fall backpacking class

“Hey Buddha Bear, did you teach a fall backpacking class this fall? If so, how did it go. We just finished mine, and hiked to Kane lake in the Pioneer mountains of Idaho. It was 15 degrees, but very pretty.”

“Buddha Bear has something going on (that he won't tell anyone about) and won't be posting for a while.”

“I planned on it, but nobody signed up, so it was cancelled! How did your students handle the hike? Did they like it/come prepared for it? My group this spring loved it. I think teaching the stuff takes "yearsd" off the life of backpacking mistakes: i.e. overweight packs, too many useless items, how to prepare, etc. Thanks for your advice BTW, and I hope my plan helped you as well (many TT'rs contributed to it)”

“My group ended up being 13 people, at least 6 of whom had never hiked before. They "camped", but on the backpack, they realized that car camping is way different than backpacking. Sadly, most of the total newbies were quite a bit overweight, so the hike was a struggle for them. (1600' elevation gain, 3 miles). But the lake was drop dead gorgeous, we were able to camp on grass, and saw a mountain goat. I got some new class materials. Send me your email address again, and I'll send you copies. You can keep me updated on your class. I also have lesson plans, if that would help you.”

“I am impressed.”

“Well, my lesson plans are probably pretty crude compared to real ones, but they are notes that prompt me for subjects to cover. This is my 7th year teaching the fall class, so its getting pretty easy.”

“Idaho Bob - just curious. What prompts these folks to step outside their comfort zone and into backpacking?”

“hey Buddha - i may need to consult with you on lesson plans. somebody at church has found out that i backpack, and it seems the girls have been complaining that the boys get to go out hiking and camping but they don't (because none of their moms want to) - so guess who might get asked to start teaching the girls? it's a rumour right now, but i get the feeling it will happen soon. i'm already thinking about where i'll take them for our first dayhike.”

“One guy was in the Natl guard and they basically did a lot of car camping in their mechanized guard job. They ate MREs, and brought Coleman 2 burner stoves with them. He and his wife thought that backpacking would be fun, and wanted to try it.

Another person, a college gal, had been introduced by her Dad to hiking (day hikes), wasn't thrilled by it, but being out on her own, now wanted to try it.

One gal just thought it sounded like fun. Her husband said that if she took the class and liked it, she could buy a bunch of gear. She already had a nice down sleeping bag, and got gear for Christmas, but was stoked about more gear after the trip.

One gal was a recent grad in Middle Eastern History, and her Dad had hiked the APT. She called him to ask for $100 to buy gear for the trip, and he sent her $200. She borrowed a pack, rented a sleeping bag, and bought some clothes. She was totally surprised at how tired she was carrying a pack at 9000 feet. The lake was 9200'.

All of these people were way out of shape, and the trip was a challenge for them. The lake was only 3 miles in, but the trail was from people using it, it had never been built as a real trail. Consequently, it dissappeared in places, and crossed some talus fields, and was hard to see. The last 450 feet was up and across some big rock slabs, and through a gap in a cliff below the lake. That was pretty scenic, and made it seem like a big conquest. Then the lake was turquise blue from glacier milk, and rock falls were crashing down the cliffs periodically. The lake was so pristine and pretty, everyone realized you couldn't see places like that without putting the effort. Seeing the goat on the cliffs was a bonus, as was some of the guys catching some nice trout.”

“wow, IdaBob, you have been teaching the class for 7 years?!?! Thats' very cool. My class starts this week...so far, I have 11 students. I had planned on 2 classes (the community college has 2 campuses) but there was a significant lack of interest (i.e. 1 friggin student signed up) at one of the locations.

I deliberately planned my "backpack" trip to be a short hike in to set up basecamp. From there, we'll dayhike, based on each person's ability. I'm trying to keep it manageable, in case the crowd is too mixed in physical ability.

I am psyched to see how this goes! :o)

thanks again, Buddhy, for some helpful info.”

“AmyG: How many class sessions are you teaching, and how many hours per session? Is this the first time you've taught it? Want to see my material?”

“Hey, I'd be happy to see material from someone who has been doing this longer than me. Pleeeease, send away! AmyG@backpacker.com
:o)

This is my first time teaching backpacking and actually and getting paid. LOL
I have taught quite a few newbies on a one to one basis and I enjoyed it. As far as other teaching goes, I've taught ESL and assisted some courses related to my Wilderness EMT cert.”

