Outward Bound

This 55 day outdoor course is meant to challenge you, but it was not what I had originally expected. It is not an outdoor boot camp, it is much more about learning to live in a community with others and work to accomplish challenges together. After completing even a single element of the course you leave the backcountry with an immense sense of accomplishment and confidence in yourself. This course is meant to give you all the skills to be an outdoor educator- there are a lot of technical skill lessons on each element (such as how to set up and manage a rock climbing site), and we got a lot of practice teaching lessons to each other and growing as teachers in general. The instructors create an amazing culture of feedback and support to really allow for personal growth, professional growth, and self discovery. I learned a lot about myself.

My Outward Bound Outdoor Educator experience was nothing short of a life-defining adventure that helped me to grow as a person, master high-level technical skills, and prepare me for what a career in the Outdoor Education industry would entail. The expedition embarked in stunning locales including the Penobscot Bays and Appalachian Mountains of Maine and I met a crew of incredible human beings who were all there to further develop themselves as people and future professionals. The highlight of this incredible 50-day excursion was the camaraderie, solidarity, and mentorship I was provided by my instructors and crew, as well as the supportive and resilient environment that was created to help me walk away from this course knowing what the path would be for becoming an Outdoor Educator and serving others.

My experience with Outward Bound was (and continues to be) nothing short of life-changing. The instructors balanced fun, interpersonal connection, and structure with the inherent learning that stems from an intense expedition, all while acting as wonderful mentors during a transitional time in my life. Through the experience, my physical and emotional resilience grew immensely, I found a newfound comfort in vulnerability, and I began to see challenge less as an obstacle and more as an opportunity to grow. I attended during the winter, so I got to experience the magic of dogsledding in Minnesota. It is nearly impossible to express just how incredible it feels to bond with a team of dogs as you make your way across the BWCA. The semester was unforgettable, but the dogsledding portion holds a special place in my heart. Going on leadership semester was one of the most difficult yet formative experiences of my life, and I'd do it all over again without a second thought.

On top of the immense personal growth that the course fostered, VOBS also encouraged me to bring my personal DSLR camera, which introduced me to backcountry photography. It gave me the opportunity to navigate various harsh environments with fragile pieces of equipment and helped me develop skills that I am now applying toward a career in film. This is NOT a photography-oriented program, but it's worth mentioning as I thoroughly enjoyed that element of the semester.

A year and a half out of college, I went into Voyageur Outward Bound's Pathfinder program feeling lost and anxious. I was excited for a break from the stressors of home and while I was optimistic about enjoying the experience, I vastly underestimated the life change I was about to experience. The Pathfinder curriculum is powerful because it offers practical life tools and then allows you to practice those skills in a wilderness setting where your survival depends on your ability to use those skills effectively alongside your fellow travelers. It is both the safest and the riskiest place to work on becoming your best self, because the consequences and the support are both very real.

Besides the excellent content of the course, Big Bend itself is a spectacular course area with an incredible amount of variation. I never expected to love the desert, but now I can't get it out of my head. I will never forget what I saw and the way it felt.

Pathfinder led me to further involvement with VOBS and put me on the path to becoming an instructor, but whether outdoor education is your interest or not - Pathfinder courses offer powerful tools to re-imagine your life and redefine what you're capable of. I wanted to believe that everyone was capable of leadership, but I did not fully believe this about myself until this course.

My semester experience with Outward Bound was more than I ever thought it could be. The amazing people I met and traveled with, the beautiful natural environments I called home during our expedition, the personal growth I experienced, and the technical successes I achieved are just a few of the aspects of my time with Outward Bound that made my course an incredible life event. I learned more about myself, gained new confidence and motivation, mastered new technical skills, and broadened my perspective on the world. And the fact that all of this development was part of an outdoor adventure full of new and exciting personal experiences made my Outward Bound semester a highly formative and memorable moment in my life.