We are a group of outdoor guides and teachers who have worked with children for many years. Our experiences have led us to believe that kids can learn and grow tremendously by exploring together in nature.
Our goal is to create a fun and enriching exploring club where kids will learn, build new friendships, and foster positive relationships with nature. All Ramblin' Adventure Club outdoor teachers have been finger printed and background checked, and we are fully insured.
Our goal is to create a fun and enriching exploring club where kids will learn, build new friendships, and foster positive relationships with nature. All Ramblin' Adventure Club outdoor teachers have been finger printed and background checked, and we are fully insured.
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Anika Lehr, Kindergarten TeacherUCSC B.A. Psychology and Sociology, Special Education Teachers Assistant Union Mine High School, Preschool Teacher’s Aid, Spanish Bilingual, CPR & First Aid Certified, Teaching at Ramblin' since 2016
Albert Einstein once said, "Look deep into nature and you will understand everything better." I could not agree more. Growing up on five acres in the back country of the Sierra Nevadas, I grew up with a special connection to nature. With endless benefits to behavioral, cognitive, and motor skill development, nature is also filled with intricate beauty. Being outside, I believe you can find a greater sense of self and others. Additionally, there are learning opportunities in each ecosystem and community of connection and respect. Nature provides the perfect playground and classroom environment to teach lifelong skills. |
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Courtney Castaños, Substitute TeacherRamblin’ Adventure Club Co-Founder, Certified California Naturalist, UCSC Masters in Education & B.A. in Art, California Multiple Subject Teaching Credential, Santa Cruz Adventurers Founder
When I take kids out hiking the first thing I notice is a shift in temperament; they relax, become engaged with their senses, they giggle loudly and run wild or become solemn and focused and fix themselves on investigating. As an educator who had worked with children for 15 years I dreamed of becoming a classroom teacher. I wanted to be that teacher that I rarely got as a public school student, inspiring, empathetic, creative and caring. After working in public school classrooms and seeing first hand the negative effects ever increasing budget cuts, classroom sizes, and heavy emphasis on high stakes testing has on hard working teachers and students I realized the classroom wasn’t for me. I shifted from 32 students to 12, from circle rugs to redwood circles, from textbooks to field guides and instead of worksheets we have newts, acorns, miner’s lettuce and limestone. |
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Cypress Appley, Kindergarten TeacherProspective Environmental Studies Student, Teacher at Headwaters Outdoor School, Top Favorite Babysitter to Many Santa Cruz Kiddos, Teaching at Ramblin' since 2019
I grew up in the Santa Cruz mountains near Big Basin where I was lucky enough to have endless opportunities to explore nature. As a kid growing up surrounded by nature my favorite things to do were catch lizards, climb trees and explore the canyons and creeks around my house. Since then I have taken classes and taught at Headwaters Outdoor School where I was able to further my interest in nature skills. This connection to the natural world from a young age has had a huge positive impact on me and I’m so happy to be able to share my passion about nature exploration with the next generation of woodland adventurers! |
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Jacob Gibson, Substitute Teacher
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Katie Simpson, Teaches Grades 1st-5thCity College of New York Studio Art MFA, Portland State University Fine Art BA, Teacher with The Arts Council's Mariposa Arts and SPECTRA programs, Teaching at Ramblin' since 2019
I grew up in the woods in Aptos, and am super excited to have recently returned to the Monterey bay. I hike or go to the beach every day now that I'm back in Santa Cruz. Nature has always been an important part of my life, and the main topic of the art I make and teach. I've always been inspired by being outside, and working in nature with young people. Learning opportunities are everywhere outdoors, and we can't help but find inspiration and have great conversations about science, art, language, math (and every topic you can imagine) when we are outside exploring together. I am so excited to be working with Ramblin' this year, and can't imagine a better place to help children learn about themselves and the world. |
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Lauren Berger, Teaches Grades 1st-5thUCSC B.A. Literature, Certified California Naturalist, Life Lab Intern, Carlsbad Seaside Academy Assistant, CPR & Wilderness First Aid Certified, Teaching at Ramblin' since 2018
What inspires me most is the beauty found in nature. I am grateful for the opportunity to pass the wonderful experiences of the outdoors onto young minds. Exploring deserts, forests, and the coast of California as a kid has profoundly shaped the person I am today. As I work towards my B.A. in Literature at UCSC, I have been granted with wonderful opportunities to intern at outdoor education programs. I have gained insights into the benefits of experiential learning, not only in what I have learned from spending time outdoors, but witnessing the multitude of benefits it has for kids. Through exploring Redwood Groves, climbing ancient Oaks, and wading along creeks, a different kind of knowledge is gained outside of the realms of a classroom. Driftwood forts inspire creativity, sensitive environments evoke empathy, and tree climbs foster confidence. My goal with Ramblin’ is to aid in the formation of harmonious relationships between children and nature, and in turn joyful ecosystems and minds. |
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Lily Brown-Solowiej, Kindergarten TeacherEnvironmental Science Student, Naturalist Institute, Camp Campbell Outdoor Science School Intern, CPR & Wilderness First AID Certified, Teaching at Ramblin' since 2017
