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Photograph (above) taken by Brennen Montgomery

Program Overview

Location
F Colorado Rockies
Start Location
Denver, CO
End Location
Denver, CO
Program
High School, Middle School
Length
8 - 22 Days
Expeditions
Backpacking
Activities
Alpine Backpacking, Ropes Course, Service

Skills

Technical
  • Basic First Aid
  • Campcraft
  • Food Preparation and Cooking
  • Knots
  • Map and Compass
  • Navigation
  • Self Care
  • Travel Techniques
Interpersonal
  • Camaraderie
  • Character
  • Communication
  • Empathy
  • Independence
  • Leadership
  • Positive Risk Taking
  • Problem Solving
  • Responsibility
  • Self Awareness
  • Self Confidence
  • Service

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Continental Divide Alpine Backpacking

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With only the gear on your back, explore the wonders of the Continental Divide with Outward Bound.

This backpacking course takes place in the Rocky Mountains and focuses on the art of traveling light, exploring the natural world and becoming a high functioning team. During the course, you can expect to travel on and off trail and over wooded and alpine terrain at 9,000 feet or higher, which can be rough, steep and exposed. Learn smart and efficient backpacking and alpine travel techniques as well as Leave No Trace camping and travel skills, outdoor cooking techniques, basic first-aid, map and compass use, route finding and how to use an ice axe if necessary. Backpack up through the alpine environment and attempt a peak ascent. As the course progresses and your skills and experience increase, your Instructors will turn more and more responsibility over to you and your crew.

NOTE: Outward Bound strongly recommends that all students be vaccinated against COVID-19 and up to date as defined by the CDC prior to arriving to their course start. For all open enrollment courses beginning on or after April 15, 2023, Outward Bound will no longer require students to be vaccinated against COVID-19. For questions regarding this policy please see this page or call us at 866-467-7651. 

Program Overview

Location
F Colorado Rockies
Start Location
Denver, CO
End Location
Denver, CO
Program
High School , Middle School
Length
8 - 22 Days
See More Details
Expeditions
Backpacking
Activities
Alpine Backpacking, Ropes Course, Service

Skills

Technical
  • Basic First Aid
  • Campcraft
  • Food Preparation and Cooking
  • Knots
  • Map and Compass
  • Navigation
  • Self Care
  • Travel Techniques
Interpersonal
  • Camaraderie
  • Character
  • Communication
  • Empathy
  • Independence
  • Leadership
  • Positive Risk Taking
  • Problem Solving
  • Responsibility
  • Self Awareness
  • Self Confidence
  • Service

UPCOMING COURSES

This course is closed for the season.

APPLY NOW
This means a course has several open spots and is actively processing applications.

APPLY NOW – Almost Full
This means there are three or fewer currently available spots left on a course. To secure your spot click Apply Now to begin an application!

JOIN WAITLIST
Once a course has reached capacity, three waitlist positions become available. To join a course’s waitlist, click “Join Waitlist” to begin the application process. A $500 deposit is required. This $500 deposit includes a $150 non-refundable application fee and a $350 tuition payment. The $350 tuition payment is refundable only if you cancel your waitlist application or if an open position does not become available. If a position does become available, the applicant will be applied to the open position and the Application and Cancellation Policies of the Regional Outward Bound School will be followed, including forfeiture of the $500 deposit if you cancel 90 days or less prior to the course start date. 

Waitlist applicants are encouraged to complete all required admissions documents while awaiting an open position. Positions may become available up to two weeks prior to the course start date. Applicants may only apply to one course. We recommend applying to a course with open positions instead of a course that is accepting waitlist applications. If you have questions, please call 866-467-7651 to speak with one of our Admissions Advisors.

CALL TO APPLY
This means a course is very close to its start date. Although it is unlikely to secure a spot this late, you can call the National Admissions office at 866-467-7651 to discuss your options.

COURSE IS FULL
When a course has reached maximum capacity, meaning all spots and the three waitlist spots are occupied, a course will read “Course Is Full.” This means applications are no longer being accepted.

CLOSED
As a course nears its start date, the availability status may read “Closed.” In this event, a course roster has been finalized and applications are no longer being accepted or processed.

