Welcome To Summer 2025!
Welcome!
As the summer draws closer, we are dreaming of all of the adventure to come! Your trip is just around the corner and we cannot wait for all the fun the next few months will bring.
While all of us on the WA team are putting the finishing touches on your adventure, use this page to get ready for the journey ahead. We can’t wait to see you on the trail!
As the parents of four children, we are always in search of quality programming that will grow our kids’ minds and hearts, and help them flourish into healthy and happy adults. When we find programs that achieve this, we love to get our family involved. We have noticed that the organizations we find ourselves committed to are ones that take both our child’s experience into account, and also our entire family’s experience. That is why we believe wholeheartedly in working to make the Wilderness Adventures experience a positive one for the entire family.
Over the course of the summer, we will have many great adventures. With your children, we will climb peaks, raft rivers, explore the wilderness, and meet new friends. As parents ourselves, we are deeply honored to have your trust. You can expect that we will keep you informed of the adventure before, during, and after your time with us. We, as a leadership team, will always be available if and when you need us. We will work tirelessly to give your child the best possible adventure with fantastic role models as trip leaders. Finally, we will work diligently to give you all the necessary information, so that you can rest easy, knowing that your child is in good hands.
You already have lots of information to help you prepare for your child’s specific adventure. But, we wanted to provide this information to further expand on the Wilderness Adventures experience for our families. The information on this page is general to all of our trips, and we hope that it offers you a nice introduction to the Wilderness Adventures experience.
Once again, we appreciate your trust and we look forward to serving you and your child in the months to come.
Sincerely,
Tom and Catherine Holland
Owners and Directors
The WA Team
Our Trip Leaders have a wealth of leadership experience and share a passion for working with our students in the outdoors. Although their primary responsibility is to ensure the safety and well-being of every student, each Wilderness Adventures Trip Leader is selected because they are a great role model. Our leaders are talented, dynamic, professional, and charismatic adults who have a true passion for youth development. They are patient and inspiring teachers and skilled outdoor enthusiasts who focus on fostering constructive group dynamics so that each participant can safely achieve goals consistent with their abilities. They are friends, confidants, and facilitators, and their dedication to our students each summer is a principal reason our programs are so successful.
With the rich history and esteemed reputation Wilderness Adventures holds in the outdoor adventure industry, we receive an abundance of highly qualified applicants each year. Our selection process is extremely thorough and involves an extensive application, written references, multiple background checks, and two interviews. Because our Trip Leaders are the foundation of each of our programs’ success, we seek to recruit the most talented leaders and provide the very best training prior to the season. About a week before your program begins, you will get an email with the names, photos, and bios of your Trip Leaders!
Our Philosophy
At Wilderness Adventures, our programs are developed with our students and their families in mind. We seek to offer something different in outdoor education: an experience based on the current needs of 21st century students and their families. Consequently, when families enroll in our adventures, they can expect Wilderness Adventures will be striving to address the following needs:
Travel
WA partners with Aspen Travel to assist our families in making their travel arrangements. Working with Aspen Travel is not required, but we do highly recommend it! Get in touch with Aspen Travel at 307-733-7893.
The first day of your Wilderness Adventures program is always an exciting one! Traveling across the country, or maybe even around the globe, is when the adventure begins!
Program the WA office phone number (307-733-2122) into your cell phone and have important phone numbers written on a piece of paper just in case you run into travel hiccups.
Be sure to travel with plenty of water and snacks – stay hydrated!
Nerves are normal! Know that you are not alone if you are feeling a bit nervous about embarking on your adventure. When you arrive at the airport, your Trip Leaders will greet you and you will be surprised how quickly you will begin to bond with your trip-mates!
Once your student arrives and meets up with their group, they will give you a call to let you know that they have arrived safely and are with their Trip Leaders! After this call, the Trip Leaders will take their phone for safe-keeping until the end of the trip. We do not permit phone calls to or from students during WA programs. Parents can be assured that in cases where it is important that the student talk with their parents, we will make sure that they are in touch as soon as possible.
Are you headed abroad? International programs at Wilderness Adventures work a little bit differently. Depending on the trip, you may take a group flight, an escorted flight, or be met by your trip leader in the country you’re traveling to. Please refer to the Travel Information sheet in your CampInTouch account to review the specific travel details for your program!
Packing Tips
Packing for your child’s first WA trip can seem a daunting experience, but do not fret! We have prepared the following information, as well as your Pack List to help you through the process!
You can find your child’s Packing List in the Forms and Documents section of your CampInTouch account, titled “Packing List: Trip Name”. Here are a few suggestions we encourage you to keep in mind throughout the packing process…
Local gear stores are also excellent places to find the items on your packing list. The employees there serve as a great resource for recommendations and sizing questions. Feel free to double check with us while you’re in the store if you’re unsure of an item!
