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Oregon Rafting & Rock Climbing for LGBTQ+ Young Adults

Photograph (above) taken by Colby Blue
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LOCATION
Pacific Northwest
EXPEDITION TYPE
Rafting
Rock Climbing
Service Intensive
ADDITIONAL ACTIVITIES
Urban
PRICE
$4,950
PROGRAM
High School , LGBTQ+, Additional Programs
AGES
14-17
LENGTH
15 Days
START LOCATION
Redmond, OR
END LOCATION
Redmond, OR
i
SEASON(S)
Summer
SKILLS

TECHNICAL

  • Basic Paddle Strokes
  • Campcraft
  • Food Preparation and Cooking
  • Leave No Trace Methods & Ethics
  • River Reading
  • Self Care

INTERPERSONAL

  • Character
  • Empathy
  • Independence
  • Leadership
  • Positive Risk Taking
  • Problem Solving
  • Responsibility
  • Self Awareness
  • Self Confidence
  • Service
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Course Stories

"This opportunity to deeply explore my community has given me an experience that I will remember for the rest of my life. I would like to thank my amazing Instructors for being able to provide a safe, comfortable and open setting for all the students including me." – Student

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Connect with other LGBTQ+ young adults as you explore the wild and scenic Deschutes River.

The Oregon Rafting & Rock Climbing course for LGBTQ+ young adults offers students an opportunity to connect with other members of the LGBTQ+ community on a 15-day expedition. The first days of your trip will be spent building critical skills in teamwork and outdoor skills. You will learn climbing techniques, as well as the basic gear, knots and rope systems. Along the wild and scenic Deschutes River, your team will learn paddling methods, river hydrology, raft captaining, and self-rescue techniques. The course also includes an emphasis on leadership, character development, and an ethic of service. Whether navigating through rapids, hiking long distances to reach climbs, or keeping calm when exposed to heights, wilderness travel is demanding. You do not need to have any previous experience but arriving physically fit and excited for the opportunity for personal development will enhance your experience and allow you to take full advantage of the expedition. 

Outward Bound LGBTQ+ courses are designed for LGBTQ+ young adults to build community and cultivate self-efficacy through service-learning, leadership development, and self-discovery in natural environments. All efforts are made to staff this course with Instructors who identify as LGBTQ+, and aim to create a safe space for young adults who have experienced being marginalized due to their identity, and/or are exploring their sexual and/or gender identity. 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+ young adults.

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

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For detailed information on course availability statuses and what they mean, click here.

COURSE # DATES DAYS AGE COST
WOKV-241 6.14.22 - 6.28.22 15 14 - 17 $ 4,950 JOIN WAITLIST

Thank you for your interest in Outward Bound! 

This course starts within the next week. Please call us at 866-467-7651 to assess the possibility of applying for this course!

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.

Classic Courses

Are you ready to take a journey that will change your life? You won’t look at day-to-day drama the same way after you’ve conquered a high mountain ridge, made a boat obey your command in windswept waves or slept under the stars watching bats swoop overhead. Joining an Outward Bound expedition changes you. Your crew, your Instructor, your route and your adventures will have a profound and lasting impact on you as you rise to meet exhilarating natural challenges in some of the country’s wildest places.

  • 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.
  • What you’ll learn: For High School students, the opportunities to carry more weight (literally and figuratively) and make impactful decisions with accompanying consequences fills the expedition as you go through numerous trials and triumphs. It’s all about 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.

outdoor leadership school for lgbtq teens
Photo courtesy of Ben Stainstreet
outdoor leadership program for lgbtq teens
Photo courtesy of Colby Blue
summer program for lgbtq teens
Photo courtesy of Colby Blue
teens learning to raft
Photo courtesy of Colby Blue
rafting expedition for lgbtq teens
Photo courtesy of Colby Blue
teens learn rafting skills
Photo courtesy of Colby Blue
lgbtq teens rafting trip in pacific northwest
rafting course for lgbtq teens in oregon
Photo courtesy of Colby Blue
rafting trip for lgbtq teens
Photo courtesy of Colby Blue

Rafting

Students will travel on the river in four to six-person paddle rafts, and learn to “captain” (maneuver) their paddle raft team through Class II to III rapids. After lessons in basic river travel and safety, students will learn to read currents, anticipate obstacles, and scout rapids. Students will also learn river hydrology, swimming in currents, and paddle techniques. There may also be an opportunity for short day hikes.

service learning on outdoor leadership course
Photo courtesy of Colby Blue
service learning on outdoor leadership course
Photo courtesy of Colby Blue

Service

Service to others and to our environment is a core value of Outward Bound and is integrated into each course. Groups follow Leave No Trace ethics as they engage in acts of service while leading and supporting fellow participants. Students see the impact of their actions firsthand, and may develop a desire to continue service in their home communities.

Solo

In order for profound learning to take place, students spend time reflecting on their experience, and Solo is that opportunity. 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. With sufficient food and equipment, students will set up camp at sites of their own, using the wilderness skills learned during the first portions of the course. The amount of time students spend on Solo is based on course length, weather, student condition, age, and Instructor preference. Solo campsites are chosen to offer as much solitude as possible (yet be within emergency whistle-signaling distance of other group members). Most students spend their Solo time journaling, drawing, reflecting, thinking and resting as they process lessons of the course to focus on their goals for the future. Instructors check on each participant at regular intervals, as safety is always a top priority.

Outcomes

Outward Bound promotes character development, leadership, and service in the most engaging classroom possible … the wilderness. In real time, students experience the effects of their decisions on themselves and the other members of their group as they work to complete difficult tasks necessary for wilderness travel. Instructors challenge students to try new things and step outside their comfort zones. They also provide feedback that students implement on course and when they return to their communities.

Course Area

Deschutes River, Oregon

The Deschutes River is part of the national Wild & Scenic Rivers System, flowing north from the Oregon Cascades to the Columbia River and then on to the Pacific Ocean. Courses generally travel anywhere from fifty to one hundred miles along the Lower Deschutes. The rapids on the Deschutes are rated to class IV, mostly class II-III. The group camps each night along the banks of the river. These regions are the ancestral lands of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs and the Tenino nations.

SAMPLE ITINERARY
DAY 1
Course Start, welcome and introductions, duffle shuffle, course overview
DAY 2-6
Whitewater Rafting: fitting and use of PFD, safety topics, captaining a raft, reading water, swim assessment, navigation, and camp-craft skills. Practice with captaining a raft, flip drills, scouting, throw bag drill, swimming activities.
DAY 7
Complete the 96-mile river rafting section by taking out at Deschutes State Park. De-issue river gear. River closing and celebration.
DAY 8
Travel to Smith Rock State Park. Orient to new environment and new equipment
DAY 9-13
Rock Climbing: introduction to rock climbing systems, movement on rock, belaying, top roping and lowering. Experience various types of rock climbs and difficulties. Continue to work on belaying and supporting other climbers.
DAY 14
Personal challenge event, de-issue gear, de-brief, course end celebration and graduation
DAY 15
Transport home

Course Stories

"This opportunity to deeply explore my community has given me an experience that I will remember for the rest of my life. I would like to thank my amazing Instructors for being able to provide a safe, comfortable and open setting for all the students including me." – Student

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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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