As Thanksgiving rounded the corner for another year of celebrating togetherness, the State High Outing Club carried on its tradition of Trailsgiving, a yearly competition to see who can cook the best Thanksgiving dishes. It serves as a chance for the club to get together and celebrate the holiday’s festivities with friends and a pinch of competition.
Trailsgiving is one of many things the Outing Club does. State High Senior Eli Carey explained the Outing Club’s activities. “We tend to have, like, two or three backpacking trips per year. Usually, we try and get one or two-day backpacking trips in the spring,” Carey said. The club focuses on backpacking trips, but also does day hikes and other outdoor-related activities throughout the year.
Trailsgiving is a Thanksgiving-themed trail food-making competition. The group of about 14 students divides into teams to plan their meals and compete. On the day of the event, the students hike out to the Allen Seeger Pavillion near Rothrock State Forest where they spend the evening cooking and competing.
“Whichever group makes the best food that they brought in their backpack and can cook wins Trailsgiving,” Carey said. He described it as “overall a great time.”
Carey’s team placed first, making cream of mushroom soup, campfire bread, and mountain pies. The reward for winning was an unusual prize.”We got a big ol’ squash. I still have it in my house,” Carey said.
Even though Carey joined the club only last year, he has thoroughly enjoyed its various activities. “I did Trailgiving and the fall backpacking trip last year. Both were much fun,” Carey said.
Beyond these activities, joining and experiencing some of the events help foster and build a community and get to know others better.
“There are tons of great people in it, and overall, it is a great time,” Carey said.
Ellie Kauffman, a member since her freshman year and the treasurer of the Outing Club described the club’s plans for the rest of the school year. “We are hoping to do both a winter campout and a spring campout later in the year,” Kauffman said.
Kauffman also shared a little bit of her experience with the club in prior years. “It [the winter campout] got down to like 10 degrees, and we had to sign a permission slip to make sure you knew what you were getting into,” Kauffman said.
Even with the freezing weather Kauffman said that she had a lot of fun, and would “100% do it again.”
Overall, the Outing Club’s Trailsgiving event embodies the club as a warm, welcoming community of people who love the outdoors and want to celebrate it through a friendly competition. Trailsgiving will return in the coming years for anyone interested in joining the club, and all festivities in the club will continue.
