Courses in CLIMBING & CONSERVATION: AMERICAN WEST TO PATAGONIA

Spend a semester rock climbing and travelling through the Colorado Rocky Mountains, Greater Canyonlands of Utah, and breathtaking Patagonia. You will go into great depth to advance your climbing and outdoor skills for the entire semester while studying pressing environmental issues and participating in hands-on conservation projects.

Program Highlights

Develop and hone your skills in bouldering, sport, traditional and multi-pitch climbing at world-class climbing destinations.

Summit iconic sandstone towers and remote alpine walls

Hike through Colorado's highest peaks, the canyons of Utah, and the backcountry of Patagonia.

Learn to live, travel comfortably, and rock climb in the wilderness and international destinations.

Investigate pressing conservation issues while working with service partners to protect and restore these wild places

Become part of an incredible community dedicated to personal growth, outdoor exploration, and adventure.

Colorado Section: You begin the course with an 8-day backpacking trip through the rugged Rocky Mountains right outside Leadville, Colorado. Even if you've never backpacked before, you learn to live and travel comfortably and confidently in remote and challenging terrain, cooking delicious meals on a single-burner stove and sleeping in lightweight tents. During these first few days, you come together as a community, getting to know each other through evening discussions, being part of a small test group, and supporting each other as "Leaders of the Day." Along the way, you'll also spend a few days at a backcountry alpine rock climbing site, where those with no climbing experience acquire the basics. At the same time, experienced climbers get to challenge themselves in a new and beautiful setting.

Utah Section: After transitioning back from the wilderness expedition, you'll be at three different base-camps in the other-worldly landscape of the Greater Canyonlands near Moab, Utah. On the sweeping sandstone walls and iconic towers of the desert, you learn and practice more advanced climbing skills, including lead climbing, placing removable protection, building anchors, rock rescue, and multi-pitch systems. There is ample time to have fun climbing and pursue your personal goals within this extensive skill development.

Rock climbing isn't the only way to explore the desert, however. In addition to the time we spend climbing, you'll explore the area through day hikes in labyrinthine canyons, running on world-class trails, town days in Moab, and visits to ancient Puebloan cultural sites.

During our time in Utah, you will participate in a 10-day volunteer project to mitigate the impact in climbing areas that have seen increasing visitation and environmental degradation. Whether building trails, restoring campgrounds, or creating belay platforms, you will be part of an important project that helps protect the fragile desert environment.

Patagonia Section: For the culminating section of the course, you will travel to the heart of Patagonia. Here, you apply your climbing and backcountry skills to a new environment, using your knowledge and experience to journey to some of the wildest landscapes in the world. You will arrive in Chile Chico, a small town on the border of Chile and Argentina. After a few days in town, exploring the culture and settling into a different way of life, you will set off on a backcountry climbing expedition to Cerro Colorado. After a few days trekking over expansive pampas to get to the mountain, you will set up camp beneath the towering peak for a week to practice traditional climbing and attempt to summit this impressive mountain.

The Patagonia section's final leg is spent in the Cerro Castillo region, an area that has recently been discovered as an international destination for sport climbing. Here, you will stay in the charming town of Villa Cerro Castillo, right along the Carretera Austral, the southern road of Chile. You will take more ownership of the day's climbing activities, deciding where the group climbs, the schedule for the day, and managing setting up and taking down routes. You will also get to push yourself physically and solidify the skills you have acquired and practised throughout the semester. Amidst your climbing objectives, you will work with locals to ensure proper management of this newly developed activity.

The semester ends with several culminating events. You will write and discuss a personal mission statement and present your personal environmental ethic to the group. You will also complete a 24-36 hour solo, taking the time to reflect on what this experience has meant for you and what you hope to take with you into your future endeavours and adventures.