“The staff was incredibly supportive and genuine. This is a great program.” – Patricia, Parent of Voyageur Outward Bound School Intercept Alum
“When I get home, I can tell people that Outward Bound reminded me about who I really am and want to be. It kickstarted that change into being a better person.” – Marisa, Voyageur Outward Bound School Intercept Alum
“I liked that the principles of Outward Bound were extended to serve a particular segment of families that have distinct needs. I really like the addition of the family seminar as a means to give families tools and to provide families with support for each other. The relationships with staff were very professional, yet warm.” – Brenda, Parent of Voyageur Outward Bound School Intercept Alum
"Outward Bound has been a life changing tool that has allowed me to stop and take a second look at the path I want to go down, versus the path I have been following. Living with a group of individuals has taught me a lot about perspective and that everyone has their struggles but there's always a way to push past them. I'm leaving this course with a new understanding of empathy and accountability while leaving behind my negative energy towards others. I will remember the Outward Bound community and what they stand for." – Mark, Voyageur Outward Bound School Intercept Alum
“The program was comprehensive in its problem solving approach. If only one person “changes” that isn't enough to attempt to support and understand the kid. Parent involvement was key! We also liked that the course was HARD.” – Sue, Parent of Voyageur Outward Bound School Intercept Alum
This 28-day course begins with a three-week backpacking expedition, providing a rare chance to experience challenge and self-discovery in the solitude of the rugged mountains, canyons and mesas of southwest Texas.
Designed to help families rebuild strong, healthy relationships, this expedition is ideal for teens and young adults engaging in potentially risky behaviors, struggling with low self-image, not living up to their potential and/or demonstrating poor decision-making skills. The journey begins with a desert backpacking expedition and concludes with a family conference to support a successful transition back into home life. Within the structure of a wilderness expedition, students experience the thrills of adventure, the satisfaction of a hard day’s work, and the camaraderie of a supportive team in a classroom unlike any other.
During the course, Instructors facilitate activities that build teamwork, communication and conflict resolution skills. They help students set goals and make better decisions and encourage each student to find the leader within themselves. The course concludes with a two-day community service project and a three-day intensive family conference. This workshop helps the entire family transfer the experience into a model for everyday life. Families walk away with new problem-solving tools, fresh optimism and a plan for future success.
NOTE: For the health and safety of students and staff in the COVID-19 pandemic, students may be required to travel to course start by private transportation. Please work directly with your Course Advisor for your course for the most up-to-date and regionally-focused travel options. All students and staff must provide a current negative COVID-19 viral test result before arrival to course and/or consent to having a COVID-19 test administered at course start. Outward Bound requires students and staff to follow COVID-19 protocols for 14 days prior to course start and while traveling including physical distancing, wearing a mask in public, and frequent and thorough handwashing. For complete “Health and Safety Practices for Outward Bound Expeditions,” click here.
This course starts within the next week. Please call us at 866-467-7651 to assess the possibility of applying for this course!
Intercept Courses
Outward Bound Intercept expeditions are specifically designed for struggling teens and their families. These highly structured courses remove young people from daily pressures and influences and present them instead with natural challenges, guided risks and a supportive environment. More than just resolving destructive behaviors, these courses develop positive decision-making skills, strengthen their ability to build healthy and lasting relationships, and cultivate a positive self-image. Compassionate Instructors help students and parents find a healthy sense of boundaries so families interact more effectively with one another and the world around them.
Build skills, form connections: Learn and practice wilderness skills while working on interpersonal and group dynamics. Faced with the natural challenges of wilderness travel, students confront obstacles that require real-time, cooperative decision-making, respect and focused attention to detail – all of which are vital characteristics for life beyond the expedition.
Value strengths and strengthen values: Students are carefully mentored through the process of self-discovery as they are encouraged to take calculated risks and make choices with natural consequences. Developing different approaches to daily trials, seeking increasingly positive outcomes, students learn adaptability and experience the relationship between choices and consequences in the real world.
Demonstrate mastery: As the crew progresses, students are allowed to take on more leadership and decision-making responsibilities and all the joys and challenges that come with taking charge. Working both together and independently to achieve goals, students learn new skills to solve problems and succeed.
