38°
During the month-long Wyoming Backpacking Adventure course for 14- and 15-year-olds, students did not have access to modern conveniences and were challenged to step outside their comfort zones. The NOLS education stresses that leadership can be learned and is based on the belief that the outdoors is a challenging environment where students will learn technical skills and learn about themselves.
Boyle, his nine course mates and two instructors spent 30 days backpacking in the Bighorn Mountains in northern Wyoming, traveling over varied terrain including meadows, valleys, high passes and boulder fields. The group learned to safely evaluate and cross rivers using the eddy and tripod methods.
A highlight of the course was wildlife sightings, including moose, elk, deer, marmots, pika and many bird species. All students participated in a three-day, two-night independent student expedition. Overall, hikers trekked 95 miles and gained 15,050 feet of elevation.
Boyle joined the NOLS alumni network of over 221,000 graduates.
For more information about NOLS, click here.
Click here to follow Daily Voice Darien and receive free news updates.
