The Times They Are A Changin'

Back from the field! Our course was split into two separate sections, a 23-day hiking section, followed by 12 days of rock climbing. Thirty-five days is a long time to spend out there when there's a lot of "life logistics" in motion.

Just before leaving for the hiking section, I sat down in a dungeon of a testing room in Meridian, Idaho to take the GRE (Graduate Record Exam). This test would be the final addition to my application for a Master's of Education program at the University of Washington. When our bus rolled away from Lander, bound for the Wind River Range, I had no idea how my test had gone.

For the next 22-days my mind often drifted to wondering whether my life would take a drastic shift or whether I'd return to NOLS and this lifestyle I've embraced so fully. It was a great breath of fresh air, however, to return to the mountains and find rejuvenation in simple living and the challenge of working with Instructor Course candidates. The Winds were spectacular, though the lack of snow is seriously concerning.


An early morning alpenglow in the northern Wind River Range, Wyoming.

Leaving the mountains, we returned to Lander for a brief six hour stint. Fortunately, Caitlin was returning from work in Boulder and was at the branch awaiting our arrival! After touching base with my co-instructors regarding the logistics for the rest of the day, I set off to shower and round up my climbing gear.

After getting cleaned up I decided I'd give the e-mail a check and see if there was any news regarding the status of my application. Upon first glance and staring at 137 e-mails, I overwhelmingly caved and figured I'd leave it until June. With this, I returned to my packing. But, just before I left to head back down to the NOLS Rocky Mountain branch, I gave my e-mail one final look. Three e-mails down from the top I opened an e-mail and found the following:

"Dear Mr. Riley A Hopeman, Congratulations! On behalf of the UW College of Education faculty, it is my pleasure to extend an offer of admission to the College’s MEd degree program, beginning in Autumn quarter 2012."

Woo hoo! Talk about a mind shift. Whoa. Life is about to change! But... For now, I'm headed to Split Rock to climb for 12 days. How do you put that news on hold? I didn't.

With phenomenal weather, we climbed! A lot! Split Rock is one of my favorite places to visit. The climbing is great, we're the only ones there, and the wildlife viewing is unbelievable. When I wasn't climbing, I was thinking about my next life steps. Heck, even when I was climbing I thought about it.


A brilliant light display following a rainstorm out at Split Rock, Wyoming.

Which brings us to the present. The past two days have been a flurry of activity with one of my best friend's weddings. It was a ton of fun and allowed me to spend some quality time with a number of people in my life who are incredibly important to me.

And now? I'm moving to Washington. We're moving to Washington. Soon. Very soon. The truck is half-packed soon. I'm excited. I'm nervous. I'm... living. I feel like this change is one of experiencing something really, really incredible and then creating a means to spread that experience to as many people as possible.

Here's to change! I'm can't wait to see what new opportunities and adventures this new pursuit brings.

Riley