There are lots of options for budget friendly gear shopping. Athletic sections of department stores often carry clothing items well suited to outdoor adventures, from socks and shorts, to t-shirts and heavier layers. Thrift stores and secondhand stores often carry outdoor-appropriate options as well.
Personal Sports Equipment
We ask that students do not bring personal sports equipment on their adventure. This includes archery equipment, bats, hockey sticks, personal climbing gear, etc. Small balls (hacky sacks, baseball, frisbee, etc.) are acceptable.
Vehicles
Students are not permitted to drive a personal or Wilderness Adventures vehicle at any time during their program. Students that drive themselves to their program starting location are prohibited from driving their own, or any other, vehicle until the conclusion of the program. Wilderness Adventures vehicles may only be driven by Wilderness Adventures staff members or subcontractors.
Animals
Students are prohibited from bringing any animal or pet on their Wilderness Adventures program.
Weapons
Students are prohibited from bringing any item that may be considered a weapon on their Wilderness Adventures program, including knives, pocket knives, and multi-tools (i.e. Leatherman).
Communication
- When you child arrives at their destination on arrival day
- Trip itinerary change due to inclement weather or other reasons – these updates will come via the Wilderness Adventures App
- If your student needs to see a doctor or visit a hospital or a clinic for any reason
Photo Updates: We know that it’s important for families to receive updates throughout the summer! While many of our programs are heavily wilderness based, we make every effort to keep families up-to-date. Technical challenges and limited connectivity in remote locations can limit updates from the field, but a schedule of photos is provided for each trip on the trip itinerary. This schedule will let you know when you can expect to see a few photos from the field.
If you’re looking at the Parent Itinerary (found in your CampInTouch account and in the trip photo album on the WA app), the far right column has an “x” on days that you can expect to see some photos from the group. We will upload photos to the WA app by the end of the day. Once photos have been uploaded, you will receive a push notification and an email from the WA app letting you know that the update has been posted.
Each update will include a handful of photos. As transmitting this information can be difficult from remote locations, note that we are unable to share all trip photos during the trip. You will receive a link to a Smugmug album with all of the photos from the trip within 2 weeks of the trip’s end date. Photos will be free to download.
Keep an eye on your email for incoming information about joining the Wilderness Adventures App to access trip updates!
On occasion, groups are unable to transmit updates as planned. In these cases, the Wilderness Adventures office team will post on the app to inform families of this change in schedule! Also, always feel free to give us a call in the office if you’d like to check-in.
Note: In the event that we have an emergency which disrupts our phone lines, we will use our website to get information to families. Additionally, during the summer months, we utilize a phone answering service after hours. During these hours, you will be able to speak with a live person, who can take a message or connect you to the on-call member of our Leadership Team. During the summer season, a member of our Leadership Team is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week!
We will be in touch with you soon after your child returns from their trip for a few reasons. First, we will send you instructions to access all of the photos that the Trip Leaders took throughout the adventure. Second, as we highly value feedback from our families, we will send you a link to a survey about your experience with us. And finally, you will receive an evaluation, completed by the Trip Leaders, of your child, showing their progress over the course of the trip.
We also may be in touch with you throughout the rest of the year! The Wilderness Adventures experience has grown over the years to have over 26,000 alumni. This has occurred through the help of families who share the story of WA. In the non-summer months we may reach out to you to ask for your help hosting a winter recruiting show, to connect us with other families who might benefit from our program, provide us feedback and, most importantly, to see how your child is doing. We appreciate the willingness of so many people who have helped us to share this wonderful educational experience.
Feedback
Since 1973, Wilderness Adventures has grown and evolved due to our willingness to accept feedback, and make appropriate changes where necessary. We strive to have everyone provide us with feedback on the trip, the trip leaders, and WA as an organization.
Feedback from students about trip: At the end of the trip, each student will fill out a survey about the trip.
Feedback from students about Trip Leaders: At the end of the trip, each student will fill out a survey about their trip leaders.
Student Evaluations from Trip Leaders: Following the trip, each leader will provide an evaluation for the student, which will be sent to all students in the fall.
Feedback from parents about the trip experience: After the trip, parents will receive a link to our parent survey. In this we will ask a wide range of questions about our program, summer opportunities, and the service you received as a family. If you have a specific question about a certain topic that demands immediate feedback, we encourage you to call us as it takes us some time to read through all the parent surveys.
Preparing For Your Adventure
Homesickness is the most common ailment of students at summer camp. There are a few things you can do as a parent to prepare your child for how to handle homesickness when it happens:
- Send your students with a journal! Encourage them to write letters to you about all the fun things they’re doing. While they may not be able to mail them to you while on trip, writing to you will allow them to concentrate on all of the cool experiences they’re having, plus it’s a great conversation starter for when they get home!