“How is the class going? Mine ended up with a surprise. I got a blister from new boots, and thought nothing of it. A week later, the blister had not healed and was in fact looking pretty nasty. I went to the emergency room and got antibiotics for the infection that wouldn't heal. Were it not for antibiotics, I would have lost the foot when the infection got to the bone. That's pretty scary!”

“Talk about "hands on" teaching!”

“BB you have mail!!!!!!!!!!!!”

“sounds cool everyone. your making me want to look into doing this in my area. where would a person start?

feel free to email me any info. mccracdb_1@msn.com

thanks”

“Hey Idaho! My class went very well...it seemed to fly by. I had 9 students in my first class and they were all very enthusiastic. I had great interaction with them and kept the course as hands-on as possible. The feedback (course evaluations and stuff) was very positive and the college has invited me to stay on as adjunct faculty. >:D

I am psyched and now preparing for next semester's classes. The best part of this deal is the field trip portion. I have separated the class from the trips, so that students can sign up for trips that fit their individual interest and abilities. Basically, the college is paying me to take students backpacking - sweeeet!

I'm glad your class went so well. Sorry to hear about your foot. That is scary! How bad was the blister, that it progressed to such a bad infection?
(and what, no pictures? LOL)
Seriously though, I'm glad you're ok.

baume - I started by creating a syllabus and class outline. I also created a website with basic info for beginner backpacking. My wilderness medicine course was also part of the plan, since I felt that it was an important safety feature for a backpacking guide. Being a licensed Wilderness EMT gives me some credentials (a big selling point with the college). After you get everything together, start soliciting the local YMCA, Scouts, community colleges, parks, or anything else you can think of who may want to offer a class.

In addition to my college class, I will also soon be instructing for the local Civil Air Patrol Squadron.

I can't think of a better way to share our love of the outdoors than to teach others about it. Also, emphasizing low-impact and LNT hiking and camping benefits everyone.

Go for it!”

“thanks for the start ideas amyg. i may need to expand my credentials before hitting the local schools and associations. i think your point on wilderness and safety are great.”

“i meant "wilderness medicine and safety"”

“AmyG, can I get a copy of your syllabus and any good materials you used?”

“Hey IdaBob, I'd be glad to send you some stuff...send me an e-mail with your addy and I'll mail ya a CD. There is just too much to send via e-mail, with my slow connection.

AmyG@backpacker.com

BTW, my class trip last weekend was fantastic! I couldn't have asked for better weather or a better group of people. The full moon at night also made for a nice nighthike from basecamp and we got to howl with the wolves, as promised. :o)

I've got some pics here”

“looks like ya'll had fun, amyg!”

“Cool Deal AmyG....I see what you were saying about the snake....

I'm so proud of you...our little AmyG is growing up and teaching now......YIKES!”

“Phil was nice enough to post some photos of the class, and the lake we camped at. They are at

http://www.csupomona.edu/~rosenkrantz/personal/idahobob.htm

Some people had earlier asked about the makeup of the class, and you can see from the photo that it was a group that had a wide range in age and experience.”

“This is off subject, but what can you tell me about the Sandpoint area? North?? If you had any input regarding the communities surrounding, could you spare a moment to send me an e-mail?

Preciate it.”

“Looks like you had a nice class. They looked to be enjoying themselves Idaho Bob!”

“It was an exceptional class. Two guys had also been students of my winter camping class, and several of these people said they are planning to attend the next winter camping class. The two return students asked to be able to go with the winter camping group, so that will be fun.”

“You teach this class at the local community college, right? If so, what process did you go through in order to prove your qualifications to teach?”

“BB, this class is a one credit class at Boise State Univ, in the Kinesiology Dept, which is what my generation called Phys Ed. When I moved to Boise about 8 years ago, I decided I wanted to start a youth hiking group, like the one I had started hiking with. That group was affiliated with the YMCA, so I approached the local Y and made a proposal. They said they had actually been given $1000 by REI to investigate a hiking group, but they decided not to do it. They referred me to BSU, where they told me that they had a backpacking class, and a winter camping class, but each class had a teacher already. A month later they called me because the winter camping teacher had quit, and invited me to submit a resume. I made a resume of hiking experience. I put down there some information about hiking, mountain rescue, nordic ski patrol, etc, but it turned out that what they were really interested in was first aid training. I had plenty of that from ski patrol, so I was the winter camping teacher. A year later the backpacking teacher croaked, and I began teaching both classes.

As far as starting such a program from scratch, I think if you submitted a proposal most schools would consider it, especially if they didn't already have a program in place.

If I had a month off, I'd love to teach a month long mountaineering course, with rapelling, roped climbing, peak climbing, etc. Maybe when I retire.”