Summit tradition
/Bonanza, Shasta sixth graders celebrate end of elementary school with Hogback hike
Bonanza sixth-graders on the trail to the summit of Hogback Mountain.
P.E. Teacher Jason Hardrath leads sixth graders on the traditional celebratory hike up Hogback Mountain.
About 100 sixth-graders from Bonanza and Shasta elementary schools celebrated their graduations from elementary school today by hiking to the summit of Hogback Mountain.
The students, led by P.E. teachers Jason Hardrath of Bonanza and Theresa Ross of Shasta as well as teachers and adult volunteers, took a 2.4-mile trail from the parking lot of Foothills Christian Church to the top of the 6,205-foot mountain, which looms above the Moyina Heights neighborhood northeast of Klamath Falls. At the summit, the students ate lunch before heading down. Roundtrip, the hike was about five miles, including an elevation gain of 1,761 feet to the top.
The late Shasta Elementary School sixth-grade teacher Trish Polsinelli started the tradition more than 15 years ago, and Shasta students continue the hike in her honor each year, Ross said. The event is an end-of-the-year celebration for the sixth-graders and serve as a wellness goal for students.
