BACKPACKING & WILDERNESS SKILLS OVERVIEW

Looking to learn the skills to go out into the wilderness  on your own? Perhaps you have long distance backpacking goals such as John Muir Trail? Learning from a professional mountain guide can drastically shorten the learning curve.  A Sierra Nevada backpacking & mountain skills course that will teach you all the fundamentals of backpacking with instruction in wilderness and mountain travel skills.

Conducted near Yosemite National Park in the Eastern Sierra Wilderness, we spend three informative days learning all the techniques to make you an efficient and safe mountain traveler and what to do when things go wrong in the wilderness. Instruction includes:

  • Proper packing and lightweight gear selection

  • Off-trail Navigation with map, compass & GPS

  • Stream crossings

  • Campsite selection and proper camp set-up

  • Leave No Trace Ethics

  • Backcountry cooking

  • Basic wilderness first-aid concerns & Self Rescue

  • Use of an ice axe for crossing summer snowfields

Along the way there will be plenty of time for enjoying the incredible beauty and quiet of the Sierra wilderness. Nights are spend sampling great backcountry cuisine and reflecting on the days seminars.

This course is well suited for those with some previous backpacking experience looking to refine their skills or those who are starting from scratch.

 
 
 

EXPERIENCE & PHYSICAL FITNESS REQUIREMENTS

  • Previous day hiking experience is required with the ability to hike up to 8 miles in a day

  • Very good physical condition required.

This is a beginner backpacking trip in which you will carry a 30-40 lb pack for the duration of the trip.

Curious how to rate your physical ability? Check out our Physical Ability Page

2025 DATES

June 6-8
June 20-22
July 11-13
August 30 - September 1

Custom dates available June though October

 

COST: $995

INCLUDES

  • Breakfast, lunch, and dinner prepared by your guide while in the field

  • Professional local mountain guides certified in emergency wilderness medicine, food handling & Leave No Trace Principles & trained in local natural history.

  • Backpacks, sleeping bag and pad, trekking poles and eating utensils if needed ($25 cleaning fee for using our sleeping bags)

  • Tents, all group camping gear and permits