Tips for successful hikes include explaining to young hikers what their trip will be like; learning the trip route including weather patterns, indigenous wildlife, unique topography, and water resources; establishing a leader to help keep the group together; and other basic elements of good hiking. Includes backpack essentials for hikers and…

Provides guidelines for planning and conducting a guided nature walk of short duration (1-3 hours) that provides opportunities for spontaneous teachable moments. Includes pre-hike planning related to public relations, the theme of the walk, and the trail; and tips for matching the presentation of material, discussion, and group activities to…

An expedition is different from other forms of overnight wilderness travel in that it involves extended time and distance in the field; it is beyond the reach of immediate rescue; and the party is self-contained regarding gear, provisions, and decision-making responsibilities. Successful expeditions may prove to be powerful, life-changing…

Outdoor leadership aims to assist outdoor participants in making logical and safe transitions from the routine of everyday life to a positive interaction with the natural world. Designed for outdoor leaders and administrators of recreational, educational, and adventure programs, this book provides an overview of current professional practices in…

Summarizes risk-management research in categories of practical relevance to outdoor recreation stakeholders and the research community: conceptualization of risk; risk/benefit studies; risk monitoring; risk management in organizations and programs (identification, evaluation, control, planning, evaluation); legal issues; and risk communication.…

The Wilderness Education Association (WEA) helps people enjoy and protect our nation's most precious resource: Our wilderness areas. The WEA has been training and certifying outdoor leaders around the world for nearly 30 years, teaching students safely and effectively to lead groups in the outdoors without harming the environment. In addition,…

Paul Petzoldt, co-founder of the Wilderness Education Association (WEA), helped mold the profession of outdoor leadership as we know it today. After his death in 1999, numerous field journals, old speeches, and personal correspondence were salvaged in order to refresh, clarify, and preserve Petzoldt's philosophy and teaching methods. The…

Guidelines for beginning adventure education instructors include preparing to effectively manage accidents by identifying all risks associated with an activity, leading only those adventure activities in which one feels competent, and establishing goals in order to make good decisions in the field and approach programs with clarity and purpose.…

In response to the growth and diversification of adventure programming, the Association for Experiential Education developed an accreditation process that addresses both the fluid nature of adventure programming and the need for specificity in standards. This book describes exemplary administrative practices and policies of accredited adventure…

The Wilderness Education Association (WEA) helps people enjoy and protect our nation's most precious resource: Our wilderness areas. They have been training and certifying outdoor leaders around the world for nearly 30 years, teaching students safely and effectively to lead groups in the outdoors without harming the environment. In addition,…