2016 was one of our favorite summers because we shared it with incredible students and instructors who made the commitment to make it GREAT! We would like to give a special thank you to parents for your trust and for sharing your amazing kids. We hope this video captures some of the fun, adventure, scenery, growth, and friendships from the very special Adventure Treks summer of 2016.
Many folks are wondering what the Adventure Treks team does this time of year. While most of you have put your backpacks away for the season as you transitioned from outdoor adventurer to student, we haven’t stopped doing what we love: working with teenagers in the great outdoors.
Believe it or not, our fall outdoor education season is just as long as our summer season! Just a few days after we closed our summer base of operations in Washington in August, we began training our school group instructors at our Camp Pinnacle base in NC.
We have an incredible team of instructors, including Joe Sisti, Dennis Mabasa, Allison O’Brien, Casey Clark, Nate Humphreys, John Cox, Wells Jones, Brett Smith, Laura Horowitz, Jenna Maurer, Katie Bigbee, Kacie Ross, Emily Riggs, Ian Hilburger, Zach Dugas, and Devin Wilkinson. Several instructors have also made guest appearances during particularly busy weeks including, Rachael Mallon, Nick Hill, Jack Hoiland, Elise Campbell, Katie Ebner, and Sam Haines.
We love school programs because we know the growth and learning that happens outdoors transfers immediately into the classroom. Invariably, a school community becomes far closer as a result of shared outdoor adventure. Our programs do many of the same activities we do in the summer (backpacking, whitewater rafting, and rock climbing), and we also offer science programs and programs that emphasize community building. Our educational programs also give kids who might otherwise never have an outdoor adventure the chance to have a great time outdoors.
Summer is too short, so we are glad we get more time to spend with our great instructors. This fall, we will work with more than 700 students and 75 teachers from 12 different schools. Our last program ends November 2, and by then, we’ll be more than ready for a rest!
Meanwhile, we are also hard at work in the office getting ready for summer 2017. In fact, a couple of 2017 trips have already filled and several trips are already half-full! We are also planning a new trip in Yellowstone and the Tetons, which we’re very excited for. We’re about to launch a brand-new website, and we’ll have many fun new videos for you to watch soon.
We hope you are having a great year at school and are making plans to join us again for summer 2017!
We miss our students from our early trips who have already returned home, but we are thrilled and excited to meet the new students who are arriving this week. We wanted to share the fun we have been having at Adventure Treks so we made a short video with footage from some of our already completed adventures. We hope this video gives you a window into the fun, adventure, community, activities and great scenery that make an Adventure Treks summer unique!
It’s been an exciting week greeting new and returning students in California, Washington, Oregon, Colorado, North Carolina, and soon Alaska! Our regional directors Josh, Dmac, and Erica have been flying back and forth, with one of us joining each instructor team in welcoming every trip.
By Tuesday, June 28, we will have 186 students and 53 instructors on 10 different trips in 9 different locations. Meanwhile, instructors for California Challenge 2 and Alaska 2 are currently in orientation at our west coast basecamp in southern Washington.
Below is a video from our two-week orientation earlier in June to give you a feel for the people and substance behind our rigorous and fun 2016 staff training.
We feel this is the most experienced, capable, and hard-working team of instructors we have had in our 23-year history. Most important, we feel they are tremendous, yet realistic, role models. We are all very excited that the summer has begun and that our first round of students are finally here! Our job is now to facilitate incredible experiences filled with a myriad of growth opportunities.
Besides the people, we bring a lot of outdoor equipment! Having high-quality gear makes every outdoor experience just a little better. This year at orientation, we counted out…
Here’s to the summer ahead!
We couldn’t be more enthusiastic about the quality, capabilities, and leadership of our 2016 Adventure Treks instructors. On Wednesday, June 15, our 62 instructors transitioned from our large orientation site in southern Washington into our six-person trip teams. Vans filled with instructors are now on the road, exploring their trip destinations as we continue training in smaller groups for another full week.
Our instructors are studying their trip notes and learning their itineraries, mastering the tiny details that make an Adventure Treks experience unique. They will scout trailheads, practice driving, refresh backcountry camping and hiking skills, plan menus, shop for food, and study student and parent questionnaires and health histories to prepare for our students’ arrival. Most important, as role models, they will build a kind, close, and caring community which will form a model for our students.