Sample Itinerary
8-Day Courses
DAY1
Course start, team building activities, high ropes course
DAY2-3
Begin backpacking. Skills focusing on: learning how to build a shelter, loading a pack, hiking on and off trail, reading a map and compass, and cooking
DAY4
Peak attempt—early morning ascent with the chance to view a sea of mountains from the summit
DAY5
Solo
DAY6
Travel back to Leadville Mountain Center
DAY7
Final Challenge Event and course end
DAY8
Transportation home
15-Day Course
DAY1
Course start, gear check and issue, team building activities
DAY2-13
Begin backpacking. Skills focusing on: learning how to build a shelter, loading a pack, hiking on and off trail, reading a map and compass, and cooking
DAY14
Final Challenge Event and course end
DAY15
Drop off at airport
22-Day Course
DAY1
Course start, gear check and issue, team building activities
DAY2-6
Begin backpacking. Skills focusing on: learning how to build a shelter, loading a pack, hiking on and off trail, reading a map and compass, and cooking
DAY7-15
Resupply, Solo, increased responsibility and peak attempts
DAY16-20
Resupply, followed by opportunities for the group to lead the expedition
DAY21
Final Challenge Event and course end
DAY22
Drop off at airport

There is not a week that goes by that Max doesn't share a funny story, an uncomfortable situation or an incredible experience from Outward Bound. He is more confident in the outdoors and has a love of nature like never before. He's not afraid to try new things and meet people who are very different than he is.

— Rebecca
Classic Courses

It’s time to make your own adventure. Outward Bound’s Classic expeditions for middle and high school students are built with you in mind. Make new friends, sleep under the stars, and learn skills like backcountry navigation and how to cook a delicious meal no matter where you are. You’ve got this! Whether you’re in a raft or on a mountainside, you’ll learn what you’re made of – and you’ll see first-hand how far teamwork can take you. Join us for an unforgettable challenge and discover a whole new way to get outside.  

  • Build skills, form connections:Learn and practice wilderness, teamwork and leadership skills. Find connections with your crewmates based on support and respect (and fun too!), and in the thick of challenges, discover there is more in you than you know.
  • Value strengths and strengthen values: Uncover your unique character strengths, develop your leadership abilities and learn how to let compassion in to everyday life by pushing your own limits and working alongside your peers.
  • Demonstrate mastery:As you gain confidence in new skills, take on more decision-making responsibilities. Work together to achieve team goals, solve problems and succeed both as individuals and as a group. At the end of course, you and your crew will undergo a Final Challenge Event.
  • What you’ll learn: Your connections matter – working together to navigate challenges will quickly turn your crewmates into friends. Together, you’ll find opportunities to carry more weight (literally and figuratively) and make impactful decisions with accompanying consequences. It’s all about confidence, communication, and independence. 

After you come home, many of the character, leadership and service traits you uncovered on your expedition stay with you, helping you navigate your daily life with more resilience and success.

Backpacking
a group of students smile at the camera while standing on a snowy and rocky landscape
Photo courtesy of Brennen Montgomery
Two people stand on an overlook holding a map while one points
Photo courtesy of Brennen Montgomery
Five students with backpacks smile with a mountainous landscape in the background
Photo courtesy of Ella Hartley
Two people jump in the air and high five with a mountainous landscape in the background
a group of people stand atop a rocky landscape looking in different directions
Photo courtesy of Dallas Branum
three people with backpacks make their way up a rocky and grassy incline
Photo courtesy of Ella Hartley
a group of people follow a trail away from the camera
Photo courtesy of Ella Hartley
Five people with backpacks overlook a mountainous landscape
Photo courtesy of Ella Hartley
a person sits outside an orange tent while the sun rises, shining light on the mountains in the background
Photo courtesy of JJ Sims

Backpackers carry everything they need—food, shelter, clothing and gear—allowing them to go deep into the wilderness where few people go. Students feel a sense of freedom from deadlines and tasks as they grow accustomed to eating when hungry, setting up camp when tired and having complete control over what they accomplish each day. The simplicity of hiking gives students the opportunity to focus internally on their own thoughts and self-reliance, as well as externally to connect deeply with others as they talk, sing, play games and spend time together without distraction.

This course will begin with lessons in basic travel and camping techniques. Along the way, students learn Leave No Trace techniques, map and compass navigation and camp craft as they get a feel for the human and natural history of the area. Students backpack along valleys and long ridges, camp in basins with views like the top of the world and stop along the way to explore microclimates and alpine ecosystems. Most importantly, students spend time in an incredible area, sleep under the stars, feel the sunshine on their face and maybe watch a few sunsets over this magical landscape.