Bridge the gap: Students prepare to reunite with families and transfer Outward Bound successes to lives back home. This process involves two days of volunteer work and culminates with a facilitated conversation between students and their families.
What you’ll learn: Students come home with new communication strategies, improved conflict resolution skills and a keen awareness of themselves and others.
With the support of Outward Bound’s Intercept program, and the dedicated involvement of both students and their families, relationships start fresh, perceived limitations are overcome, new opportunities emerge and new futures are created.
Photo courtesy
of Calvin Croll
Photo courtesy
of Calvin Croll
Photo courtesy
of Emma Rapp
Photo courtesy
of Erin McCleary
Desert Backpacking
At altitudes of 2,000-8,000 feet, students backpack the vast Chisos Mountains and explore the Chihuahuan Desert, crossing mountainous terrain and traveling through water-polished canyons. The small group will hike both on and off trail, crossing mountain passes, exploring immense canyons and traversing a rugged desert where atmospheric clarity and wide-open spaces make distances deceiving and navigation challenging. While hiking, students will learn desert travel skills such as strategies for water management and environmental preservation and the finer points of balance and foot placement on rough terrain.
Photo courtesy
of Rachael Pace
Photo courtesy
of Rachael Pace
Photo courtesy
of Rachael Pace
Rock Climbing & Rappelling
On the scenic cliffs of the Rio Grande, overlooking the mountains of Mexico, is Black Rocks – a beautiful climbing site in Big Bend Ranch State Park. Known mostly to locals, this seldom-visited spot gives students a unique opportunity in back-country rock climbing. These 30 to 80 foot cliffs offer a variety of beginner and intermediate climbs that provide an ideal introduction to rock climbing. Regardless of a student’s rock climbing and rappelling background, everyone is sure to find challenge and success as they spend a day at Black Rocks.
All Outward Bound rock climbing and rappelling experiences are carefully supervised and employ safety systems aligned with national standards. During climbing days, students learn about rock climbing equipment, safety and etiquette, belaying and climbing rescue techniques. Encouraged and supported by their group, students push their perceived limits and expand their comfort zones in a safe, fun and non-competitive environment.
Family Seminar
NOTE: Due to safety concerns related to the coronavirus pandemic, the parents or guardians will participate in the Seminar virtually as the students conclude their course.
By the end of the course, students have made great strides. They’ve learned how to balance freedom and responsibility, how to be part of a team and how to make positive choices. They feel a sense of pride in themselves and their accomplishments and have a fresh perspective and outlook on their lives. But how do teens and families translate the incredible Intercept experience into lasting positive change? Parents or guardians are a critical link in the success of the Intercept experience and have the opportunity to think through their relationship with their teen by using a comprehensive workbook. At the intensive three-day seminar, Instructors help translate the student experience to parents and guardians, giving families an opportunity to practice tools and strategies used on the expedition, creating a solid foundation of understanding and support for the path ahead.
As a part of the family seminar, families meet one-on-one with at least one of the expedition Instructors to learn how their young adult fared on the course. They hear a detailed account of what the course was like, the struggles and success of the group and how their young adult handled the challenges. Together, with an Instructor acting as a facilitator, families come up with a new agreement to guide life at home. The goal for the family is to re-establish healthy roles and connections, restore any past harm, rebuild trust and create clear expectations for the future. The goal for the student is to have a voice in the direction their life takes and to clearly understand and commit to their responsibilities in order to earn trust and more freedom at home.
Service
Service is a cornerstone of every Outward Bound experience. From the seemingly small, daily acts of service to the environment and the expedition team to the post-expedition service-learning projects, students have ample opportunities to experience the value of giving back to the larger community. On the expedition, students are encouraged to practice environmental stewardship in the form of Leave No Trace ethics - leaving campsites and trails in better condition than they found them. Students also practice regular acts of service for their team including preparing and serving meals, helping others put on or take off packs, or setting up shelters for the entire team. After the expedition, students participate in two days of organized service to the community. These projects are designed to offer as much interaction with local communities as possible, as a way of exchanging cultural awareness and fostering a sense of connection to the larger world. The specific type of service project depends upon the structure of the course as well as local needs and opportunities. Service projects could include helping in a border town or working to improve a local wilderness area.
