Morning fog still clings to the redwoods as English teacher Eric Hengstebeck glides across Lake Tahoe’s glassy surface on his paddleboard. Out here, each stroke brings him farther from the pace of the school day and closer to the calm, restorative rhythm of nature.
Growing up in Florida, Dr. Hengstebeck developed an early appreciation for water sports due to the abundance of beaches and lakes, though he only discovered his love for paddleboarding after moving to California in 2019. Now he takes his paddleboard everywhere, from quick after-work sessions at Shoreline Lake to weekend visits to Lake Tahoe.
“Paddleboarding was a gentle way to get outdoors, explore and get some good exercise,” Dr. Hengstebeck said. “I like the versatility of the paddleboard. You can use it to get around and see some sights, or you can just float around and be really lazy.”
The same desire which draws Dr. Hengstebeck to paddleboarding also leads him down forest trails. As he trades his paddleboard for hiking boots and lakes for redwood forests, the meditative aspect remains the same. Even in more urban environments, Dr. Hengstebeck carves out time for the outdoors, often wandering through nearby cities, stopping at coffee shops, browsing bookstores or walking his Siberian cat.
“If I’m not out hiking in the wilderness, it’s fun to do some urban hiking and check out stores or restaurants,” Dr. Hengstebeck said. “[Walking outside] helps my eyes relax, it helps me avoid headaches, and it just helps me feel less stress overall.”
In addition to physical outdoors activities, Dr. Hengstebeck also values the quieter moments that nature offers. He’s taken more time to simply observe the outdoors, and capturing these moments has become a way to share his new life with old acquaintances. He recalls one of his favorite memories from a paddleboarding trip to Lake Tahoe.
“The first time we went to Lake Tahoe in the summer was pretty spectacular,” Dr. Hengstebeck said. “To get out there and see how clear and blue the water was and to be able to take pictures and videos from there and send it to my friends and family — it’s fun to show off how beautiful this place is that we live in now.”
Nature also acts as a means for Dr. Hengstebeck to bond with others. English teacher Nicholas Manjoine, who was Dr. Hengstebeck’s mentor for his first year of teaching and often goes on hikes with him, appreciates Dr. Hengstebeck’s ability to make their hikes together entertaining.
“He’s both really funny and irreverent in many ways, but also just super kind and genuine,” Manjoine said. “It’s a fun balance of someone who knows how to have fun and has a good sense of humor, but at the same time, he’s super kind. Whatever he says, even if he’s roasting someone, the basic point of departure is generally one of kindness.”
Whether on a lake, hiking trail or city sidewalk, being outside helps him stay grounded in a work life filled with screens.
“You know what the kids say: you have to touch grass sometimes,” Dr. Hengstebeck said. “As a teacher, more and more these days, I’m looking at a screen, because I’m preparing for class or I’m grading essays often on my laptop. When I have some free time, I like to go outdoors to counterbalance all the time I spend typing or scrolling.”
As California has transformed alongside him, Dr. Hengstebeck finds balance through spending time in nature. Despite facing disruptions in his daily routines due to wildfires, atmospheric rivers and a global pandemic, paddleboarding and hiking have offered moments of clarity and calm in times of uncertainty.
“We’re constantly encountering things that change the way we think,” Dr. Hengstebeck said. “You have to figure out how to adapt to that as a teacher, and going out and connecting with the natural world just makes me a little bit more flexible, open-minded and less susceptible to stressing about change.”