Develop outdoor skills. Enhance your leadership and communication abilities. Strive to increase your knowledge of the environment – all while learning wilderness travel techniques in a variety of stunning environments. The ultimate goal of our Gap Year expeditions is to help you develop the confidence, knowledge, and integrity essential for effective leadership. Whether you are learning how to safely tie in on belay, deciding as a group how to navigate through new terrain, or setting up a minimum-impact campsite for the evening, you’ll be honing and practicing skills for life.  

• Build skills, form connections: Amidst rugged natural landscapes, learn to lead and to follow; to give and receive feedback; and to trust in your own capabilities as you expand your technical and personal knowledge base. Find connections with your crewmates based on support and respect (and fun too!), and in the thick of challenges, discover there is more in you than you know.
• Value strengths and strengthen values: Uncover your unique character strengths, exercise your independence as you gain life experience and learn how to let compassion in to everyday life by pushing your own limits and supporting your crew as you tackle obstacles together, big and small.
• Demonstrate mastery: As you gain confidence in new skills and a better understanding of the natural world around you, take on more decision-making responsibilities. Work together to achieve team goals, solve problems and succeed both as independent individuals and as a group.
• What you’ll learn: Examine your personal values and discover more about your true self. Hone your technical abilities as you become a master at ropes courses or swiftwater rescue techniques and Wilderness First Aid. Numerous certificates are available depending on the course, and up to 18 credit hours can be earned along the way.
  

Exploring new environments and building new connections will put your tenacity to the test. You’ll return with broader understanding of the natural world around you, deeper appreciation for small kindnesses and greater confidence in yourself and others that will serve you well long after you return.

Outward Bound is accredited with the American Gap Association and is the longest running program in this elite group dedicated to providing safe, meaningful and high-caliber educational experiences to students.

Alongside our experienced instructors, you’ll learn everything you need to know about how to read wave conditions, maintain equipment, and practice surf etiquette and technique.

Gain skills in the basics of surfboard selection, beach safety, pad­dling techniques, and popping up on your board. Venture to the Pacific Coast and practice what you’ve learned in the warm tropical waters – great for beginner and experienced surfers. Steps away from the waves, your instructors will teach an initial surf lesson, and you’ll begin to practice your new skills in the water. As your skills progress, you will realize just how amazing this sport can be and your ability to learn new things. Alternatively, have fun in the tropical waves on a boogie board.

During whitewater training, students acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to paddle Class II, III, and possibly IV rapids. For two weeks, the group follows the water around Costa Rica, paddling several rivers and setting out on day trips and multi-day expeditions. Depending on water levels, students paddle in inflatable kayaks or a raft. If comfortable, students can even give a try at guiding the raft through some rapids. 

Depart early to your “far from the tourist route” trailhead, which will take you to some of the most spectacular hidden gems in central Costa Rica. Enjoy hiking through pristine cloud and rainforests, learning about the flora and fauna that thrive in one of the most biodiverse countries of the world. Make camp along the trail and rest under tarps with the sounds of the for­est to lull you to sleep. Debrief, dive into Costa Rican culture and traditions, and learn about your new rainforest surroundings through nightly meetings to gain the most out of this unique experience.

Continue hiking through jaw-dropping rainforest areas. Spend a night at a Rainforest Eco Lodge where a breathtaking mountain view and local family welcome you. Learn how locals live in this remote part of the coun­try while enjoying a beautiful open-air, sustainable rainforest home. At nightfall, venture out for a mini excursion to spot rare and colorful Costa Rican tree frog species in their natu­ral habitat at a conservation site on the grounds of the lodge. Spend the night in cozy dorms overlooking the mountains.

Service projects are often incorporated into Outward Bound courses through coordination with local land managers, conservation groups, government, or social service agencies.

On this course, students will be able to give back to the local community by volunteering on service projects where they will gain an understanding of the impact every individual can have on people, wildlife, and the environment. For example, students may participate in a beach clean-up, help a local hatchery prepare for sea turtle nesting, or assist with the high elevation rainforest reserve where the local government runs an environmental education reforestation program for local school children.

While in the wilderness, students are also encouraged to practice service to the environment and their team by sharing responsibilities and following Recreate Responsibly ethics throughout the expedition.

Costa Rica

The coastal and river environments of Costa Rica provide a perfect backdrop for expanding wilderness travel skills. This small tropical nation is fast becoming a renowned destination for whitewater rafting, surfing, rainforest trekking, and eco-adventures in general. About the size of West Virginia, Costa Rica has a variety of climates including tropical dry forest, rainforest, and cloud forest. Due to its mountainous landscape and tropical rainfall, Costa Rica boasts more whitewater rivers than any other country of its size. The warm tropical rivers cut through lush tropical rainforests and create an ideal rafting playground. For the surfing phase, the Pacific Ocean will provide participants with exceptional surf conditions year-round for beginner to advanced surfers. On the surf expedition, the group will camp, cook, hike, and surf together. On the hiking phase, students will tarp camp as well as stay in homestays. Sometimes students will cook their own meals and sometimes the family at the homestay will provide meals for them. For the rafting phase, students will stay in a treehouse-style lodge and prepare their meals together. When at our rainforest basecamp, students will share bunk bed style dorms and have meals prepared for them by our kitchen staff.

These regions are the ancestral lands of the Chorotega, Malécu, Rama, Bostos, Nicarao/Nahoa, Huetar, Tjer-di/Teribe Broram, Brunka, Bribri, Buglé and Ngäbé nations.