiva, punta de lanza para sumergirme en el mundo “outdoor” hasta el sol de hoy.

ANIBAL ROCHETA

Con el tiempo, ya había hecho unos ahorros suficientes y decidí invertirlo en comprar buenos equipos, un bolso, una mejor linterna, carpas y algunos elementos esenciales que me servirían para las siguientes excursiones. A partir de ese momento, salieron diversas actividades que pude realizar durante mi juventud, como: Canyoneering (rappel dentro de cascadas), Puénting (saltar desde un puente en una plataforma a 150 metros del suelo), Escalar mi primera montana fuera de mis frontera (Perú), Caving (explorar la cueva del Guácharo, ruta no turística, una exploración que duró casi 26 horas dentro de la cueva) además aprendí de: escalada, montañismo, hiking y parapente. Asistí a competencias nacionales y experimenté el mundo de una manera única y “loca”, sí, asimismo porque el mundo es de los locos que nos atrevemos y que a pesar de los temores y riesgo disfrutamos cada minuto de adrenalina. Poco después, con tanta experiencia práctica y muchas capacitaciones, pude abrir mi propia empresa llamada Aguedo Xpeditions, la cual me permitía ayudar a las personas a introducirse al mundo “outdoor”, enseñándoles también a como a canalizar sus miedos y a mostrarles el uso adecuado de los equipos y los riesgos que se pueden tener en cada experiencia. Sin embargo, hacíamos cosas muy sencillas como caminatas en cuevas por pasillos estrechos, rutas de observación de naturaleza y descenso por cascadas con grandes niveles de agua.

ANIBAL ROCHETA

Una vida de aventura implica muchas veces alejarse de tu familia y seres queridos, pasar tiempo metido en la selva o en la montaña es algo que no todo el mundo está dispuesto a asumir. En mi caso, siempre he sido muy inquieto y con el pasar del tiempo y las experiencias pude patentar esta grandiosa aventura a la televisión nacional de mi País, con un experimento entre varios compañeros del mundo outdoor y en aquél entonces la que fuese mi novia y hoy mi esposa y compañera de vida: María Teresa, viajamos por todo el país recorriendo ríos, lagos, montañas, cuevas, haciendo un show de tv de alta definición que se denominó: Expedición 20:09 y se logró establecer por casi 5 años. Hoy día, los vientos han cambiado un poco y esa búsqueda de conocer otros puntos cardinales, me mude a los estados unidos hace ya dos años, en donde por ahora me he establecido junto a mi esposa, digo por ahora porque nunca sabes cuál será el siguiente nivel en una vida llena de aventuras constantes. Actualmente, he estado desarrollando un proyecto dirigido a la comunidad latina en USA y el mundo, llamada LOCO POR LA AVENTURA. Donde a través de información técnica, fotos, tips de seguridad y consejos prácticos podrás hacer del mundo “outdoor” un lugar seguro y divertido. Así que: ¡NOS VEMOS EN SU SIGUIENTE AVENTURA!

ANIBAL ROCHETA es Venezolano, Guía profesional de aventura, camarógrafo y fotógrafo. Aníbal, liderizó expediciones de montaña en Venezuela y Perú. Con más de 15 años de experiencia, es distinguido como guía de montaña en la sierra de San Luis (Falcón – Venezuela); en dónde emprendió su amor por la naturaleza y dirigió excursiones en distintas cuevas. Actualmente, vive en Portland, Oregón; desarrollando un magnifico proyecto 4k denominado “Loco por la Aventura”.