Your First Day
We’ll meet you at the airport of your departure city. There will be lots of new faces, but don’t worry because in a few hours you’ll be fast making new friends. Everyone will be a bit nervous at first but by dinner time you’ll be enjoying your new found family.
Your First Night
On our domestic trips, we’ll be showing you how to put up your tent and how be comfortable in the out of doors. We’ll share our welcoming meal and then have fun around the campfire.
On our international trips, we’ll head to our nearby hostel or lodge where we’ll begin immersing ourselves into a different culture. During our welcoming dinner, we’ll begin going over local customs and manners and getting to know each other.
Your First Experience
On our domestic trips, you’ll begin by learning new skills for your first adventure. That will probably be how to pack your backpack or what to put in your dry bag for a water experience. On our international trips, it will probably be a few useful language lessons. No matter what that first adventure will be, we’re going to show you how to do everything yourself and you’ll have lots of fun anticipation knowing that you’re going to accomplish some amazing things. On all of our trips, we’ll start with easier, introductory challenges and as you progress and gain greater comfort, we’ll gradually cover more miles on our hikes or paddle routes and teach you more technical skills. By the end of the first week, you’ll be sharing triumphs and accomplishments you only dreamed about.
Days to Remember
Each day of your trip will be devoted to an activity such as backpacking, rafting, kayaking, bicycling, rock climbing, SCUBA diving or a service project. We’ll teach you these skills or help you sharpen those you already have. Though our trips are both mentally and physically challenging, there will be ample time to relax and pursue your personal interests. There will be plenty of opportunities to share your feelings with good company around a meal or campfire, or to collect your thoughts in a flower-filled meadow, with billowing clouds overhead. There will be time to do what you want to do: photograph or sketch the many natural wonders around you, swim in an emerald lake, converse with others in a different language, or explore a canyon or ridge where few have ever walked.
Your Gear
Our clothing list differs for each trip. We will provide all the group gear such as tents, stoves etc. We’ll send you a complete packing list and you’ll have fun assembling what you need as your departure day approaches. One thing great about adventure travel is that your clothing is all very functional, even for wearing to school back home. While we do have rental backpacks and sleeping bags for many of our domestic trips, we have found that many people will want their own gear because our activities are habit forming and ninety-five percent of our students continue adventuring for many more years.
How You’ll Travel
For our domestic programs, we’ll move quickly from one destination to another in new passenger vans with equipment trailers or by bicycle on our biking trips. On both our domestic and international trips, we’ll occasionally use trains, ferries or planes as well. Regardless of how we travel, our goal is to spend 95% of our time adventuring and only 5% moving from one place to another, unless of course you’re on a biking trip. Each trip carries a modest but helpful library covering both cultural and natural history topics.
What You’ll Eat
Without a doubt, great food is an essential and fun part of every Wilderness Ventures trip. When we’re in the backcountry, you’ll be eating simple but tasty meals and there will always be plenty of food to go around. You’ll enjoy things like chicken fajitas, pancakes, burritos, omelets, pizza, pasta, and even our famous Thanksgiving dinner! For snacks, you’ll always have your trusty bag of GORP (trail mix). You and your trip-mates will divide into cook crews for both front and backcountry meals and you will be responsible for making some delicious meals we can all enjoy eating together, family style. Cook crew is lots of fun and filled with laughter.
For our international trips, you’ll eat indigenous dishes, with local ingredients, either prepared by locals or by our selves. Whether you’re in Australia, Peru, Switzerland, or Costa Rica you’ll be eating like a native, immersed in a different culture and savoring such dishes as Aboriginal bush tucker, Ceviche, fondue, trout and tortillas. Whatever we eat on a Wilderness Ventures trip, it will always be great and you’ll never be hungry!
How You’ll Communicate
Because we want everyone to commit to each other so that we can all have a close and fun group experience, communication will be limited to one call home on arrival day and one call home on our Mid Trip Call Day. Our leaders will also send periodic email updates when possible.
How you’ll Sleep
You will sleep well this summer because you’ll be so busy being challenged during our daytime activities. On our domestic trips, you’ll sleep in our lightweight two to three person mountain tents. On our international trips you’ll be sleeping in hostels, small ins, aboard sailboats, mountain huts. On all of our trips, if you so choose, you’ll have the opportunity to sleep out under a blanket of stars more brilliant than you’ve ever seen before.
What We’ll Expect of You
We want you to have the time of your life on the trip of your choice. To do so, you will need to arrive both mentally and physically prepared. How much you enjoy your experience will be directly related to how well conditioned you are. If you are not playing sports currently, we strongly suggest you prepare with a regular jogging, bicycling or swimming program.
Lastly, we expect you to arrive with an enthusiastic and positive attitude. You must be prepared to share and contribute to your fellow trip mates unselfishly, be excited about participating in all your group activities, and be ready to make great new friends. The most important aspect of your trip will be your group experience and if you arrive both mentally and physically prepared, we are confident you will have an experience of a lifetime.
