Since 1973, we’ve been connecting young people with the outdoors in ways that build passion and wanderlust for the natural world. Part of how we do that is by visiting and having fun in the most beautiful environments on the planet. For example, our teen adventure programs climb inspiring peaks in the Tetons and the Alps, hike through the most pristine wilderness environments in North America and raft thrilling whitewater all over the world. However, nothing brings nature to life like the chance to spot rare or abundant fauna in their natural habitats. Thankfully, students on any of our amazing teen adventure programs have the chance to experience a diverse array of awe-inspiring animals. Here are a few examples.

Humpback Whales make their migration route up the west coast of North America to spend the summer in the waters off southeast Alaska and Chichigof Island. Discover this majestic species up close and in person while sea kayaking on our Alaska Southeast and Alaska Community Service Adventures.

Manta Rays populate the waters of many of our offshore adventures, but the warm waters of Hawaii’s Kona Coast are known for their abundant and stunning Manta Ray population. Learn to SCUBA dive with these majestic creatures on our Hawaii Kauai Leadership Adventure.

Llamas are the iconographic figures of the Incan Empire. While not technically a “wild” animal, these domesticated creatures have long served as a transportation and food source for the Andean people, and serve as the present-day lawn mowers of the Machu Picchu citadel. Follow in their hoof-steps on the Peru Community Service Adventure.

Sea Turtles are a delight to all of our students visiting Costa Rica, where they have the chance to participate in a valuable and rewarding service project that protects both the turtles and their natural habitat. The sea turtle is a rare and protected animal that is vital to its underwater ecosystem and needs our support. Help and learn on our Costa Rica Community Service Adventure and our other great adventures to Costa Rica.

Blue Footed Boobies (and other evolutionary oddities) await in the Galapagos Islands. Discover Flightless Cormorants, Giant Tortures, Lava Lizards and the footsteps of Charles Darwin on our Ecuador Galapagos Community Service Adventure.

Coral are technically non-living structures built- and populated-by tiny marine creatures known as Polyps. Off the coast of Australia, the Great Barrier Reef is the planet’s largest structure constructed by a living creature. Experience it while learning to scuba dive on our Australia Fiji Adventure.

Bison are as synonymous with the American West as the Cowboy and Yellowstone National Park. Experience Yellowstone, the last of the Old West and Bison (plus a whole host of other creatures along the front row of the “American Serengeti”) on any of our adventures visiting Jackson Hole and Yellowstone National Park.

For these, and other great animal adventure sighting opportunities — including the chance to spot Kangaroos, Dolphins, Sea Lions, Antelope, Moose and Wolves — call our wildlife experts in our Jackson Hole headquarters. We connect young people with great experiences to build unforgettable adventures. 800-533-2281

Wilderness Ventures combines fantastic people, environments and activities to offer the most fun and substantive leadership adventures on the planet. Our goals are to develop peer leadership skills, teach applicable outdoor skills and foster a conservation ethic and love for outdoor environments. We do this by bringing young people into beautiful environments where we make positive associations with wild lands by participating in fun, purpose-driven activities where young people feel a sense of challenge, excitement and reward.

This formula (young people + great environment + fun = conservation ethic) has worked for over 20,000 students since 1973 in part because we pay careful attention to our students’ health and safety needs while they’re under the care of our highly trained adult leaders. All of the higher-level skills that we work on during our teen adventure programs (i.e. leadership development, cooperative learning, teamwork, self esteem, etc…) are enabled because we pay first-focus to our students’ lower-level needs. Our students’ health, safety and emotional and physical comfort in a new group and a new environment is the foundation from which we’re able to develop great people into fantastic leaders who share a lifelong love for the outdoors.

Since 1973, we’ve paid careful attention to ensure our students’ safety and enjoyment in the out of doors. Instead of a scenario where a student has a valuable experience that they do not want to repeat, we focus on introducing young people to the outdoors in a way that is fun and fosters a lifelong love for being outside and connecting with our planet. We do that by having a great time, and by making sure that everyone is prepared-for and comfortable-during their adventure.