During orientation, we apply recent trends in youth development to our outdoor environment, with a focus on a growth mindset, 21st century skills, and our “Great Eight Outcomes.” We also refreshed our medical skills, reviewed policies and protocols, talked extensively about risk management, spent an intensive day on van-driving training, and exchanged ways to develop the inclusive communities that are the hallmark of Adventure Treks.
We also played a lot of games! If our instructors are having fun, so are our students! And there is actually research to back the impact games can have in group development. We are working hard to create an incredible summer for our students. This is a very special team of instructors, and we can’t wait for the summer to begin!
The 2016 Adventure Treks instructor orientation begins today! Our 65 instructors converge from 28 states for two weeks of training as we prepare for the arrival of our students. This has been preceded by our five-day trip leader retreat in Oregon, where our leadership team gathered in a cabin near Mt. Hood, next to the Salmon River, for senior staff training.
The first week of instructor orientation will be spent together, camping as a large group in southern Washington. Here we learn Adventure Treks’ safety policies and procedures, build a close community of kindness that will trickle down to our students, and talk about how the learning our students acquire through an outdoor adventure experience relate to life at home. This “big group” orientation will be followed next week with trip-specific training, where each six-person instructor team learns the details of their specific trips, bonds as an instructor team, and eagerly prepares for the arrival of their students.
Our senior staff team—11 trip leaders and four regional directors—hails from 10 states, averages 28 years old, and has 107 collective years of Adventure Treks experience, with an average of 7 seasons of AT experience each. (Two were even former Adventure Treks students!) I’m proud to be a part of this group of mentors who will be training our new instructors at orientation and overseeing the success of our trips.
So what did we do at trip leader retreat? Besides forming our leadership team community, we apply leadership theory, current child psychology, and brain theory to Adventure Treks. We also focus on the specific details of each trip itinerary, and we use this time to review safety and the policies and procedures that lead to successful trips. Together, we share the tips and tricks we’ve gleaned over the years as we work hard to make every trip consistent and exceptional.
I also wanted to share what we have been reading this winter. It’s our job to stay on top of the latest youth development trends and literature so we can make sure that the Adventure Treks program remains relevant to parents. Besides being a ridiculous amount of fun, as your partners, we want Adventure Treks to be a tool that helps kids develop the skills, mindset, optimism, confidence, character, and resilience that will help them become happier and more capable adults.
Topics from these and other books will permeate our instructor orientation sessions as we facilitate the best possible learning and growing experience for your child. Below are our 2016 suggestions for those who share our obsession in helping teenagers experience personal growth.
Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance by Angela Duckworth
Helping Children Succeed – What Works and Why by Paul Tough
Creating Innovators: The Making of Young People Who Will Change the World by Tony Wagner
The Childhood Roots of Adult Happiness – Edward Hallowell
T-minus two weeks until our first trip opens!
Summer is quickly approaching, which means students and parents are asking about who will be running their trips. Drum roll, please… We are excited to announce our tentative 2016 instructor team assignments! We have put a lot of time and energy into creating the most skilled and balanced instructor teams possible, and we’re looking forward to watching our staff teams facilitate safe, fun, and growth-filled experiences for every one of our students. We may make changes as we go forward to ensure the best instructor teams possible. Please click here and choose your trip to see your 20126 instructors.
On June 3, our directors and trip leaders will meet in the Mt. Hood area of Oregon for a four-day leadership retreat. The trip leaders are the managers of our instructor teams, and they have a large role in the success of each student this summer. After our retreat, all instructors will meet for big group orientation; there we set the tone for the summer and go over our risk management policies and procedures (and have some fun, too!). After big group orientation, instructor teams will head to their trips to scout, bond as an instructor team, and prepare for the trip.
And as we prepare for our leadership retreat and orientation, we know that you’re also preparing for the summer. Purchasing gear and packing can sometimes be overwhelming, so we prepared a brief video guide. The video addresses some of the most common questions we get about packing for a summer trip at Adventure Treks. If you have any questions about packing, or your adventure (or anything else for that matter) please give us a call and we are happy to help in any way we can.
Every year, Adventure Treks welcomes students from all over the United States and even the world. So far in 2016, our student population comes from a 41 states and 14 countries!
We appreciate having this diversity on all of our trips, and we know the students truly enjoy getting to know others from different cultures and backgrounds. Through the welcoming community and super-fun activities on the trips, the students easily find common ground and quickly make great, long-lasting friendships.
