ll of my summers before had followed the same plan--wake up late, sit in the sun, and enjoy my time relaxing. That is...until my parents wanted me to do something with my time. They decided to sign me up for Outward Bound.
At first, I was angry with my parents for sending me away from my much needed vacation time, but when I read more about the trip I actually got excited. Little did I know, after two weeks in the wild I was going to come back dirty, cut up, and with dreadlocks.
Outward Bound is a non-profit organization that was created to help kids challenge themselves to find a greater sense of development and self discovery. Outward Bound has four values: compassion, integrity, excellence, and inclusion. We learned all of these values through the easy principles of experience, challenge, and the environment.
Even though it sounds easy, Outward Bound is a hard-core adventure. But if you don’t like being outside and have a problem being without a shower for two weeks, then it isn’t the program for you.
When I stepped off the plane, I was met by 40 teenagers and two adults, one of which looked like he came straight from Woodstock.
Soon, we were split up into groups, and I was ready to spend my days rock climbing and backpacking. What I wasn’t prepared for was the lack of tents and the 30 pounds of food and supplies that I had to carry on my back everyday.
The two instructors with us were young hippies who probably hadn’t bathed in weeks and kind of smelled, but they seemed cool. They taught us how to apply ourselves and about teamwork, all while having the time of our lives.
Five guys and four girls made up our patrol, which is the group you camp with. Out of all of the patrols, ours was by far the closest. Each of us had our own challenges. Whether it was fear of heights or something that was happening at home, we overcame it together. We had become a family.
One of the main ideas Outward Bound focuses on is reflection. Once every trip has reached its peak the instructors send their students to a secluded area, where they will not see anyone else for around 30 hours.
I was sent off into an area that was on a cliff overlooking the High Sierras in California, and for the next day, I had to depend on a small bag of granola, lake water, and the moon for light at night.
When we came back from "solo," we shared stories of our time alone. We all had completely different experiences. Some of us caught up on sleep while others made friends with wildlife.
Over 14 days the 11 of us, including our instructors, repelled down a 200 foot cliff, climbed over 150 feet of vertical rock, and hiked up to 9,011 feet. But soon we were at a base camp, our last night together, wishing that life could continue like it had the past two weeks.
When my Outward Bound adventure began, I couldn’t wait for those two weeks to be over. By the end, I wished I could stay for two more weeks. What I thought was just going to be a normal summer turned into the best experience of my life.