COURSE OVERVIEW

Course Number

NPA6-2431

Date

December 30, 2024 - January 10, 2025

PAtagonia backpacking & service

Activities

FINAL CHALLENGE EVENT

At the end of your course, you will participate in a personal challenge event. This is a great time to see how much your physical fitness and endurance have improved since you began your course. This event will be a running activity. It is not a race. Your instructors set a certain route for your crew and you complete the route at a level that will challenge you the most.

SOLO

Solo typically occurs more than halfway through your course and may last between 24-72 hours. Your instructors will assign each participant an individual campsite within a designated area. Your instructors will teach you procedures to follow during solo and monitor you during this experience. You will know the location of your instructors’ campsite should you need to contact them; otherwise it is essential that you remain in your designated area. If your course has an overnight solo you will have your clothing, food and water.  In addition, you will have Outward Bound issued gear: including rain gear, shelter, sleeping bag, compass and whistle. You will not be physically active during solo, as solo is a time for rest, recharge and reflection. Solo is also a good time to write in the journals we provide. If you have questions or concerns, please discuss with your Student Services Representative or your instructors.  

BACKPACKING

Activities during this phase will include the following:

  • Alpine Expedition: Expect elevation shifts between 2,500 and 8,000 feet as you traverse through Nahuel Huapi National Park, the oldest and largest National Park in Argentina.

Skills: map and compass navigation, expedition planning, Leave No Trace minimum- impact techniques, first-aid, emergency procedures and weather forecasting.

SERVICE

Service will be a continuous theme throughout your course. The ethic of service is practiced through Leave No Trace camping techniques, reaching out with compassion to your fellow crewmates and working together as a team to overcome the challenges of Outward Bound. On your course, an ethic of service is practiced in greater depth. Our service projects are ever changing: building fences, painting homes, harvesting fruit and building structures are some of the projects we have done in the past. No matter what project you work on the ethic of service is in everything that we do; helping people while expecting nothing in return for our labor. There is much to learn from the local population’s strong cultural traditions of a simple lifestyle, emphasis on family, close ties to the earth and the natural reward of working with your hands. Alert your instructor AT COURSE START if you need written verification or documentation of service project hours.