One of the greatest sources for physical and emotional comfort (or discomfort) on our adventures can be our students’ feet. New activities such as hiking, backpacking, trekking, rock climbing and mountaineering put a new kind of impact on the foot — fostering the potential for discomfort. To help ensure that all of our students feel comfortable throughout their adventure, we provide detailed advice on hiking boot selection and care — before and during the summer season.

Each of our teen adventure programs has a detailed packing list and descriptive notes that guide students and their families in boot selection appropriate for their adventure. Every spring, we also help out from our office in Jackson Hole by carefully answering countless questions regarding boot fit and selection. In short, the best hiking boot is the one that will be the most comfortable throughout your journey and each of its activities. What is comfortable in the store for 20 minutes is not necessarily perfect over a long and rewarding day on the trail, so we recommend taking some thoughtful time before selecting a pair of hiking boots.

Regarding boot fit, we recommend paying particular attention to any points that might be rubbing or pinching while walking in the store. On the trail, these little rub points (called hotspots) can quickly turn into uncomfortable blisters. Of course, our staff are highly trained in blister prevention and care, but the best scenario is to select boots that are comfortable from the onset.

To break in their new hiking boots, we highly recommend that our students make a careful purchase several months before their adventure, then spend significant time “breaking in” their hiking boots. This is a process by where the boot becomes adept- and molded-to your foot. Essentially, the boot becomes truly yours when it is broken in.

The best way to break in your boots is to wear them as much as possible. Breaking in your hiking boots doesn’t have to occur on the trail (or even in the outdoors). Boot breaking in can occur while walking and wearing your boots around town, at the mall or in school. As an added bonus, wearing your hiking boots as part of your daily life will help build your excitement for your adventure, and help connect the “real world” with the unforgettable experience you’ll have this summer.

On the 14-day Colorado Utah Mountain Biking Adventure, WV students have the opportunity to experience some of the most amazing desert and high alpine environments in North America while learning new skills amongst a great group of young people. Wilderness Ventures has a long legacy of leading amazing teen bicycling programs in the Rocky Mountains. Beginning in Denver, our Colorado Utah Mountain Biking Adventure rides the world-class trails of Salida, Telluride, Moab, Fruita and Breckenridge. The group also rafts the exciting rapids of the Arkansas and Colorado Rivers.

Destinations on the Colorado Utah Mountain Biking Adventure Camp

Salida

Perched under the 14,000-foot Collegiate Peaks, Salida, Colorado is the jumping-off point for our friendly introduction to mountain biking and our first whitewater rafting experience on the Arkansas River. Like many of the towns in Colorado, the valley between Salida and Leadville was once busting with mining activity, and now serves as a hub for exciting outdoor recreation activities.

Telluride

One of the most inaccessible but beautiful destinations in Colorado, Telluride is a spectacular winter skiing and summer mountain biking destination. (In mining days, Telluride was so hard to get to that it was referred to with the phonetic phrase “to hell you ride.”) Sandwiched by towering mountains that form a steep valley decorated at the end by a dramatic waterfall, the historic village is a great place to stroll around, learn about the natural and economic history of the region and grab a tasty ice cream cone. A short gondola ride up from the historic town center, lies Telluride Ski Resort – our jumping off place for an exciting array of beginner-friendly mountain biking trails.

Moab

While the sport actually has its origins in Marin County, California, perhaps nowhere on earth is as synonymous with Mountain Biking as Moab, Utah. Originally made famous during the uranium mining boom, Moab is now a prized destination for outdoor adventure activities. The surrounding “Canyon Country” is protected by two national parks, Arches and Canyon Lands, which our students, in addition to riding some of the most-coveted cycling trails in the world, visit on the Colorado Utah Mountain Biking Adventure.

