Over the summer, ten students participated in a ten day Wilderness Education Association backpacking course set in Wyoming and the Grand Tetons. This field experience course was a supplemental class that would apply all leadership, climbing skills and risk management knowledge that Parks and Recreation Management (PRM) students learn in the…

The Wilderness Education Association (WEA) is increasingly offering more international courses (Williams, 2007). Recent examples of such courses have included courses operating in Taiwan, Japan, New Zealand, Romania, and East Africa. This article compares the ethnographic data resulting from a recent 14 day Wilderness Stewardship Course in Taiwan…

This past Winter, Stout Adventures at the University of Wisconsin-Stout took off for its first International Trip. Nine students, two student trip leaders and the author traveled New Zealand's South Island for twenty-two days. Jumping out of planes, rafting rivers, leaping off bungy platforms, sea-kayaking both Milford Sound and Abel Tasman…

It is a funny thing how one's perceptions are oftentimes influenced as one moves through life's journey. People that may seem totally alien become friends, mentors, and/or heroes. Exposure to a diverse society makes for a smorgasbord of opportunity and enlivens one's journey. Any public high school experience forces a mixing of personalities and…

Proper nutrition and eating habits are critical components when facilitating safe, enjoyable expeditions. The author asserts that outdoor leaders must be diligent in overseeing the health of their participants through proper nutrition. Leaders in training with a history of eating issues face a special challenge. The author discusses how these…

Rarely do outdoor educators get the opportunity to safely incorporate an avalanche while the topic of the day is actually avalanche awareness and forecasting. Many similar possibilities exist in the expeditionary context, but even brief excursions may result in incredible learning experiences. These "teachable moments" occur regularly in the…

Outdoor adventure activities such as whitewater boating, caving, rock climbing, and mountaineering continue to be popular among the public. As a result of this popularity, numerous organizations "contract out" the leadership and delivery of the adventure portion of their curriculum. This paper explores two widely used venues for offering outdoor…

Many instructors get a little anxious about working with teenagers; thinking that they will be immature, unmotivated, and argumentative. Add the words "at-risk" or "adjudicated" and most adults get very nervous. At-risk and adjudicated youth know when individuals are nervous and will do their best to intimidate and control them. Instructors need a…