Check out the graphic below to see where our 2016 students come from.
Our map may expand as we add our last few students.
Florida and New York are tied for our most-represented state. Next is North Carolina, followed closely by California. Regardless of your native country, state, or tongue, we are so excited to see you on opening day!
By Dave “Dmac” McGlashan, director
One of the most frequently asked questions we receive is about hiking boots. Because we spend so much time on our feet during trips, it’s crucial to make sure your feet are happy. Here are a few tips in picking out the right boots and breaking them in.
What is your favorite boot?
If you ask 10 Adventure Treks instructors what their favorite boot is, you’ll get 10 different answers. We all have different feet: arches, forefoot width, toe length, heel shape, and many other factors. This is why I always hesitate to tell someone to buy a certain boot. Some will fit my foot perfectly out of the box, and some will give me blisters every mile that I wear them.
Getting the correct fit
When you are shopping for a pair of boots, make sure you go to a store and try them on. Ordering online can be a little cheaper, but you don’t have access to a boot specialist from a store like REI or EMS. Bring socks that you will be wearing on the trip, as hiking socks are generally thicker than socks you wear to school or soccer practice. Make sure they fit well around your ankles and toes, meaning no pinches or painful squeezes. Feet tend to swell a little during hiking trips, so leave a little wiggle room. If they hurt walking around the store, try on another pair!
Low-cut boots or above the ankle?
Because you may not have experience in hiking with a backpack, we ask that you get a pair of above-ankle-height hiking boots. These will provide extra support as you carry weight in your pack, and you’ll be less likely to roll your ankle while hiking. Don’t try on lightweight hiking shoes; you’re looking for a mid-weight boot.
What can happen when boots don’t fit
Breaking in your boots
Your boots will be a little stiff when you first wear them. This is completely normal! The more you hike in them, the more comfortable they will get. We recommend wearing your boots around your house and neighborhood as soon as you get them. Wear them for short periods of time over a few weeks; your feet will be much happier, and you’ll be less likely to get blisters. We do not recommend cramming the break-in period into a few longer sessions right before your trip. And remember, you are breaking the boot in as much as you are getting your foot broken into the boot.
Does it need to be waterproof?
In the outdoor world, nothing is 100 percent waterproof (unless you buy rubber boots). Buying waterproof boots adds an extra expense, especially if your son or daughter is still growing (and you’ll be buying boots again). It’s not necessary to spend the extra money to get waterproof boots for Adventure Treks. However, you can apply a waterproofing product like Nikwax to add an extra layer of protection. *Do not purchase boots with open mesh covering the toes, sides, or other areas.
For the best boot-buying experience, we recommend heading to your local gear store and talking with someone in the boot department. Let them know about the Adventure Treks trip and itinerary, walk around the store in different pairs to see what fits best. Happy feet = better backpacking experience. Feel free to give us a call at 828-698-0399 with questions about boots or any other gear!
We know you’ve all been waiting to see who our instructors will be this summer, so here they are: Introducing the 2016 Adventure Treks instructors!
We are very pleased with this year’s instructor teams. Almost 70 percent of our instructors are returning for the 2016 summer. Every instructor has, at minimum, a Wilderness First Responder medical certification, with some trained as Wilderness EMTs.
Quick facts about our 70 instructors:
We’ve had more than 500 prospects apply to fill our 25 new instructor positions. Every new staff has gone through a minimum of three interviews conducted by our leadership team, three reference checks, and a background and criminal check. We feel confident and excited about the new instructors we have hired, and we know they’ll help create phenomenal communities.
On June 3, our directors, trip leaders, and regional directors will begin a four-day retreat near Mt. Hood in Oregon. On June 9, the entire instructor team arrives for a seven-day intensive orientation. On June 15, we will separate into our six-person instructor teams for another week of trip-specific planning, led by our trip leaders.
One of the most important parts of orientation is bonding for our instructor team. These relationships typically last long beyond the summer, much like our students’. As role models, our close-knit, high-functioning instructor communities are directly tied to the success of our student communities.
In the coming weeks, we’ll publish the tentative staff teams assigned to each trips. Please note that instructor teams may change as we strive to create the best possible combination of personalities and skills.
Click here to see our 2016 Instructor team
We are excited for summer to begin!
Dock, Dmac, Josh, Kate, Amanda, Stacey, & Joan