Being outside was really important to me as a child, so when I started to volunteer as a cabin leader at outdoor education programs for children I was shocked to learn how many of these children had never spent time outside. Many of them were afraid to even sit on the ground! Because of this I have spent the last two years working to show children the outdoors and growing my own knowledge to help spread the magic of the natural world. |
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Mahala Volpe, 1st-5th Grade Teacher
CSUMB B.A. Environmental Education, Teacher's Aid at Loma Prieta Elementary, Kids N Co. Camp Counselor, CPR & Wilderness First AID Certified, Teaching at Ramblin' since 2016
Growing up the Santa Cruz Mountains allowed my love of the natural world to blossom. I would spend my days playing in the creek, traversing mountains and hunting caterpillars/butterflies. Once I hit double digits, my dad brought me to the backcountry where I realized that I could spend my days teaching others of the beauty around them. I currently attend CSUMB for Environmental Education in hopes to help others establish a love of their natural world through adventuring the same way I did as a child. Happy trails! |
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Melissa Moyers, 1st-5th Grade TeacherUCSC B.A. Environmental Studies, UCSC Arboretum Intern, Ken Norris Center Intern, Kresge Garden Intern, Homeless Garden Project Intern, Teaching at Ramblin' since 2017
Growing up in Atlanta, I would regularly trailblaze through the woods in my backyard to arrive at the Chattahoochee River which became a second home to me. My love for the outdoors started with camping and gardening and expanded to belly botany, farming, bird watching, taxidermy, mycology, outdoor education, plant medicine, and much more. The mysteriously intriguing redwood forest and passion-filled Pacific pulled me out to Santa Cruz where I studied agroecology, natural history, and sociology. I graduated in June 2019 with a B.A. in Environmental Studies. My life continues to be enhanced daily by the outdoors, where I am reminded of the grandness of simplicity. Nature serves as a source of support, inspiration, and spirituality to me. I would love to guide others to find their special connection to the outdoors. I think it is important that we not forget us humans are nature as is everything else... This is being forgotten in the modern age along with the connection us humans have to our natural surroundings. Outside I am reminded of the connections everywhere I look from the fungus on the trees, limbs of trees used as nests, or a worm-filled beak of a hermit thrush. These connections inspire curiosity and empathy which allows the outdoors to be the perfect classroom and playground to explore the connections one has to each other, ourselves, and the outdoors. |
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Zoe Bartlett Burgess, Substitute TeacherRecent Graduate of Mount Madonna, Original Rambler, Prospective Biochemistry and Genetic Engineering Student, CPR & First Aid Certified, Teaching at Ramblin' since 2016
Zoe is one of the first Ramblin’ Adventurers to ever hit the trail. They have rambled around Santa Cruz County since they were eight years old and are excited to join the crew now as a trailguide! Zoe enjoys scuba diving, kayaking, surfing, rock climbing, adventuring, and above all else, a good book. Here is what they have to say, “A lifelong rambler, time in nature brings out a childishness in me that really allows me to connect and have fun with our ramblers. It is my hope that I can teach the next generation of ramblers to play respectfully and with joy, just as Courtney taught me. |
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Nick Bischoff, 1st Grade TeacherAssociation for Environmental and Outdoor Education Northern California Outdoor Educator of the Year 2018, UCSC B.A. in Community Studies, Certified California Naturalist, Certified Wilderness First Responder, Red Cross CPR Certified, Teaching at Ramblin' since 2015
I grew up creek walking, catching lizards behind my elementary school, and mountain biking Marin’s fire roads. These experiences had a huge impact on me growing up and I want to share it with others. I believe it is important to get outside, take some time to explore what is around us, and to connect to this amazing diverse local ecosystem. There are a lot of benefits of having children play outside including, improved creativity, problem solving, and social relations. Every child should have the opportunity to explore the natural world and have the opportunity to connect to place, community, and nature. |
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Travis Gibbs, 3rd to 5th Grade TeacherUCSC B.A. in History, Santa Cruz County of Education Substitute Teacher, English Teacher Abroad in Peru, Certified California Naturalist, Certified Wilderness First Responder, CPR Certified, Teaching at Ramblin' since 2017
I have been very blessed to live in Santa Cruz for the last 6 years. I have made it a goal in my life to balance my experience and knowledge. I went to UCSC and graduated with my BA in history. During my undergraduate work I studied Spanish and also played trombone with a band that I helped develop and I continue to play with. Living is Santa Cruz also allowed me to experience one of my favorite activities. Being outdoors. Over the past 10 years I have done a lot of hiking and exploring in various countries and landscapes. I have enjoyed exploring the mountains, beaches and waterways of Santa Cruz. I have also done multiple day backpacking trips. Last year I ended my summer with a 60+ mile hike through Yosemite. I think that living in Santa Cruz provides a very special opportunity to be in contact with natural environments. As exposure to these less developed areas increases an awareness of the delicate balance of natural environments can increase as well. While exploring and having fun in nature is a wonderful experience, developing a healthy respect for this delicate balance and the impact outside forces can have on it is essential and a privilege for the youth in this area. |
A huge thank you to all of the wonderful teachers who have supported Ramblin' over the years. Ramblin' would not be the program it is today without all of the hard work, dedication, and love you put into teaching and caring for our students. To see our past teachers and where they have gone on in their careers click the button below: