by Irene Luck

In March 2020, the relatively unknown virus Covid-19 thrust the world into forced isolation, shutting down education systems, businesses, and public transportation. Wearing masks when out in public became as commonplace and normal as owning cell phones, but the drastically-reduced interaction among people challenged everyone.

For those who were used to seeing and interacting with others on a daily basis, the sudden isolation made people rethink how they utilized their time. Some learned to make bread or pick up a new skill while others searched to find ways to reach a new normal. As late winter turned into spring and summer, engaging in outdoor activities became sanity savers.

For Louisa County High School special education teacher and coach Patrick Miller, finding ways to occupy his time safely while combatting cabin fever transitioned from an activity to a hobby to a new club for LCHS students.

“The LC Hike Club really is a result of Covid like so many things in our present lives,” Miller said. “Schools shut down and cabin fever set in, so I began looking for an activity that was both time consuming and would be health positive.”

The search led Miller and his daughter Charlee-Ann, a current Louisa County Middle School seventh grader, to begin hiking on a weekly basis. The activity quickly turned into a hobby for the pair and has transitioned into a passionate endeavor in the last two years.

While hiking in the Shenandoah National Park, Miller said a thought sparked within him. “Why not bring this amazing lifestyle to the students at LCHS?” he thought.

As a coach, Miller is familiar with the requirement to keep active and fit in order to perform at peak levels in a sport. However, he knew that enjoying the outdoors at this level would be beneficial to all students and help develop lifelong skills.

“It would not only enable Louisa youth to see the beauty that Virginia has to offer, but also allow a new platform for socialization and connection with individuals many would typically never come into contact with,” he said. “Nature and overcoming challenges both have a way of bringing people together, and this is precisely what we attempt to provide through LC Hike.”

When Miller returned to school in August of 2021, he spread the word about the new club, and the response was overwhelming. “We had an astounding 240 students sign up for the club in its inaugural year,” Miller said.

Those students, along with their chaperones, tackled seven of Virginia’s spectacular trails over the course of the 2021-2022 school year. They took on Mt. Pleasant, Cole Mountain, McAfee Knob, and White Rock Falls in the George Washington National Forest as well as Stony Man, Bearfence, and Hawksbill in the Shenandoah National Park.

“I joined the hiking club during its first year,” said Keira Apple. “I love hiking but rarely got the opportunity to set time aside for it.”

Eleanor Pekary said she joined the club because she already had a connection with Miller and is avid about getting outdoors and being active. Member Savannah Bragg explained that she loves experiencing new things and felt the hiking club would offer unique opportunities to experience new places every month alongside teachers and peers.

Following completion of each hike, the group reassembles to be sure everyone is accounted for before enjoying lunch together. During this meal, they celebrate their personal and team victories and accomplishments.

“My favorite part about all the hikes is not only the incredible views, but the fact you get to share that experience with your friends,” Bragg said.

Pekary agrees. “My favorite part is the summit! It is absolutely so rewarding to reach the destination of the hike,” she said. “And, of course, the easy hike back down.”

Sam Klapak most enjoys the break from technology. “Being able to spend time with my friends outside of school and away from technology since there is never any service on the hikes so nobody is on their phone or anything,” he said. “Everyone just lives in the moment.”

“Reflecting back, it is blatantly evident that relationships and friendships were formulated amongst this incredibly diverse student population because of this newfound activity and the opportunity it offered,” Miller said.

After realizing the overwhelming interest among the student body for this activity, Miller decided to expand its vision. Following the conclusion of the 2021-2022 school year, he reached out to WorldStrides, an educational travel company, to partner for a trip out west over the summer.

While these longer summer treks such as the one out west in 2022 and the Alaska adventure planned for 2023 are not directly affiliated with LC Hike, Miller does promote it to club hikers to offer them the opportunity to go with him.

“I wanted members of LC Hike to be able to experience something outside of the Virginia norm,” he said. “Twenty travelers and myself flew to Las Vegas, Nevada, where we embarked on a trip of a lifetime.”

The group hiked, climbed, and scrambled all over Valley of Fire, Zion National Park, and Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah, the Grand Canyon in Arizona, and Red Rock National Preserve and Lake Mead in Nevada.

“The participants experienced various landscapes and cultures that exist within the specific geographic region of our nation,” he said. “It is an extreme belief that life experience and travel enables any young individual the opportunity to personally grow, evolve, and become more adapted to the world.”

During the 2022-2023 school year, the club has expanded to over 300 LCHS members who meet during Green Club Days. LC Hike has a goal of at least one hike a month within Virginia. They are also planning another summer trip, this time to Alaska, where they will explore Denali National Park, Seward, Anchorage, and Kenai Fjords National Park.

“While the primary basis of the trip is hiking and student relations, we will also have the opportunity to experience dog sleds, glacier kayaking, and the culture and wildlife that resides throughout the Alaska region,” Miller said.

To offset the cost of the trip, student hikers who are going are raising funds by sponsoring the second annual LC Hike Earth Day Cornhole Tournament this spring, a raffle featuring YETI products, and selling chocolates.

“My personal involvement with the club and the honor of providing this opportunity to our LCHS student population has been absolutely life changing,” Miller said.

All four students interviewed highly encourage anyone to join the club.

“I would tell someone who is interested in the hiking club to ‘go for it.’ The members and teachers are all very friendly and positive and will help you if you are struggling on a hike,” Klapak said. “It is important to be in decent shape, but you don’t have to be a professional hiker to attend the trips. It is a unique opportunity where you go to amazing places, connect with nature, and create long-lasting memories.”

Apple agrees. “If you haven’t done a lot of hiking before, this gives you more of a reason to join, for the experience and perspective change in a good way,” she said. “Personally, I’ve never regretted a hike I have done, even if it doesn’t have a pretty view at the top, because it’s all about the journey to get there.”

Since the hikes are of varying difficulty, hikers can choose which best fit their skill level. Because the hikes get more difficult as the year progresses, hikers can acclimate to the hiking experience at their own pace.

With such a diverse population in the club, the students all commented on how they have made new friends while enjoying the journey with old ones.

“Being in a different environment with your friends brings you closer to them, and that’s what I really value,” Apple said. “I have also gotten a healthier mindset from the club – one of getting daily exercise and enjoying nature, not to mention appreciating the beauty within the state [of] Virginia so much more.”

Pekary welcomes the opportunity the club offers to get out and move in nature, but also because it has opened her up to new people she never would have met. Because the club is so large, the demographic is diverse, and it allows her the chance to meet new people and learn from their perspectives.