Solo
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. The duration of Solo depends on the course length and type, 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 staff throughout the experience to maintain safety. 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 course.
Outcomes
Courses are offered in a variety of locations and for different lengths to provide a range of programming from which participants can choose the optimal experience for them. Longer courses allow for a full immersion into the Outward Bound experience, more time to practice wilderness travel, and the opportunity to experience both success and failure to promote personal growth. The Intercept course offers the opportunity to be fully removed from the temptations and triggers of day-to-day life and start fresh with new habits and new life lessons. Students can expect to get comfortable living and working together in the wilderness while creating a solid foundation of communication, problem solving and decision making skills that they can continue to build on after course. With the added support of parent or guardian involvement, students are able to take lessons they’ve learned on this course back to their home lives and implement the changes they want to see.
Photo courtesy
of Erika Jabas
Photo courtesy
of Erika Jabas
Photo courtesy
of Rachael Pace
Photo courtesy
of Mikaela Hamilton
Photo courtesy
of Rachael Pace
Course Area
Big Bend State and National Parks, Texas
Along the U.S.-Mexico border in southwestern Texas, a powerful river and a mountainous desert unite in Texas’ Big Bend park system. The Texas course area is one of the most remote and geologically interesting in the country. The Rio Grande River carves a huge, sweeping bend where Big Bend National Park earns its name. This 750,000-square mile wilderness is the eighth largest national park in the lower 48 states and a desert backpacking, canoeing and rock climbing paradise. In this region, delicate desert flowers exist alongside fossilized trees millions of years old. Mountain passes give way to steep-walled canyons and cliffs. The land itself is awe-inspiring, with canyons towering 300 to 1,200 feet over the river. It is one of the last true desert regions in North America. Much of this rugged land has remained unchanged for centuries. Hundreds of species of birds and a healthy diversity of other animal and plant communities thrive within the splendid isolation of ancient limestone canyons, juniper and mesquite-covered mesas and coal-black night skies. These regions are the ancestral lands of the Jumanos, Yoli (Concho), Pescado, Mescalero Apache and Chiso nations.
SAMPLE ITINERARY
DAY 1
Course start in El Paso, TX
DAY 2-13
Desert backpacking training in Big Bend
DAY 14
Rock climbing
DAY 15-17
Solo
DAY 18-22
Final backpacking expedition
DAY 23
Students arrive back on base and clean gear.
DAY 24
Students participate in a local community service project while parents begin the virtual seminar.
DAY 25
Family conference
DAY 26
Parents conclude the seminar while students do local community service and explore “next steps"
DAY 27
Parents Travel to El Paso, TX while students participate in Personal Challenge event and Graduation
DAY 28
Students travel to El Paso & home
Course Stories
“The staff was incredibly supportive and genuine. This is a great program.” – Patricia, Parent of Voyageur Outward Bound School Intercept Alum
“When I get home, I can tell people that Outward Bound reminded me about who I really am and want to be. It kickstarted that change into being a better person.” – Marisa, Voyageur Outward Bound School Intercept Alum
“I liked that the principles of Outward Bound were extended to serve a particular segment of families that have distinct needs. I really like the addition of the family seminar as a means to give families tools and to provide families with support for each other. The relationships with staff were very professional, yet warm.” – Brenda, Parent of Voyageur Outward Bound School Intercept Alum
"Outward Bound has been a life changing tool that has allowed me to stop and take a second look at the path I want to go down, versus the path I have been following. Living with a group of individuals has taught me a lot about perspective and that everyone has their struggles but there's always a way to push past them. I'm leaving this course with a new understanding of empathy and accountability while leaving behind my negative energy towards others. I will remember the Outward Bound community and what they stand for." – Mark, Voyageur Outward Bound School Intercept Alum
“The program was comprehensive in its problem solving approach. If only one person “changes” that isn't enough to attempt to support and understand the kid. Parent involvement was key! We also liked that the course was HARD.” – Sue, Parent of Voyageur Outward Bound School Intercept Alum
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.