Wilderness Adventures

My son has travelled with Wilderness Adventures on 2 different trips, one in the US and one in Europe. It is a truly spectacular program that positively impacts the kids in their sense of self, builds community, encourages responsible risk taking through the lens of outdoor education, and fosters resilience. They have excellent pre-departure support, well trained staff that make it both fun and educational for the kids, and a leadership team that is always accessible for input. My son stays in touch with both of his Wilderness Adventures groups and looks forward to his next summer adventure. I highly and whole heartedly recommend Wilderness Adventures.

As a Wilderness Adventures student in 2016, I had a transformative experience. I went on a three week backpacking trip, Alaska Southeast, having never been to Alaska or backpacking before! My leaders were amazing; they inspired me to be like them and explore the outdoors while also challenging me to push myself out of my comfort zone and learn more about myself than I ever thought possible at only 16 years old. Returning back home from my trip as a student, I felt more confident and sure of myself. I still use many of the life skills and mottos I learned as a WA student 7+ years ago. I have also been so lucky to work for WA as a four year trip leader! It has truly been a full circle experience being able to inspire students and provide them the same magical experience I had at 16. My favorite memories trip leading are never the one’s where I’m on top of a peak or rafting a big rapid, but are the memories where my students take a big leap, challenge themselves and grow. A WA trip is life changing- it was for me as a student and continues to be for me as a trip leader. The WA community has truly become my family!

Wilderness Adventures is hands down the best teen adventure program in the country. I was a student on a 4 week Rocky Mtn trip back in 1988, I was a guide for WA from 1994 - 2000, and my daughter just completed her first WA trip, a 5 week Great Northwest Trip this past summer (2023) and can't wait to do another trip this coming summer of 2024. (see attached pic) From the perspective of a former student, former leader and parent of a recent student, the reasons Wilderness Adventures is far superior to their competitors are: * Experience - 50+ years of experience matters. They know how to create the best trip experience for teens, safety protocols, best way to organize trips, etc. * Diversity of students - Part of the "secret sauce" of a WA experience is pulling teenagers from across the country vs. filling a trip with students from the same part of the country. As a former leader, watching the students from a variety of backgrounds, belief systems, etc., from across the country is where the real personal growth happens. Coming together as a group, the group leadership skills learned from how to work with a diverse group is one of the "life skills" that every student will walk away with. Is there anything more important or applicable to the real world than this? * They have the best wilderness permits in the country out of any outdoor program. Backpacking in a designated wilderness area or national park is very different from backpacking in BLM land. The average person with no outdoor experience may not understand this, but Permits matter. Why not see the best places for the amount of money you are spending for these trips? * Takeaways - Group Leadership skills, group living skills, how to plan your own trip, how to plan meals, shop and cook are things most students have never done before. How to do your own laundry, how to safely travel in the backcountry, etc., are just some of the skills that your child will come away with. Don't be fooled by copy cat programs. Wilderness Adventures is the safe and obvious choice and I'm really glad that my 15 yr old daughter wanted to go on a WA Trip and was NOT surprised that it was a trip of a lifetime. They still talk weekly as a group and are actively planning a trip reunion in the near future.

My first experience with wilderness adventures was almost 20 years ago when I went on my very first back packing trip. This experience inspired my life path, and I am grateful everyday for the confidence this program instilled in me at such a young age. Outdoor experiences and getting out of comfort zones are two of the best things for young people to experience, and this program does these things SO WELL. WA makes programs safe and fun, and finds ways for parents to be involved from the sidelines.

I unequivocally recommend Wilderness Adventures. At 52 years old, I still name the trip I did at age 16 as one of the most important experiences I have ever had. It was a true coming-of-age, changed-the-trajectory of my life experience. I fell in love with nature, figured out for the first time that life didn't happen to me, rather I could create whatever life I wanted. Up until that point I had average grades, and that summer decided that I could go back to school and be an A student and go to my dream college. That happened!! Even more of a miracle was how a Wilderness Adventures programmed changed my son's life to summers ago. He too fell completely in love with nature, became much more authentic, has now done two more semester long programs that continue to broaden him, and he is leaving for Mexico to work at an ecological center for 6 months. This was a kid who had zero interest in doing anything like this before - truly miraculous. Thank you WA!!!!!!!!!