Fruita

Aptly named as an agricultural location for traditional fruit farming, Fruita, Colorado lies in the high desert, just off the Western slope of the Rockies – overlooking the Colorado River. Aside from serving as a great destination for hiking and whitewater rafting, the area has remade itself as one of the country’s premier mountain biking destinations to emerge over the past decade. The fun trails of Fruita, Colorado are a favorite for Wilderness Ventures students.

Breckenridge

One of Colorado’s great ski destinations, our mountain biking adventure enjoys Breckenridge as the location for  our culminating day of riding. Here, as a special treat, we enjoy the day riding the lifts up this beautiful mountain – taking endless effort-free rides down Breckenridge’s renowned network of mountain biking trails.

For more information about our teen mountain biking camps, visit our website.

Detailed day-to-day itineraries on all of our inspiring teen adventure camps at www.wildernessventures.com

Since 1973, one of the ways that Wilderness Ventures has been connecting students with the environments that we travel through is by participating in rewarding and meaningful service activities within those environments. On our adventures visiting a coastal environment, students lend a helping hand during our substantive marine biology camp components – each part of a carefully-crafted, muti-environment and multi-activity focused adventure experience.

California’s Monterey Bay: Stopping off at Monterey Bay Aquarium, students on our 6th-grade-specific California Explorer Adventure and 7th & 8th-grade-specific California Leadership Adventure learn about the marine biology and ecology of this beautiful marine habitat south of San Francisco. Then, in an integrated expedition aboard safe and stable, sit-atop sea kayaks, the carefully-supervised group ventures out onto the water to study the marine life first hand.

Australia’s Great Barrier Reef: Combining scuba certification with oceanic observation is one of the greatest benefits of studying marine biology on the Great Barrier Reef. The fortunate marine biology students on our Australia Fiji Adventure spend eight days scuba diving and studying the habitat of the Great Barrier Reef – earning their Padi Open Water Diver certifications in process.

Belize’s Precious Coral Reef: Helping with marine biology research on the world’s second largest coral reef, students help to conserve marine species on this reef habitat. As on the great barrier reef, students will be able to incorporate earning their scuba certification while assisting a local conservation organization in the study of this precious but protected habitat.

Costa Rica’s Nicoya Penninsula: Blending more exciting summer camp activities with substantive marine biology research, our teen adventure programs visiting Costa Rica spend three fun and rewarding days learning to both surf and to care for and protect the beach’s sea turtle population. As part of our help with this ongoing marine biology conservation camp project, we’ll conduct nightly beach patrols, protect sea turtle habitat and find ourselves lucky-enough to witness the turtles’ nocturnal egg laying.

Ecuador’s Galapagos Islands: Perhaps no destination personifies marine biology camp research like the Galapagos Islands. Students on our Ecuador and Galapagos Service adventure learn about the legacy of Charles Darwin and his historic marine biology camp research as part of this amazing 22-day adventure.

For more information on any of our unforgettable teen summer adventure camps and inspiring marine biology camps for teens, call 800-533-2281.

From the vibrancy of Barcelona and the South Spanish Coast to the rugged beauty of the Swiss Alps, young adults have the opportunity to experience imaginative Europe on our carefully-crafted European student tours.

Wilderness Ventures has been offering the world’s leading outdoor adventures for young adults since 1973. Our European Alps and Southern Europe student tours offer the most enjoyable and substantive European experiences imaginable for today’s young adults.

Our 22-day European Alps Adventure begins and ends on the international city of Geneva, Switzerland. French-speaking Geneva casts a beautiful reflection on the tranquil surface of Lake Geneva. After taking a day to acquaint ourselves in this vibrant capital, we’ll strap on our packs and venture out onto the famous Haute Route. Known as the “High Route” or “Mountaineers Route,” the Haute Route traverses the Alps to the beautiful (German-speaking) village of Zermatt, Switzerland. Next, on our European Alps Adventure for young adults, we’ll climb further into the peaks – climbing the famous Breithorn mountain for rewarding views of the Matterhorn and Mount Blanc above the glacier-clad landscape.