- Write letters for them to bring on their trip! Sometimes we just need a little love from home. Writing letters and giving them to your child to read whenever they feel homesick on the trip is a great way for them to feel connected to you.
- Print out some photos! Because students won’t have their phones with them, they’ll be disconnected from all of the pictures on their phone. Printing out pictures of family and friends can be comforting to have when they are feeling far from home.
- Bring a comfort item! We certainly recommend sticking to the assigned Pack List for your trip as much as possible, but there’s always room for a small stuffed animal or comfort object from home!
Food
At Wilderness Adventures we recognize the importance of providing healthy, nutritious foods to all of our participants. Proper nutrition and hydration are vitally important in order for your child to participate effectively in our programs.
WA meals are plentiful and nutritious. We meal plan, shop, and prepare foods as a group and only one meal is prepared at any given mealtime. Should a group meal include foods that a student chooses not to eat, they will simply avoid this portion. All of our students are part of the planning and preparation of meals, and can work together to plan meals that the entire group will enjoy.
Please alert the office to any allergies your student may have. Allergies should be listed on the student’s health form. Allergy notifications are distributed to the directors, trip leaders, subcontractors, and additional guides. Depending on the allergy, parents may be asked to provide some food for their child during the adventure due to limited grocery store access during their trip. If your child has an EpiPen, please check the expiration date and send your allergist’s plan of care for allergic reactions with the EpiPen. We ask that you pack two EpiPens; one for your child to pack in their backpack and one that our trip leaders will hold and return at the end of the trip. You are welcome to pack more than two. WA first aid kits are also stocked with epinephrine in the case of an emergency. Please call our office and speak with Rachel Garrett, Director of Experiential Education, if you have any additional questions.
Risk Management
Through all of our programs, Wilderness Adventures offers fun and educational activities in a variety of different environments around the world. While we expect that these adventures will offer great opportunities for personal growth, they are not without risk. The inherent and other risks associated with engaging in recreation, adventure, travel, or educational activities in a wilderness or outdoor environment can cause injury or loss.
Inherent risks are those that are integral to an activity and include risks that we seek, such as hiking at high elevations. These risks can provide the opportunity to learn, and are a catalyst for personal growth. Inherent risks also include those risks we don’t necessarily seek, but which exist as part of the environment – such as unpredictable weather. Other risks, not inherent, also exist.
As a result, safety and risk management considerations are an important part of our programming. We aspire to manage risks, knowing we cannot eliminate risks or assure students’ safety unequivocally. Our trip leaders are certified in CPR and trained Wilderness First Responders, the industry standard medical certification for backcountry guiding. They are also trained in best practices for managing risk in their specific trip environment and they come to our program with a demonstrable wealth of experience in the field. Students and parents must understand that students share in the responsibility for their own well-being and the well-being of others on their program.
Please review our website, other program information and the WA Acknowledgment and Assumption of Risks & Release and Indemnity Agreement for information about the activities and risks, and participants’ and parents’ responsibilities.
All of our trip leaders are certified as Wilderness First Responders. As such, they are trained to respond to emergency situations in remote locations. Still, our programs are not without risk and many of our travel destinations, both domestic and international, are hours (or potentially days) from definitive care. Consequently, we seek to equip our teams with the ability to manage risks to the best of their ability and also provide them with communication tools for support.
In the case that a student needs medical care, we will move as quickly as possible without endangering the safety of our participants, to get that person the care they need. Should a student make a trip to the hospital or urgent care center, we will be in touch with you to inform you of the situation. We then work as a team with doctors, student, parents, trip leaders, and our Wilderness Adventures Leadership Team to bring about the best possible outcome for the student.
If your student is taking prescription or non-prescription medication(s), they must be listed on their health forms and a physician must approve that they are capable of participating in the activities of WA. Upon arrival to WA, all medications must be handed over to the trip leader for safekeeping. This is for the safety of your child and the entire group. There are a few exceptions to this rule and, should you have any questions, please contact the WA office.
If a student brings a medication that does not match one listed on their health form, a parent will be contacted and will need to provide clarification before administration of that medication. WA trip leaders carry some over-the-counter medications including Benadryl, Tylenol, Ibuprofen, Imodium, and topical antibiotic creams. However, if your student takes an over-the-counter medication on a regular or semi-regular basis, it is best to pack that medication with your student. For example, if your student has seasonal allergies, please pack their preferred allergy medication.
Due to the location of our trips, filling a prescription can be extremely challenging. Students must pack enough medication for the entirety of the trip plus a few extra doses in the case of travel delays.
