GRADY ERICKSON
After a winter devoted mostly to kids and skiing, even the hardiest down-Easter might be expected to seek out a quiet spot on a warm beach and relax for the summer. Instead, Grady Erickson, a public school teacher from Augusta, Me., fills a bus with a score of kids and heads west to the Cascade Range and some more skiing.
Besides helping his youngsters find snow to ski on, Erickson has another purpose behind his annual trek. He wants the kids to discover the U.S. "This trip kind of opens their eyes to the greatness of the country," he says. "It's a real blast," said one of the 21 young discoverers who crossed the country with Erickson this year, spending his nights in sleeping bags, cooking on camp stoves and washing in mountain lakes.
"Next year," says Grady Erickson, "I hope we'll have two buses—one to serve as a chuck wagon and lavatory with real showers." Then he adds enthusiastically, "Some day I hope to have a whole flotilla of buses—all loaded with kid skiers."
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