Young adults on our Southern Europe Adventure get to experience the cultures of both Barcelona and Paris, hike in the Spanish Pyrenees and the French Alps, and both sea kayak and raft Spain’s warm waters. Our Southern European tour for young adults begins in the cosmopolitan city of Barcelona. After a day to enjoy this cultural capital, we’ll embark out onto the Latin coast for a thrilling sea kayaking adventure through the warm waters of the Costa Brava. Venturing inland and upland, we’ll hike through the Pyrenees Mountains – visiting small mountain villages along the way. Taking again to the water, our European student tour will travel to the fabulous Noguera Palleresa River for two magical and rewarding days of whitewater rafting. Finally, we’ll savor a culminating trekking experience through the French Alps before concluding our journey with two very special days to explore and celebrate our adventure in Paris.

Both of our European tours for young adults are thrilling, substantive experiences – open to high school age students who are excited about experiencing the best of Europe with a great group of young people. Like all of our student summer programs, our European tours for young adults are supervised by two of our highly trained, attentive and caring outdoor leaders. Each of these Europe student tours combines culture and nature – ensure a world-class experience that is immersive, fun, educational, constructive and always unforgettable.

For the past four decades, Wilderness Ventures has been connecting young people with our national parks systems. We deliver carefully-crafted experiences that connect teenagers to the outdoors by giving them the time of their lives in an environment that is at once beautiful and imaginative – inspiring conservation ethics through environmental education and by creating intrinsic connections with wild lands.

Wilderness Ventures founders Mike and Helen Cottingham believe that showing young people a good time in a truly beautiful environment will help develop a love for the outdoors while planting the seeds of conservation ethics in their hearts and minds. This philosophy requires our outdoor adventure programs to travel to the most beautiful destinations on the planet, which serve as our “outdoor classroom.” We like to call these locations of inspired beauty our “Last Best Places.” Hand selected by Mike and Helen, these renowned locations of extreme aesthetic beauty have helped inspire a love for the outdoors amongst our over 20,000 alumni over multiple generations.

It’s certainly no coincidence that both Wilderness Ventures and Ansel Adams use many of the same backdrops for inspiring conservation ethics and a love for the outdoors. Some of these shared locations include Canyon De Chelly in Arizona, Grand Teton National Park, the Kings River Canyon in California, Rocky Mountain National Park, New Mexico’s Taos Pueblo, Yellowstone National Park, Yosemite National Park and Zion National Park.

With our home in the Tetons and Yellowstone region of northwestern Wyoming, Adam’s photos of Grand Teton National Park and Yellowstone National Park are sources of aesthetic inspiration for our teen adventure programs. We share a special kinship with Adam’s work in these destinations. (In fact, our office is just a few miles south of the area pictured in Adam’s famous photo “Tetons and the Snake River”.)

Wilderness Ventures offers over 12 separate teen adventure programs that visit both Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. Students can choose between age-appropriate adventures that backpack, sea kayak, rock climb, bicycle and whitewater raft these national treasures. In Adam’s home state of California, students can choose the High Sierra Adventure, California Adventure or California Explorer Adventure, which each visit renowned Yosemite National Park, as well as the Ansel Adams Wilderness. Students on our Colorado Adventure make a once-in-a-lifetime trek through Rocky Mountain National Park. Finally, giving back to the land and its inhabitants, students participating in our Southwest Service Adventure visit some of Adam’s favorite environments in that region – including the Taos Pueblo, Canyon De Chelly and Zion National Park.

As the premier outdoor adventure program for teens, our goals are to develop leadership skills, connect people to wild lands and inspire a love for the outdoors. We are proud to have served as an advocate for Adam’s conservation vision throughout the past 40 years.

America’s first and most iconographic National Park is an essential life-list destination for people of any age. However, Wilderness Ventures offers young adults the very special opportunity to experience the true Yellowstone wilderness. Venture off-the-beaten track and into the lesser-known reaches of this American treasure on the best summer of your life.

