AESOP 2013 Blog: AESOP 2013!

Hey class of 2017- welcome!

You have landed yourself on the AESOP 2013 blog! This is where we (Josh, Allie, Bryan, James, and Katie) can keep you best updated on what we are doing and how life in Maine is going. Check back here often for new information about important due dates, trip placement information, and gear lists along with the goings on of our own lives. If you would like to get a better idea of what is coming up and what the high season looks like here at AESOP headquarters in Lewiston check out last years blog as well: http://aesop2012.blogspot.com/!

Anyways, after many weeks spent away sailing on the high seas and a recent cross-country road trip to Washington I have settled back down into life in the Lew. As grand as the world is, it feels nice to be back and focused in on AESOP preparation as we get ready for your class's entrance on August 26th. Our lovely Assistant Coordinator Katie and I will also be holding down the fort on campus while the three others spend their time herding reindeer in Norway (http://seventynorth.wordpress.com/) and leading trips with a bunch of cool cats over at Camp Glen Brook and Overland. Soon enough, though, we will all be back in full force as we reunite for the final push in August!

Allie and Josh with their AESOP games faces on. Get ready!

With our phenomenal cast of leaders already hand-picked for our whopping 48 trips and with reservations already booked and itineraries planned, we are well ahead of the game which has lead to a pleasantly quiet early summer so far. However, things have slowly been ramping up as the emails and phone calls roll in. We are so stoked that their has been such a high level of enthusiasm for AESOP so far, and we really want to encourage every single one of y'all to consider registering if you haven't already! Honestly, you will not regret it! AESOP is an incredible time to meet your new classmates as well as your assuredly stupendous leaders before you hop right into the swing of things on campus. There really is no better way to be introduced to Bates and Maine alike, whether you hit the trail to go backpacking for four intense days or find yourself chilling on a beach in Acadia. Please, if you have any hesitations call or email me at 207-330-0610 or aesop.bates@gmail.com.

We are so excited to meet all of you and hope you are eagerly awaiting Bates this fall! It's going to be a great year. But until then, enjoy the best of summer and don't be a stranger. And remember July 1st is the due date for your AESOP application, waiver, and medical form: http://www.bates.edu/garnet-gateway/ so get them in!

Cheers,

Josh Sturtevant '14

Head Coordinator

PS: We have had a lot of confusion regarding the missing "AESOP Payment Submission Form"! Looking for it? Print it out (http://www.bates.edu/entering/aesop/sign-up/) and send it in along with your checks to Bates College.

If you're interested, here are a few pictures from my adventures in the Pacific and on Hawai'i this winter and spring:

The Robert C. Seamans, one of Sea Education Association's two sailing school vessels, sails in the Pacific Ocean year round. We sailed nearly 3,000 miles from Honolulu, HI to Palmyra Atoll down near the equator and then back up to Honolulu, conducting oceanographic research and working on independent projects along the way.