By Kyle Fengler, co-owner of Loaves & Fishes:

Beyond the Classroom

So I did a month of sea kayaking down there and that's really beautiful. It was through NOLS, the National Outdoor Leadership School. They do organized trips that are primarily for educational purposes—they can be short-term trips, long-term trips. This was a three-month expedition altogether. Two months mountaineering and one month sea kayaking.

The Southern Ice Journey

We left from Tortel, which is kind of on the southwest coast of Chile. One of the southernmost villages there—it's a logging town. There's a chain of islands down there that's created by the glacial recession, kind of carves channels through there, and you kayak through those channels. At a certain area you have to do a portage, so you take your kayaks and carry them over land for about a mile, mile and a half. We went down to the southern ice plate there, camped on the shores of the glacier.

What Three Months Really Means

When you are spending more time with somebody for three months than you are spending with your spouse, than your coworkers, you can't walk away from somebody when you have a disagreement. You can't say, well, at least I'm clocking out at a certain time and I don't have to see them until tomorrow. You have to learn to talk things out, to communicate, to respect the opinion of someone, even if you disagree with them, and to be able to find some common ground. Maybe about 18 people in our group. It meant everything. It was a really incredible period of self-discovery for me.

Contact

🌐 NOLS - National Outdoor Leadership School

About

This card was written by Kyle Fengler. Kyle represents the new generation of his family's storied Hamptons culinary empire, which includes Loaves and Fishes Food Store, Loaves and Fishes Cookshop, and the Bridgehampton Inn & Restaurant. 

A Hamptons native with a Parsons School of Design education, Kyle pivoted from graphic design to hospitality, bringing a designer's eye and mixologist's palate to the family businesses. 

Lead-in Image

Diego Allolio for NOLS