Aside from visiting and learning about popular geothermic spectacles like Yellowstone’s Old Faithful Geyser, students on any of our exciting, age-appropriate and beginner-friendly adventures to Yellowstone National Park get off the pavement and discover the true magic of the Yellowstone. Two lesser-visited environments that are a favorite of Wilderness Ventures students are Shoshone Lake and the remote Thorofare Region.

The Thorofare Region. Dubbed part of “Secret Yellowstone” by National Geographic Adventure magazine, the Thorofare describes the historic route traversing the nation’s Continental Divide. However, the Thorofare is most famous as the region housing the furthest point from any road in the Lower 48 United States. Likewise, the ranger’s outpost cabin here is the single dwelling furthest from any other developed structure in the contiguous states.

Wilderness Ventures students on the 22-day Yellowstone Wilderness Leadership Expedition traverse through the iconographic and beautiful Thorofare region as part of their integrated backpacking and sea kayaking adventure. First, the group enters the remote Teton Wilderness to the southeast of Yellowstone National Park. Then, while learning empowering and fulfilling backcountry skills under the careful instruction and supervision of our expert leaders, they traverse the Thorofare to the remote southeastern shore of Yellowstone Lake (the largest body of water above 7,000 feet in North America). On the pristine shores of Yellowstone Lake, the group meets up with our Wilderness Ventures Sea Kayaking Specialist and makes a rewarding and inspiring multi-day paddle out of the backcountry and back to civilization near Grant Village and Geyser Basin.

Shoshone Lake. While Wilderness Ventures is the only program accredited to conduct kayaking experiences with teenagers on any of Yellowstone’s pristine lakes, Yellowstone and lesser-known Lewis and Shoshone Lakes are the two most coveted paddling destinations within the National Park. Shoshone Lake especially offers a unique perspective on the backcountry of Yellowstone. Famous for its remote beauty, abundant wildlife, ample fish population and little-seen geysers, Shoshone Lake and its remote, backwater campsites have been a favorite environment for Wilderness Ventures students for the past four decades.

Wilderness Ventures groups enjoy multi-day paddling experiences that connect both Shoshone and Lewis Lakes – offering a unique perspective of both moving and flat water in the pristine Yellowstone backcountry. As with all specialized activities, paddling experiences in Yellowstone National Park are rewarding, beginner-friendly, safe and fun – teaching students life skills such as cooperation and team work that have real world applications sure to benefit students throughout their lives. Aside from the educational facets of an overnight sea kayaking adventure in Yellowstone National Park, students cherish these introductory but exciting paddling experiences as a time to connect with each other, tell stories around a crackling campfire, and gaze up and wonder at a Rocky Mountain starlit sky.

Adirondack Park is teeming with wildlife, including beaver, martens, moose, lynx and osprey.  Much of these abundant animal populations are due thanks to reintroduction efforts of native species that have taken place over the past decade.

This summer, a few lucky students completing the 6th grade will have the opportunity the enjoy the park’s, 2,000 miles of hiking trails, countless lakes and streams, and infinitely renowned beauty on the 14-day Adirondack Explorer.  Designed especially and carefully for our youngest students, the Adirondack Explorer Adventure is a fantastic and inspiring introduction to the outdoors.

Like all of our student outdoor adventure programs, the Adirondack Explorer Adventure aims to promote a lifelong love for the outdoors while teaching valuable team and leadership skills. Throughout their two-week adventure, students will learn to camp, cook and have the time of their lives in some of the most beautiful (and inspiring) destinations on the planet, including the Hudson River Gorge, the Champlain and Green Mountains, Lake Placid and, of course, Adirondack Park.

