High Sierra Backpacking for LGBTQ+ Young Adults
TECHNICAL
- Campcraft
- Food Preparation and Cooking
- Knots
- Leave No Trace Methods & Ethics
- Map and Compass
- Navigation
- Self Care
INTERPERSONAL
- Camaraderie
- Character
- Communication
- Empathy
- Independence
- Leadership
- Positive Risk Taking
- Problem Solving
- Responsibility
- Self Awareness
- Self Confidence
- Sense of Social Connection
- Service
Course Stories
Hike the majestic Sierra Nevada mountain range on this stunning alpine backpacking course.
High Sierra backpacking expeditions travel to lesser-known backcountry areas in the iconic Sierra Nevada Range. The course will challenge new and experienced backpackers as your crew travels above 8,000 feet and completes high-mileage days. The length of this course, together with its single focus on backpacking, allows for longer travel distances and additional opportunities to implement feedback from Instructors and crew.
Expect to learn technical skills like navigation and fine-tune leadership skills like effective communication and conflict resolution. Your group will learn and practice with the granite domes, alpine lakes and starry skies as your classroom.
Outward Bound LGBTQ+ courses are designed for LGBTQ+ teens to build community and cultivate self-efficacy through service-learning, leadership development, and self-discovery in natural environments. This course is staffed with Instructors who have lived experiences with and demonstrated support for the LGBTQ+ community. Staff strive to create a safe space for teens who have experienced being marginalized due to their identity, and/or are exploring their sexual and/or gender identity to build community and cultivate self-efficacy. Students should expect a traditional Outward Bound course structure, where they’ll learn technical skills and take responsibility for daily activities, while also developing relationships and building community with other LGBTQ+ youth.
NOTE: This course requires that students submit proof of "Up-to-Date" COVID-19 Vaccination status as defined by the CDC. For questions regarding this policy please see this page or call us at 866-467-7651.
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.
Backpacking
Students will travel into the heart of the Sierra Nevada where they’ll learn Leave No Trace camping and travel skills, outdoor cooking techniques, map and compass use, creek crossings that are often void of bridges, route finding and how to set up shelters in the backcountry. Although rare, patches of snow may be found at higher elevations.
In addition to technical skills, Instructors will teach and facilitate the interpersonal skills needed for students to function effectively as a team, accomplish goals and tackle new challenges. Challenges on course are designed to compel students to draw upon inner resources and develop trust in one another. One example of on-course challenges is a peak attempt. With lighter packs, participants will often start before sunrise to summit a mountain and are rewarded with 360 degree views and an incredible sense of accomplishment.
As skills and experience increase, Instructors will turn over more responsibility to the crew. Students will eventually make navigation decisions, plan routes and set up camp.
Service
Service to others and the environment is a core value of Outward Bound and is integrated into each course. Participants follow Leave No Trace ethics and do acts of service while leading and supporting fellow participants. Designated service projects are coordinated with land managers like the US Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, and National Park Service to collaborate on land restoration projects. As they see the impact of their actions first hand, students develop a value of service, and transfer this desire to serve their communities once they return.
Solo
Outward Bound believes in order for profound learning to take place, there must be time to reflect on the experience. During course, the Solo experience offers the most impactful chance for this to occur. It is a chance to experience solitude in the wilderness without distraction while also taking a break from the physical rigors of course. Students are separated from their group for a period of time which depends on course length and Instructor assessment of group capability. Solo sites are chosen to provide solitude. Participants have all necessary equipment, food and water. The maximum time for Solo on this course is 48 hours.
Outcomes
This course pushes participants physically, socially and emotionally. With a longer course length, participants dig deep and achieve a higher level of mastery of both technical skills needed to travel in a crew and the social and emotional skills to be a positive member of the group. Additionally, this course aims to provide space for LGBTQ+ youth to explore how their identities intersect with their desire for personal growth and development. Participants will gain both technical and personal skills that they will be able to take back to their community, school, and work.
Course Area
The Sierra Nevada range is California’s backyard and wonderland of wilderness, waterfalls, lakes and peaks. It’s an enormous range – spanning more than 400 miles from north to south, and 70 miles east to west. Courses take place in the southern and western parts of the Sierra: Emigrant Wilderness, Ansel Adams Wilderness, Yosemite National Park and Sequoia Kings Canyon National Park.
Summer in the Sierra is mostly sunny, with occasional rain and cold evenings. Snowfall is unlikely, though June courses may traverse atop lingering winter and spring snow. Summer temperature tends towards the 70s to 80s during the day, dipping into the 30s to 50s in the evening and night. These regions are the ancestral lands of the Northern Paiute, Western Mono/Monache, Me-Wuk (Central Sierra Miwok), Eastern Mono/Monache, and Tübatulabal nations.
Course Stories
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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.