By Arnav Gupta

SAN JOSE, CALIF.-The Death Valley field trip, planned to occur from Nov. 9 to Nov. 15, is an educational expedition in which students will visit a variety of locations and dig deeper into academic topics.

The party of around 24 students, Wil Henninger, the organizer, and three to four other staff members plan to leave San Jose at 4 a.m. and arrive at Death Valley at around 2 p.m. The six day field trip is aimed to educate students on the geology, climate, ecology and history surrounding the Death Valley. Visiting naturally formed landscapes, such as canyons, sand dunes and manmade settlements are both on the trip’s agenda.

From Dante’s View, a significant viewpoint of Death Valley, students will be studying botany and the changes in vegetation based on altitude. In Mosaic Canyon, they will be analyzing the geologic processes from a first hand perspective. In Rhyolite Ghost Town they will be learning about the history regarding settlers who tried to use the valley as a home and for natural resources. These are only a few examples of the locations they will be visiting. 

Additionally, a noteworthy purpose of the trip is providing students with experiences different from their everyday lives. In other words, its aim is not only to encourage academic growth but personal as well. Henninger looks forward to seeing his students develop life skills as they practice overcoming challenges, collaboration, living with others, cooking and conserving resources.

Henninger has been visiting Death Valley for almost 40 years. His first experience with the valley occurred during a high school field trip, planned by his mother. After that first visit, he naturally developed an affinity for the valley and began visiting it on his own time. This year’s field trip presented many logistical challenges in planning, such as making reservations, planning for climate, gathering resources and collecting food. Flash floods also closed many of the roads which were planned to be taken during the trip. Regardless of all these challenges, Henninger looks forward to sharing his experiences with students and watch them grow both personally and academically.