Glossary of Terms
We know that all of our WA jargon can be confusing! We put together a little glossary of terms to help explain some of the words we use at WA all the time.
Arrival Day: Arrival Day is the first day of the program. Your Wilderness Adventures t-shirt should be worn all day to help pick-up in the airport go smoothly.
Aspen Travel: For over a decade, Wilderness Adventures and Aspen Travel have been working together to help families coordinate their travel to and from their trip locations.
Backcountry: Campsites in the backcountry are sites that are only accessible by foot or boat. These sites are remote in the wilderness without the amenities of a front country site.
CampInTouch: This is where you can find all of your Forms and Documents to get ready for the summer.
Canyoneering: A bit like reverse rock climbing, canyoneering is the sport of exploring a canyon by rappelling.
Circles: Every day will start and end with a circle, as well as before every meal. Circles are a time to share information with the group and get to know your trip mates.
Cook Crew: If your trip includes outdoor cooking, you will be split into Cook Crews to be in charge of food for a day. Each Cook Crew, typically 3 – 4 students, will decide what they want to make, plan the meal, and then prepare and cook for the entire group. It’s a great chance to learn some of the basics of cooking!
Departure Day: Departure Day is the final day of the program. With only a few exceptions, you will arrive home on the final day of the trip.
Evening Circle: Every day will end with our Evening Circle. This is a chance for the group to sit around the campfire and debrief the day, while also partaking in an activity planned by the trip leaders or Leader of the Day. This could be a fun game, sharing stories, or teaching the group about the local flora and fauna.
Final Circle Ceremony: Each trip will culminate with a Final Circle Ceremony, an important WA tradition!
Frontcountry: Campsites in the front country are sites that can be driven to. They typically have running water and bathrooms and occasionally have showers.
Group Gear: Everything not on your Packing List that WA will provide for you to use during the summer is Group Gear. This includes the tents we sleep in, the kayaks in which we paddle, the stoves we use for cooking, etc. Each member of the group will be responsible for a portion of this group gear when traveling into the backcountry.
Hiking vs Backpacking: Hiking as an activity indicates a home base has been established, and the group will head out to explore the local area, but return to said home base. This is different from backpacking, where we put our belongings on our backs and travel to a new area where we make camp, eat, and sleep.
Ice Climbing: Ice climbing is the activity of ascending inclined ice formations. Like rock climbing, participants are roped into the wall with a harness and belayer.
Leader of the Day (LOD): As part of the leadership curriculum on every one of our trips, each student will have the opportunity to be the Leader of the Day at least once during their trip. Among other things, the LOD will wake the group up in the morning, ensure the Cook Crew is getting meals ready on time, and lead the Evening Circle.
Leadership Team: The leadership team is located in Jackson Hole, Wyoming and Salt Lake City, Utah. The Leadership Team will provide your main points of contact during the pre-summer and summer months.
Packing List: Each program comes with a trip-specific Packing List available in your CampInTouch account.
Quote Book: Each Wilderness Adventures trip will utilize a WA Quote Book. Before each meal, the Leader of the Day will pick a quote to share with the group.
Regional Coordinator: The person in charge of planning the logistics for your trip. We have two regional coordinators, the East, West, Rockies Coordinator and, the International, Hawaii, Alaska Coordinator. While these people will be able to help you with trip-specific questions, anyone on the Leadership Team will be able to help you as well.
SCUBA: Some of our trips offer the chance to get a PADI certification. This certification is a lifetime certification good for SCUBA diving all over the globe. Programs with a SCUBA course will have an e-learning course that must be completed before the summer. This eliminates most of the classroom portion of the class before arriving on the program.
Sea Kayaking: Kayaking in a bay, lake, ocean coast, or island system, Sea Kayaking is typically done in double kayaks, which are very sturdy and perform well in these larger bodies of water. Oftentimes we access the backcountry via Sea Kayaking.
Trip Leaders: Your Trip Leaders are the two or three people who will be running the trip from the ground. They will meet your child at the airport and see them off from the airport on Departure Day, and take care of them every day in between.
Trip Updates: Throughout your program, the group will be posting photos based on the schedule provided in your trip-specific itinerary via the WA App.
WA Bands: These are given out at the Final Circle Ceremony.
Whitewater Kayaking: Kayaking on a river where there are whitewater rapids, similar to those you would go through when whitewater rafting.
WFR: Wilderness First Responder (WFR, pronounced “woofer”) is the definitive course in medical training for outdoor educators, guides, search and rescue team members, and others who work or play in remote areas. The curriculum is comprehensive and practical, including all of the essential principles and skills required to assess and manage medical problems in isolated and extreme environments. All of our Trip Leaders are Wilderness First Responder certified.