The expedition includes at least one peak attempt. Peak attempts are major enterprises and typically require early morning starts and take all day to complete. Weather or other factors including group dynamics and physical ability may preclude even an attempt to ascend a peak.

Service
service learning on outdoor leadership course
Photo courtesy of Brennen Montgomery

Participants follow Leave No Trace ethics as service to the environment and do acts of service while leading and supporting fellow participants. Students develop a value of service, seeing the impact of their actions firsthand and transfer this desire to serve their communities back home. Past projects have included working on a goat farm, building trails, cleaning trash and debris from natural spaces, working with a local community garden, and removing invasive species.

Solo

In order for profound learning to take place, there must be time to reflect on the experience. Weather and time permitting, the Solo experience provides an important break from the rigors of the expedition and gives students the opportunity to reflect on their Outward Bound experience. Many students use this reflection time to make decisions about their future, journal and enjoy the beauty of their surroundings unencumbered by the constant external stimulation of modern life. Solo is that opportunity. The time can range anywhere from 30 minutes to 24 hours or more, depending on the length of the course as well as the competency and preparedness of the student group.

With all the food, skills and supplies they need, participants are given a secluded spot to reflect alone and are monitored by Instructors at regular intervals, as safety is always a top priority. Students find that Solo provokes profound and powerful learning in a short period of time and often becomes one of the most memorable parts of their Outward Bound experience.

Outcomes

Whether on a 8, 15-day course or a 22 day course, all Outward Bound expeditions are focused on building character and leadership skills. Short courses are a great option for students looking for an introduction to the outdoors or for those who need a quick recharge. On shorter courses, students learn camping and expedition basics, as well as the skills specific to the course activity, such as climbing or rafting. Students get to know fellow crew mates surprisingly well as they share this immersive and intense experience.

Course Area
a rocky and snowing mountain ridge is reflected in the still waters of a pond
Photo courtesy of Ryan McKinley
a few people walk along a grassy trail alongside large boulders
Photo courtesy of Dallas Branum
tents and shelters are scattered about a grassy meadow at dawn
Photo courtesy of Dallas Branum
the sun rises behind a mountainous ridge
Photo courtesy of Dallas Branum
a rocky and snowy mountain ridge is reflected in the still waters of a pond
Photo courtesy of Ryan McKinley
the sun is rising, illuminating snowy mountains at dawn
Photo courtesy of Ella Hartley
tents and shelters are set up high above a vast mountain landscape
Photo courtesy of Ella Hartley

The Colorado Rocky Mountains, one of the most famous mountain ranges in the world, stretch 3,000 miles from Alaska to New Mexico. Colorado offers the greatest concentration of peaks above 13,000 feet in continental U.S., with hundreds of “Thirteeners” (13,000+ feet in elevation) and 54 “Fourteeners” (14,000+ feet in elevation). The state is famous for its abundant wilderness adventure possibilities, from skiing to rock climbing to mountaineering. Colorado courses may take place in The Gore, The Holy Cross, The Sawatch, The Elks, The Sangre de Cristos, the Rawah or the San Juans.  Each of these Colorado ranges present unique challenges, but are all beautiful, wild and rugged. These regions are within the ancestral lands of the Núu-agha-tʉvʉ-pʉ̱ (Ute), Cheyenne, Arapaho, Očeti Šakówiŋ (Sioux), Eastern Shoshone, Jicarilla Apache, and Pueblos nations.

Course Stories

He's not afraid to try new things and meet people who are very different than he is.

There is not a week that goes by that Max doesn't share a funny story, an uncomfortable situation or an incredible experience from Outward Bound. He is more confident in the outdoors and has a love of nature like never before. He's not afraid to try new things and meet people who are very different than he is.

— Rebecca

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Getting Started

If you are ready to enroll on a course click the enroll button next to the course you wish to select or you can enroll over the phone by speaking with one of our Admissions Advisors (toll-free) at 866-467-7651.

To secure your spot on a course you must submit an enrollment form and $500 deposit that is applied toward the total cost of the course and includes a $150 non-refundable enrollment processing fee. 

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