HEBRON — The Hebron Academy Middle School recently ventured to Flagstaff Lake Hut, looking out at the Bigelow Mountains near Eustis, for an overnight trip.

The group hiked into the hut (about a two-mile hike from the parking area to the hut), took nature walks, played outside games, and learned about the history of the area on a pontoon boat ride with Master Guide Jeff Hinman.

According to Hinman, the town of Flagstaff was flooded back in the early 1950s for hydropower, and the kids saw the foundation remnants of an old farmstead under the water.

While at the Flagstaff Lake Hut, the middle schoolers learned how the hut is powered “off the grid” by using composting toilets, solar power and a wood furnace that heats all the water, including water for the radiant heating. The kids did their part by cleaning up after themselves, shutting off lights and stacking wood.

Sixth-grader Bradley Sperl observed, “I thought it so cool that they used worms in the composting toilets to help break down the organic material into compost. When they opened the lid to show us what was left, I was shocked to see only wood chips.” Wood chips are added to help with the composting process.

For more information about the Maine Huts and Trails, visit www.mainehuts.org. For more information on the school, visit www.hebronacademy.org or call 966-5225.