As one of the literal and emotional high points of their adventure, the small group of students (accompanied, of course, by highly trained Wilderness Ventures leaders) will hike up to the top of Cascade  Mountain where they’ll camp overnight on a true backcountry-style expedition. Opening up the magic of a night in the wilderness to sixth graders continues Wilderness Ventures’ strong legacy of providing the highest quality backpacking experiences on the planet. This is a great way for students to enjoy a fun and introductory immersion into the outdoors.

For more information about the Adirondack Explorer Adventure, our other trips designed especially for sixth graders (including the Yellowstone, California and Oregon Explorer Adventures), or, for information about any of our inspiring teen outdoor adventure programs, call 800-533-2281.

One of the best-known tribes for their desert artistry is the Anasazi people. Romanticized for their pueblo dwellings and dramatic rock art, the Anasazi (Navajo for “Ancient Ones”) lived in immense pueblo cities, accessible via ladders that they could pull away in refuge of approaching enemies.

The Southwest Service Adventure spends time learning about and living with local indigenous populations. The group stays as guests of the Navajo Nation, visiting with World War II-era Code Talkers and contributing to much needed service projects within the village. Since the ancient, indigenous inhabitants of the American Southwest were agricultural experts (growing their food in this harsh but beautiful climate), we also contribute our time working and learning at a the Santa Fe Community Farm and, completing the supply chain, in the Food Bank of Santa Fe. Of course, the best way to experience the magic of the desert is on foot, and so we’ll take hikes to many of the little known pictograph sites as we travel through this very special region.

The Colorado Utah Mountain Biking and Colorado Utah Adventures allow students the chance to explore the environment and indigenous art of the Southwest Canyon Country. Visiting both Arches and Canyon Lands National Parks is a great way to begin to experience the concentration of beauty in the region. Additionally, groups will get out and explore some of the most amazing pictographs in the American Southwest – both on foot and via mountain bike and whitewater raft.

While there are examples of ancient pictographs throughout North America, the most impressive and beautiful examples lie in the Southwest. Wilderness Ventures students on the Southwest Service, Colorado Utah and Colorado Utah Mountain Bike Adventures have unprecedented opportunities to witness, first hand, the beauty of these pre-Columbian works of art. The Southwestern desert is a place where time seems to stand still. Experience this fantastic region with Wilderness Ventures.

Cusco is a rich cultural capital and the jumping off place to Peru’s most spectacular Inca ruins. The city itself is also an UNESCO World Heritage Site. Incan history says that when the sun god Inti created the first Inca he gave him a golden rod and told him to settle where he could plunge it into the ground until it disappeared – the spot that would be known forever as the “naval of the earth.” Funny enough, even today Cusco has a feeling of vibrancy and possibility that give you the immediate impression that you are somehow at the center of all things.

Arriving at Machu Picchu is sure to be one of the greatest moments of your life. The great Inca ruin is absolutely stunning – a perfectly preserved piece of architecture from a different, but highly developed, society. The local Quechua were the only people who knew of the ruin’s existence until they guided American Historian Hiram Bingham there in 1911.

The Sacred Valley stretches between Cuzco and the Andean Village of Ollantaytambo (the last stop on the road before travelers must board the train to Machu Picchu). This is a high, alpine environment, richly dotted with Inca Ruin sites and agrarian villages. This is also the location where Wilderness Ventures students complete an annual service project with one of the local villages in need.

The Inca Trail (and the more-scenic alternative Inca Trail routes) traverse the ridgeline of the Andes between the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu. While routes vary, most trails visit Inca ruins along the way, making a multi-night trek and ending at either the Machu Picchu citadel itself or the nearby Machu Picchu staging village of Aquas Calientes.

Wilderness Ventures students have the opportunity to visit Machu Picchu, Cusco and the Sacred Valley on the 22-day Peru Service Adventure, which also explores the Amazon Jungle while rafting the famous Apurimac River and Lake Titicaca (the highest navigable body of water in the world). The Peru Service Adventure is offered to high school students two times throughout the summer season, and is the most immersive, safe, enjoyable and well-integrated way that teenagers can travel to Peru.